While other countries are slowly opening up, London is still a few weeks behind and has only started loosening the lockdown restrictions. My motto over the last few weeks has been ” if this lockdown isn’t the time to take up a new hobby, I don’t know when is” so I’ve indulged in quite a few at-home activities in the last couple of weeks.

Pottery 101
I’m really not good with crafts and can never translate what’s in my head to whatever it is what I’m making, but my craving for new things to do was so high that I ordered a pottery kit from Sculpd and managed to actually assemble two pots. And it was a great way to kill a Bank Holiday weekend. There is still enough clay left for a few more sessions, so I’ll be making a hug buddy for the current one.

Read
I wasn’t going to buy books this year because my to-read pile was getting out of hand. I read a few classics and mixed it with whatever Prime has for free and after seeing The Flatmate everywhere I gave in and bought it on Kindle. It’s so not for me, I can’t even get through it as a hate read. Probably the worst £3 I spent in this lockdown.

Cross stitch
Last year I bought a mini set cross stitch set because I wanted to check of embroidery would be for me and this kit looked very accessible. It ended up untouched on a shelf, but then I found the kit a few weeks ago and it’s definitely keeping me occupied for a few hours and to practice mindfulness.

Cook more
I thought I had crossed it all off in the first few weeks, but cooking kept me busy. The last few weeks I’ve found joy in making things from scratch: everything from pizza dough, to pasta and tortilla wraps. So far, I’m most proud of my white pizza sauce creation, while the corn tortillas can use a bit more work.

Play Animal Crossing
Just like 11 million other people I found an escape in my paradise island, where I pay off my mortgage to a racoon, try to beat the stork market and check in on my island babies Deena and Bones – who tell me how amazing I am at all times.

Learn to play guitar
I tried to learn to play guitar before, but it never really went anywhere. I’ve got a guitar, a patient teacher and all the time, so I thought.. why not? I’m on 4 chords at the moment and going strong despite my fingers aching a bit, sooooo who wants to start a band on Zoom?

Watch movies & shows
Of course there’s always time for good old TV. I’ve noticed I’m tilting more towards watching shows rather than movies. So far I’ve finished Never Have I Ever, Unorthodox and Silicon Valley, and currently I’m watching Superstore and Succession. Movies I’ve enjoyed are the Lodge, How To Train Your Dragon Trilogy and Kikujiro.

Have you taken on any new hobbies?

Tea Is At Home

Awesome Things I’ve Seen & Done … At Home

It’s been four weeks since quarantine or ‘lockdown’ started here, so it’s time to post about some things I’ve been doing to stay sane, get purpose and create a sense of routine.

Baking & Cooking
Oh, I’ve spent a lot of time in the kitchen, because slow cooking is not only slow, but also comes with a lot of washing up and cleaning. Of course, I jumped on the baking and cooking from scratch bandwagon and made banana bread, Yorkshire puddings and bread. Other things I’ve been doing include pickling and fermenting leftover carrots, cabbage and cucumber. Now I need to find some recipes to go with that.

Growing & Regrowing
I bought an asparagus fern a few weeks before quarantine as I’m meant to keep something alive for my 20 for 2020 list. So far so good! I also went ahead and planted some seeds, including those peppers you get at Wahaca. And then there’s regrowing vegetables from scrap: celery, spring onions, leek and lettuce. I’m also trying coriander for the first time. In a week or four I’ll have the most random meal.

Movies & Series
I’ve binged Tiger King, finally gotten around watching Silicon Valley and getting through a lot of films. And most of them have been disappointing and I don’t even wish my worst enemy having to sit through many of them, though I’m sure they have the worst taste in music. Can recommend Gretel & Hansel and Motherless Brooklyn though. I expected to do more binge-watching, but I stumbled upon Animal Crossing and have been running around my island weeding the place, picking up twigs and bothering my other residents.

Supporting The Locals
I’ve enjoyed coffee beans and Oatly Barista from Lumberjack so I can make my lattes and mochas, a Patty & Bun lockdown survival kit as a pay day treat…and for this week I’m thinking of ordering something fiendishly good from the Cheese Truck…

On & Off The Blog
I have only published three posts so far, but I’ve been working on old blogs. In January I started refreshing my Amsterdam posts and so far I’ve replaced a lot of the images, lengthened posts and updated info. This quarter I’m tackling my Awesome Things I’ve Seen & Done in London posts and fixing broken backlinks across all pages.

Capturing Moments
Which brings me to taking time for photography and getting to know cameras and lenses better. And for some reason capturing my culinary creations, my improvised desk and other random moments helps me process.

What hobbies have you taken on during the lockdown? Would love to hear for inspiration.