Suddenly, I’ve found myself with a lot of free time. I never realized how much of my day was taken up with commuting, little conversations, and dawdling at shop windows. Now, though… There’s not a lot that occupies my time. In order to keep sane, I decided to re-start some of my hobbies and gain some new skills. Here is a list of the videos/crafts I’ve used to help kick-start my creativity.
- Drawing Wildflowers
-
I have always admired doodles of wildflowers and whimsical sketches of nature. It’s more difficult than you would think to find step-by-step instructions without purchasing books or PDFs online. Luckily, here is a wonderful video that breaks down how to draw wildflowers for free:
- Nature Doodles
-
Of course, where do wildflowers live? In the mountains! Despite living in a valley surrounded by mountains, I certainly never took the time to really look at them to see how to draw them. I find this video much easier to follow.
- Drawing Collections
-
To fill up pages in my sketchbook, I’ve been drawing collections of similar objects. Seeing things grouped together is so satisfying on the page. Here’s an example of a collection: seashells!
- Cross Stitch
-
It only took a pandemic to do it, but I finally got back into cross stitch. However, my skills (and my needler) were pretty rusty. So, I had to watch some tutorials to get back in my A-game. A good tip — if you have the skills and the materials, but not the ideas, you can get cross stitch patterns on Etsy for very cheap with all sorts of funny quotes and lovely designs.
- Needle Felting
-
Here’s a fun craft not many have heard of! Needle felting is literally stabbing wool until it takes the shape you want. It’s a great way to get aggression out.
Quarantine can be incredibly dull. However, if you have a pencil and paper, or needle and thread, you can keep your sanity and increase your creativity.