Creative activities to enjoy at home
17th February 2021
The current lockdown that is in place across the UK as a result of the coronavirus pandemic has seen people staying at home for long periods of time.
Parents have been homeschooling, and some older people have had to shield since the outbreak of coronavirus. This has meant people have had to find new activities to pass the time and to stay creative. After all, you can only watch so much television and browse social media so many times.
No matter whether you suffer from mobility issues and need assistance from the use of homelifts or stairlifts and other mobility aids or you have no such issues, the below creative activities can be enjoyed by everyone at home so that you can maintain some normality.
Best creative activities to enjoy at home
•Knitting
•Writing
•Cooking and baking
•Puzzling
•Take an online art class
Knitting
Knitting is not just fun and creative, it has a host of health benefits as it reduces stress, improves your mental health and has even been linked to keeping Alzheimer’s at bay.
Christine, who is the writer behind the lifestyle blog Winwick Mum, highly recommends knitting as a creative activity that you should try at home, especially during the current coronavirus pandemic.
“Knitting is an ideal activity to try during the lockdown as it requires minimal equipment, and if you have never tried them, I’d recommend giving socks a go! They’re knitted ‘in the round’ which means no seams and are ideal for knitters with a good grasp of the basic skills of casting on, knitting and purling – even beginners!
“Keeping your hands and mind occupied is vital at the moment and knitting offers the perfect opportunity to do that, whether a beginner or an experienced knitter. If you are brand new to the skill, all of your attention will be on your hands and what you are doing; if you are more experienced, you might want to try out new patterns or projects to incorporate different techniques into your work. Once you become proficient and the muscle memory of the knitting action is firmly established, your mind becomes free to wander and relax.”
Writing
Another great activity that you can try at home which will get your creative juices flowing is writing. Studies have found that writing can help you think, improve your memory and improve your emotional wellbeing.
Sarah Bailey, the owner of Life in a Break Down and UK Bloggers, talks about how writing is her go-to creative outlet.
“As someone who isn't able to use their hands very well anymore, for me, my go-to creative outlet is now writing. This is because it allows you to use your imagination or let out the stresses of the day by talking about them with the world. For me writing each week about how lockdown has affected me and has allowed me to connect with others and let out thoughts and feelings which I would otherwise have bottled up.
“I think during lockdown being creative offers you a way to get your brain working. I know from times passed that if I don't use my brain in some form it almost starts to degrade and not work as quickly or well as it used to. So, making sure I have some form of creative outlet keeps it working and alive.”
Cooking and baking
Cooking and baking are more creative activities that you can try at home during the current lockdown.
You can dust off those old cookbooks or jump on the internet and pick out some new-to-you dishes or cuisines and have a go at cooking it. Why not try your hand at tossing a homemade pizza, becoming an expert mixologist or brewing your own kombucha?
Cooking at home has lots of health benefits as preparing healthy meals can support your immune system and reduce the risk of illnesses such as high blood pressure and diabetes, it can give you more energy, improve your sleep and it can also sharpen your mind.
If you are looking to cook a healthy meal for dinner, then one you could try is pasta with pumpkin and spinach. This is a dish that Anne from the Anne Travel Foodie blog recommends.
She said: “I love the combination of pasta and pumpkin, I made a pumpkin risotto dish before. For this oven-baked pasta, I combined it with another favourite ingredient of mine: spinach.
“I topped this pasta with mozzarella as it’s a relatively low-fat cheese, but you can also top with another cheese of your choice of course like brie or Camembert.”
Ingredients for pasta with pumpkin and spinach (for 2 people):
•200 grams of whole wheat pasta
•200 grams of pumpkin, cubed
•200 grams of spinach
•1 red onion
•Half a clove of garlic
•30 grams mozzarella
Puzzling
When you think of puzzles, you usually think of them as just a hobby or a way to pass the time and to relax. However, in addition to having lots of fun putting a puzzle together, they also have a number of health benefits, especially for older people.
Doing puzzles can be considered a complete brain exercise as it works both the right and left sides of the brain and this helps prevent cognitive decline. Putting a puzzle together also improves a person’s spatial reasoning, attention to detail and memory.
Jigsaw Junkies, a puzzle blog by and for puzzle fans, reviews and rates all different types of puzzles and one they highly recommend is a grocery store puzzle.
“If you guys are anything like me you simply love to shop! Also, like me, I know you will all really enjoy this puzzle’s unique spin on this neighbourhood grocery store.”
After giving the image of the grocery store puzzle 10 out of 10, Jigsaw Junkies added: “I can easily give this image the highest rating. As I began assembling this puzzle it was abundantly clear that the colours in the image on the front of the box match the puzzle pieces exactly. The image is both bright and clear. I found no blurriness in the image reproduction. The detail is crisp. This was a unique assembly for me because there are so many different shades of colour, and detailed print that made the search for a piece an absolute breeze.”
Take an online art class
Painting and art, in general, is a great stress reliever, especially during times such as the current global pandemic. It is a really accessible activity too, with people who suffer from mobility issues who need disabled bathrooms and wheelchairs as well as those who are shielding being able to take part in this activity.
To make it even more accessible there are lots of online art classes currently available, so despite the lockdown, you can learn to draw from a professional alongside other classmates.
Below are just some of the online art classes you could join:
If you are looking to try a creative activity at home during the current lockdown, then these are just some suggestions of things you could do. If you want more advice or tips, then check out the news section of the website.
This news article is from Handicare UK. Articles that appear on this website are for information purposes only and are up to date as of the time of publishing
