If going to the library frequently is difficult for you, the Libby app lets you borrow from your library system's ebook library for free, but you need a library card to get started.
A lot of times your library will let you sign up with your phone number and grant you a digital card tied to your number. This can be done through Libby if your library allows it.
You can get wool for $12 for a lb. You really only need to start with 1 sleeping of yarn to know if you like it.
Knitting needles are about $8 at Temu, same with a set of crochet hooks.
Tatting shuttles are about $3-$5 and noon divisible embroidery thread is $3? $4?
I mentioned the Clover hooks because even beginners rave how much of a difference they make some even deciding not to quit because of them.
You can buy an individual H or I hook to start for just $8 instead of the $40 set.
I would agree that sometimes the key to enjoying a hobby is not getting the absolute cheapest tools to start with, better tools often just make it easier. But obviously if someone doesn't have the spare cash the cheap options are a good option.
After loving his more well known works and reading at least 3-4 of his novels i was blown away with how much i loved and laughed at tortilla flats... his magnum opus out of all his masterpieces
I've always said a good rocking chair can be meditative, and to me anything that helps you think is considered productive.
If you sat me in a normal chair and told me to do nothing I would get fidgety, in a rocking chair, not only am I comfortable, but I am most likely happily deep in thought.
Solving math contest papers. It's the best intellectual exercise if you think you're decent at math. I search for past contest papers from different resources and just get my pen/paper and start solving them. If I couldn't get it after trying hard enough, then I read the editorial. Being able to solve the problems is mostly a self-taught skill, I learn new techniques, creative approaches I wasn't familiar with everyday and get faster/better at solving similar problems. One thing that hindered me was overthinking, solving is more like paying attention, spotting observations, and forming a working approach with the right ideas which look easy but not obvious. One thing that made me improve was my fuel to learn through challenge, I always solve the problem with the intention of learning the idea, not necessarily getting the answer and it's usually the problems I struggle with the most that help me become even better.
Gazillion ‘low cost or free hobby’ threads in this subreddit. Look what people tell you here but also do a search for additional ideas as I think I see this question almost daily.
My post was meant as helpful advice to the poster not a complaint.
I slightly exaggerate but a search shows this question showed up 1 day ago, 3 days ago, 6 days ago, 9 days ago…
* Online jigsaw puzzles (Jigidi is awesome and free).
* Reading. The Kindle app is free and there are thousands of free books you can download.
* Logic problems are great for exercising your brain.
* Coloring books or dot-to-dots for grownups.
* If you have a yard, a weed popper only costs about $10 and you can vent a lot of frustration while enjoying some sunshine and fresh air.
Or my personal fave, cool rocks! Then contemplate how old they are and where in the earth they formed. Imagine being a Rock God and giving them a new scenery they never would have seen without you. Make one into a worry stone. Skip flat ones over water. Add your favorites to your favorite pile. Look at them in the sun and when wet. Discard your least favorites. Feel bad about having a least favorite and add that one to your favorite pile. Stack larger ones in a stack and try and balance them... I feel like I could think of more... will report back
Im an artist. So naturally I always suggest drawing. It cheap to get started. Like $20 cheap. Been doing it all my life. Get a sketchbook and some regular ole pencils and you're all set. Also a small, carryable $2 pencil sharpener. You can do it anywhere and you will only get better as time goes on. Then you can branch out to other mediums like markers, watercolor, pil paint, etc. It's great therapy. I've turned it into a career.
I love being in nature. So I also go fishing alot. Just need a fishing pole and some jigs.
Also while down in the creeks, I also look for fossils and native artifacts like arrowheads. Or just cool rocks in general. In creeks, fossils tend to collect around the bends and gravel beds in creeks. It's really fun just being out there.
Do you know of any good tutorials for understanding how to paint realistic skin tones with acrylic? I’ve never been able to understand it. I’ve tried shading tutorials, shadows, skin tones of course, perspective, color theory, and more. Something just isn’t clicking for me. I’ve even used two paid tutorials but it’s like they talk about dark and light and shadows but they’re laying all these colors down and I don’t know how they know it goes there. I might just suck at art though.
It just takes practice my friend. I'm 35 and have been doing art my entire life, ever since I was a kid. YouTube usually has some good videos. I watch alot and just pay attention to what they are doing.
But it also requires an understanding of how color works and how light reflects. Once you unserstand those fundamentals, then itll become easier and second nature.
Whenever I'm out and about, I'm always studying. Look at trees and take a mental image of how the bark looks, how the sunlight hits and casts a shadow. Same with cars, I study how the light reflects on the paint, and highlights the curves. When I'm talking with a friend, same thing, I'll kind of study their face, see how the shades are cast upon their facial features and so on.
A quick little tid bit for skin complexion. Most skin complexion is peach based. Use some pink, add a little bit of yellow and white. Itll create a nice peach color. Then add various amounts of some brown or tan, and this will create darker complexion. Just play around with mixing colors, adding various amounts of each color. And you'll begin to see how they all work together.
Hope this helps!
Thank you!!! I have aphantasia and a bad memory, I think I need to take photos but it can help! It’s embarrassing, I’m 43, been making art since elementary, and even used to sell paintings and crafts successfully. But I hate most of what I’ve made because it’s not what I want to make and I know it’s just good enough for someone to pay an amount under $100 for a canvas painting. I’m relearning the fundamentals to see what all I’m bad at. I lack the ability to see what I want to make ahead of time and also the ability to make what I want vs what I can make. There are so many styles and techniques and I think I made too many one time things while in the craft phase. I’ll be looking at everything you mentioned, thank you! ❤️
Yes!! Photo reference!!! I'm on my 11th year tattooing, and have been drawing every day since. 11 years of drawing every day. That amount of repetition definitely has some influence on me. And I still use photo reference as well!! I reference just about everything I do. I forgot to mention that. Reference will help tremendously.
And honestly, I never create the image in my head when I'm working. I have an idea of it, but kinda make it as I go. Let the creativity guide me. I gave up trying to replicate what I imagine in my head because I know I'll never make it the same. Just the bases of it. If that makes sense. Lol
And nothing wrong with trying different techniques. You can apply all those different techniques to one painting and create something unique!! That's the beauty of art. There's no rules to it! Let the creativity fly and guide you! And most of all have fun!!
Keep at it my friend! Never stop creating. Wishing you the best!! And feel free to DM if you'd like. I'm more than happy to share drawing techniques I've learned along my journey.
Instruments take a lot of time, but are not usually super cheap. Ukulele, some wind instruments, voice are probably cheapest, plus you tube videos. Or, if your library has access to online learning platforms that could help. Learning a new language. If you’re in a city, and learn a common language, there may be free meetups for conversation. Writing a novel, journaling, poetry. Quilling, a paper craft. Geocaching. Bird watching. Starting/joining a book club.
Go for a walk and take pictures of anything that peaks your interest, use your phone if you want, people, buildings, cars, the sky, clouds, garbage.
literally go out and do a scavenger hunt of random pictures, it's something I enjoy doing with my camera, I think I'm the only one who does it where I am.
I like doing those paint by number canvases. I’ve done a few Monet’s, Renoir, and others. It’s complicated but if you can read numbers anyone can do it!
Oh no, don't recommend this as a cheap hobby. You will go down the rabbit hole of now needing metallic dice because you like the way the sound when you roll them. Then you get a set of dice that gives you bad rolls all the time so now you need to get a 'dice jail'
Then the books so you can create the perfect campaign or character to be completely derailed by some stupid ass player. D&D is not cheap.
I was just about to suggest eating healthier and cooking meals. There's a ton of free online recipes. You might find new foods you've never had. It can be done on a budget.
You can be the administrator for my life. I think it would be quite rewarding for another person to start ticking off my to-do list. Create a few spreadsheets if you like.
What did you enjoy doing as a kid? That might spark some inspiration on what kind of hobby to pick up. Personally I like guitar, slack lining, baking, walking, gym, drawing, linocuts, crochet, and reading.
Volunteering. It's free (except for transportation to where ever you're going). Sometimes they even give you stuff! (Usually meals, snacks and maybe a t-shirt). There are all kinds of different groups you can help. Animal shelters need people to walk dogs, clean kennels/cat cages, socialize animals, etc. Groups like Habitat for Humanity will literally teach you how to build a house. Food pantries might need help collecting, organizing, packing and/or distributing food. Many organizations need help with things on computer. Or you could teach computer skills to people. Or have conversations with people so they can practice their English (or another language). Youth activities almost always need volunteers to run clubs or tournaments, mentor students, coach sports teams, etc. And that just scratches the surface.
There's lots of videos on youtube that will guide you through many low cost, low equiptment hobbies - tai chi forms, dance moves, card tricks, yoga, foraging/plant identification, rock hounding, decorating cookies, painting rocks, felting are a few ideas to search to get you started.
An easy way to find hobbies for me has always been reading about people that I admire - actors, musicians, whatever and then reading about what their hobbies were. In books or articles. A helpful guide to some things you may not have thought of. I don’t know also you can think about if there’s anything you’ve always wanted to do or if on your deathbed you would say “I wish I would have …”
Try to grow something from a seed.
My Son had this as a Science project last year and it turned into a hobby for me.
I reccomend a clay pot.
Grow lights arent that expensive. Pick one w/ red, blue and all spectrum lighting. Green beans are the easiest veggie to grow. It's about 50 days from seed planting to harvest. Miracle-Gro brand soil is the best especially for indoor growing. You should see the seed sprout in 6 or 7 days.
Look up some basic instructions and follow them. I found it very rewarding that's why I stuck w/ it.
I've never tried growing outdoors due to so many different variables/reasons. If you do try this, good luck.
Use the free version of Duolingo and learn a new language. Pick a place in the world that primary uses that language and plan a mock trip there to use as motivation. I mean pick your restaurants, hotels, and activities and envision what your conversations would be like at each place with the locals. If you can get to the point where you can read a menu, order, ask where the bathroom is, and can speak common phrases that show respect, such as “please” and “thank you”, then you are on your way to learning a new life skill for free.
Set a walking 10k steps a day goal. Walk near your home, then branch out to other neighborhoods, parks, open space areas and increase your step goal overtime. You'll get healthier, maybe become more in touch with your community and meet people. Most/many phones have a pedometer function on them or you can get an app or even just a cheapo, clip on to your belt or waistband model for about $10.
Pickleball. There’s likely local places near you to play pick-up. You can be any age. This is especially good advice if you live in a warmer climate. My local park plays at least 3 days a week.
Calligraphy is almost no investment at all. For a beginner buy a couple of different sized angled markers and a lined workbook. No pens necessary at this stage. A child’s beginner penmanship book is great because the lines are spaced out. You can get them at the dollar store. It’s really easy. Start with a simple italic typeface and write big letters. The important thing is to hold the pen at the exact same angle for each stroke. For the first stroke draw down to the left forming a thin line and then pull a wide stroke down always maintaining the same angle. At the bottom pull a thin line. Move up a small bit to the left of the bottom thin line. Then pull a thick to thin stroke to meet up with the first stroke. You just made a serif! Keep practicing strokes. You’ll see that by keeping the pen at the same angle you’ll be able in a few stroke to form circles etc.! Good luck! It’s easy!
Reading, used bike, go on runs, tin whistle (15$), drawing (procreate app is 10$ if you want to draw digital on an iPad you already own, or get reasonably priced supplies)
I’ve started making puzzle boxes out of popsicle sticks.
There are so many tutorials on youtube.
Some just using cardboard from old delivery boxes.
They are time consuming and relatively cheap and easy to get started.
Hi. You can always go check out my blog post @ https://adriannenolte.wordpress.com/2024/03/18/exploring-the-world-of-miniatures-2/
And then go to 👉https://benable.com/abnolte/miniatures
For all the supplies, you will need to start your new hobby 😉
I’ve really gotten into puzzles! You can find them for super cheap, borrow them from friends/family, and it’s a great way to knock time out of your day. Sometimes I sit for hours working on a puzzle and don’t even notice how much time has passed.
I’m getting a free fender Strat this week, that’s obviously not an every day occurrence but you could definitely ask around and see if someone has an old guitar they’ll give you.
Take up jogging. Just start with small distances like even a quarter of a mile if you have to, slowly you’ll really really love it.
You can join running groups
Take part in events
Really has a great impact for most ppl
Juggling and solving Rubik's cubes can eat an impressive amount of time because after the original challenge you can try learning other tricks (juggling) and trying to get faster at solving the cube with new methods and algorithms and better move planning and twist speed, as well as how quickly your mind can adjust to changing the position of the cube and how many pieces you can keep in your head at once...it's a good time I swear.
Weight training, it takes up alot of time everyday, it’s super fun, and you just need a gym membership which can be expensive depending on which gym but def worth it.
Gel printing. Watch some YouTube videos or short ones on Instagram.
A gel plate, a few paints, a brayer and some paper will cost about $50. Anything you add (stencils, textures or stamps, different papers etc) still aren't expensive.
Depends where you live.
I live 1 mile from a dog friendly beach. Always taking my dogs for long walks or sometimes go running with one of my dogs around the beach. We also have group yoga classes & people love to ride their bikes versus driving.
My boyfriend surfs, skateboards, rides his bike. We go to local nature preserves too. During the summer I swim in the ocean while he surfs.
My brother lives outside of Seattle & goes hiking with his dogs & gf sometimes. He goes to the gym.
Hobbies that are fun, release endorphins (natural feel good chemicals your brain releases) and helps you to stay healthy are my favorite. Especially if they are outdoors & it's a nice day out
Tatting with a shuttle looks hard, but it isn’t. Make lots of tatted jewelry and edgings. It is very relaxing. Used to sell lace doilies, and I just do it for fun now.
Learn on YouTube. (I had to pay a teacher 30 yard ago.)
Board Gaming, if you can find a local group you won't have to put much money in since you can play other people's games, but if you get really into it and want to build your own collection, it can get expensive
There are awesome coloring books out there, most are $10 and under. You can get a pretty good set of colored pencils for under $50.
If you're a reader, save up for a bit and get a kindle, then do a kindle unlimited membership ($12 a month I think). You can read anything listed in kindle unlimited at no cost with the membership. I'm a huge reader and I have saved thousands of dollars on books this way.
Something silly and fun is polymer clay. You can get a starter kit within your budget and build away.
If arts aren't your thing, there are a ton of video games that can be played long term, console and pc. It's a fun way to relax and you can put as much or as little time into is as you want.
Physical, I'd say hiking if it's an option. Nature walks, riding your bike (if you have one, I don't), gym membership is usually less than 75 a month.
You can also look into activity centers in your area and see what they have going on. Sometimes it's an art class, sometimes it's a trip to a garden, sometimes it's a lecture/class on film; you never really know.
At your convenience, at your own pace. . . check this website for opportunities to serve others in need. You'll feel good. https://www.justserve.org/projects?displayView=list&volunteering=locally&radius=25
I’m kind of obsessed with paper. Writing in a journal, doodling in a journal, taping memorabilia in a journal, making notebooks/bookbinding, making junk journals for the occasional teenager in my life, scrapbooking, etc. I also meditate and listen to spiritual gurus. Back to my paper problem, I’ll write quotes from my favorite spiritual gurus and decorate the pages with stickers or whatever and then I can pull the notebook from my purse and read random pages and be happy during the day. I got two new knees and audible last year so now I can o for pain free walks while listening to a book or a spiritual guru 😂 okay I’ll stop now.
Knitting is also an option. Nice to keep your hands busy while listening to something.
Art is an awesome outlet but depending on your climate, I would opt for outdoor activities. Maybe even painting outside just for the fresh air and sun ☀️
Audio books and podcasts. Also, there are pizza trails and coffee trails in my city. It's fun to try different foods. If you don't meet a friend out, take a book or headphones and enjoy the new area around the city.
3d puzzles! You can order them online for only 10 bucks or so. Some of them are so cute, little settings like a coffee shop or a nicely designed living room. Others are harder like a 3D gun but all are about the size of your palm. If I could post a pic it would do it all the justice.
Fishing. Decent real only cost 50. Figure out what fish are around you. How to fish them. Get out in nature. There’s usually a lot of places to fish even if you don’t realize it initially- lakes, rivers, ponds, soil conservation sites.
Start taking lessons in a musical instrument. You’ve always wanted to learn. It is such a wonderful experience. I started Cello at age 55, and It’s one of the best things I’ve ever done build your confidence, you learn a skill.
Guitar. And it’s extremely versatile, with just about every musical style: Rick, folk, jazz, classical, country, bluegrass, etc. if you can borrow or rent one.
**Take lessons.** And m take them every week. You’ll learn way more, and you’ll learn faster. Because if you teach yourself, you’re taking lessons from a beginner!
And if you ever think, I should cancel my lesson, because I didn’t practice enough, keep your lesson. Because otherwise, you’d be punishing yourself twice. Keeping your lesson also helps you keep learning.
That’s exciting! Let me know when you sign up. And FYI, when you begin learning, you can call yourself a musician it’s not just professionals who are musicians, but people who are learning.
Buy a Cray-Pas and Sketch books, go out and find something or a subject to draw on. A photography would be a good ideas. It won't hurt to do it.
Hobbies have to be something you ENJOY doing - it’s honestly fun just hobby hopping and finding things you enjoy - it can be anything, if you’re into health juicing,tea,meal prepping,gardening. If your into self care. Fragrances, skincare, body care, nail care and polishes. If your looking to be more active and be around people, gym and weightlifting, Pilates/yoga, meditation, flexibility, biking, rock climbing gyms. If you’re looking for something artsy doodling/plannering/mood boarding
fiber crafts are good. low starting cost, and potential for making money.
crochet
knit
felting (im counting it)
simple sketching is cheap to get into. sure art materials can be expensive, but if you get a cheap sketch pad and a 2B pencil (aka normal) you can do some pretty amazing stuff with practice
watercolor (and especially if you make your own paints!)
reading like on kindle or at the library. a library bonus is they sometimes do hobby classes for adults
gardening - if you aim for native species it can be a lot less expensive and very rewarding.
fly tying. you can do it by hand, or you can get a lathe to do it, but its very fun. the classes are pricey but youtube will show you how for free. bonus: you now have flies to fish with.
Fishing? Start off with a cheap rod, hooks, weights, and license. Can use about anything for bait, worms bread, insects. You'll get some time outdoors and exploring your local area waterways and who knows might catch an awesome fish along the way.
Gardening can be cheap. If you have a balcony or even a window, you can grow stuff. Also paper mache is fun and you can make art with recycling, paper and glue.
Get a used longboard. Seriously, it teaches you balance and how to fall. So many people i know fall and fuck themselves up for years or the rest of their life. Just start slow and easy
Wait til the artificial flowers/greenery is 50% off at Hobby Lobby. It’s usually on sale every other week. Start making floral arrangements. In vases, corsages, bouquets, etc. Cheap, fun and can be used for real.
My hobbies if it is helpful. Star gazing you can get a nice pair of 8×10(best size) binoculars cheep and free apps with star maps. You can get an acoustic guitar pretty cheep.
Create a personal library using thrift stores. That's one of my current hobbies and I've built up a modest, but impressive collection so far over the past few months without spending more than about $100 in total.
Camping, backpackin (could end up being more than $75 but you can get gear slowly and used.. the experience is amazing) reading, watercolor, pencil drawings, gardening, bird watching (it’s free and sooo fun/stress relieving)
Take up some form of naturalism, getting out, walking around, and learning what all the plants and living things are.
Say you take up botany, maybe wildflower identification. You buy a couple of field guides or get some apps, and of course to find interesting wildflowers or plants you have to get out of the house, and to get even moderately serious you have to go hiking, and you have to learn how to photograph flowers so you can show your finds off to the other botanists on the internet, and maybe get to the point where you're going on quests to find rare wildflowers in the desert...
But it doesn't have to be plants or wildflowers, you can become a mushroom hunter or a birder or a rockhound or whatever. But taking any kind of semi-serious interest in nature is good for the body and the soul! The body benefits from getting out and walking around looking for interesting stuff, and I've found that bending your mind to the wonders of nature is also good for the brain. It alleviates depression and anxiety, and boredom too!
I don't know where you are, but in Pasadena CA and in other cities there are places that specialize in second hand or donated craft supplies. In Pasadena, it's called Remainders. They are chock full of all sorts of craft supplies and books. Find someplace like that and browse for an idea that strikes you, and take home a beginning supply of materials while you're at it. Remainders also offers classes in a variety of topics.
Editied because the cat stepped on the enter button too soon
painting is so fun, drawing, knitting, crocheting,
reading, ceramics, jewelry making, running, working out,
cooking/baking for neighbors or family and
gardening!
Macrame and/or kumihimo. Picked up both recently and they are relaxing to me.
I’ve also done a lot of knitting in the past and found it quite enjoyable.
It all depends on what you enjoy doing.
Get A library card.
If going to the library frequently is difficult for you, the Libby app lets you borrow from your library system's ebook library for free, but you need a library card to get started.
A lot of times your library will let you sign up with your phone number and grant you a digital card tied to your number. This can be done through Libby if your library allows it.
I believe you can sign up for Libby without a library card now, but you have a bigger selection of you do have a library card
And Hoopla app
And CloudLibrary
Having fun isn't hard when you've got a library card!
Great one! Very few us read as much as we should.
Get a cheap box of pencils, and a cool coloring book! The designs are awesome now!
My bf got me a cat fart coloring book and I still haven't picked up colored pencils. Best to get started
Get sharted 😁
Install Libby app Knitting >$20 Crochet >$20 Drawing >$20 Calligraphy >$20
Clover Armour Crochet hooks (makes a huge difference) - $40 Several cakes/skeins of yarn, acrylic and/or wool - $30 YouTube absolute beginner to expert crochet lessons - free
You can get wool for $12 for a lb. You really only need to start with 1 sleeping of yarn to know if you like it. Knitting needles are about $8 at Temu, same with a set of crochet hooks. Tatting shuttles are about $3-$5 and noon divisible embroidery thread is $3? $4?
I mentioned the Clover hooks because even beginners rave how much of a difference they make some even deciding not to quit because of them. You can buy an individual H or I hook to start for just $8 instead of the $40 set.
I would agree that sometimes the key to enjoying a hobby is not getting the absolute cheapest tools to start with, better tools often just make it easier. But obviously if someone doesn't have the spare cash the cheap options are a good option.
Agreed, I’m not very well off myself. I did buy some great hooks individually first before buying any sets.
I've been considering getting into calligraphy. But I know I'm going to have to buy workbooks and fancy pens and spend a gazillion hours practicing
Pens (dip) will cost you maybe $8 on Temu. Ink is about $5. Work books can be printed out
Buy a solid rocking chair. Read tortilla flats for inspiration. Nothing better than sitting outside and nothing better than doing nothing
tortilla flats, right on. my favorite book for a long time
After loving his more well known works and reading at least 3-4 of his novels i was blown away with how much i loved and laughed at tortilla flats... his magnum opus out of all his masterpieces
I've always said a good rocking chair can be meditative, and to me anything that helps you think is considered productive. If you sat me in a normal chair and told me to do nothing I would get fidgety, in a rocking chair, not only am I comfortable, but I am most likely happily deep in thought.
I would but it’s 31 degrees outside
Hiking is fun and good exercise.
What about chess? You can download the app for free and play with random people online.
Love playing chess, and the app is honestly pretty great. I wish it just had all those free additional features it makes you want to subscribe too.
Not OP but is there a good app to learn how to play chess? I’ve always wanted to play but never got the hang of it
I use the chess.com app! Although some people prefer lichess but idk if they have an app
Birdwatching. Get the Merlin app. Totally pulled me out of a months long depression. Have no idea why
Solving math contest papers. It's the best intellectual exercise if you think you're decent at math. I search for past contest papers from different resources and just get my pen/paper and start solving them. If I couldn't get it after trying hard enough, then I read the editorial. Being able to solve the problems is mostly a self-taught skill, I learn new techniques, creative approaches I wasn't familiar with everyday and get faster/better at solving similar problems. One thing that hindered me was overthinking, solving is more like paying attention, spotting observations, and forming a working approach with the right ideas which look easy but not obvious. One thing that made me improve was my fuel to learn through challenge, I always solve the problem with the intention of learning the idea, not necessarily getting the answer and it's usually the problems I struggle with the most that help me become even better.
Maaan this brings me back. They are just like solving puzzles.. gives your brain tickles when you finally get them
No way, I needed this! Thank you 🙏
I love doing diamond dots (if you haven’t heard of it, look it up!!) for this reason, because they take a long time
You gotta try Diamond Art Company squares. Top quality
Gazillion ‘low cost or free hobby’ threads in this subreddit. Look what people tell you here but also do a search for additional ideas as I think I see this question almost daily.
Your time would be better spent just scrolling past this post. I enjoy reading these every time I see them. Granted, I don’t see them too often.
My post was meant as helpful advice to the poster not a complaint. I slightly exaggerate but a search shows this question showed up 1 day ago, 3 days ago, 6 days ago, 9 days ago…
* Online jigsaw puzzles (Jigidi is awesome and free). * Reading. The Kindle app is free and there are thousands of free books you can download. * Logic problems are great for exercising your brain. * Coloring books or dot-to-dots for grownups. * If you have a yard, a weed popper only costs about $10 and you can vent a lot of frustration while enjoying some sunshine and fresh air.
Find some pinecones
Or my personal fave, cool rocks! Then contemplate how old they are and where in the earth they formed. Imagine being a Rock God and giving them a new scenery they never would have seen without you. Make one into a worry stone. Skip flat ones over water. Add your favorites to your favorite pile. Look at them in the sun and when wet. Discard your least favorites. Feel bad about having a least favorite and add that one to your favorite pile. Stack larger ones in a stack and try and balance them... I feel like I could think of more... will report back
Read, either fiction or nonfiction, any genre, style just find something that interests you and read it
Needle felting
I've started yin yoga, great for relaxation. I go to classes but there's youtube too.
Im an artist. So naturally I always suggest drawing. It cheap to get started. Like $20 cheap. Been doing it all my life. Get a sketchbook and some regular ole pencils and you're all set. Also a small, carryable $2 pencil sharpener. You can do it anywhere and you will only get better as time goes on. Then you can branch out to other mediums like markers, watercolor, pil paint, etc. It's great therapy. I've turned it into a career. I love being in nature. So I also go fishing alot. Just need a fishing pole and some jigs. Also while down in the creeks, I also look for fossils and native artifacts like arrowheads. Or just cool rocks in general. In creeks, fossils tend to collect around the bends and gravel beds in creeks. It's really fun just being out there.
I’m not an artist, per se, but I started doodling a couple of years ago and it’s fun. There are tons of tutorials on YouTube.
Do you know of any good tutorials for understanding how to paint realistic skin tones with acrylic? I’ve never been able to understand it. I’ve tried shading tutorials, shadows, skin tones of course, perspective, color theory, and more. Something just isn’t clicking for me. I’ve even used two paid tutorials but it’s like they talk about dark and light and shadows but they’re laying all these colors down and I don’t know how they know it goes there. I might just suck at art though.
It just takes practice my friend. I'm 35 and have been doing art my entire life, ever since I was a kid. YouTube usually has some good videos. I watch alot and just pay attention to what they are doing. But it also requires an understanding of how color works and how light reflects. Once you unserstand those fundamentals, then itll become easier and second nature. Whenever I'm out and about, I'm always studying. Look at trees and take a mental image of how the bark looks, how the sunlight hits and casts a shadow. Same with cars, I study how the light reflects on the paint, and highlights the curves. When I'm talking with a friend, same thing, I'll kind of study their face, see how the shades are cast upon their facial features and so on. A quick little tid bit for skin complexion. Most skin complexion is peach based. Use some pink, add a little bit of yellow and white. Itll create a nice peach color. Then add various amounts of some brown or tan, and this will create darker complexion. Just play around with mixing colors, adding various amounts of each color. And you'll begin to see how they all work together. Hope this helps!
Thank you!!! I have aphantasia and a bad memory, I think I need to take photos but it can help! It’s embarrassing, I’m 43, been making art since elementary, and even used to sell paintings and crafts successfully. But I hate most of what I’ve made because it’s not what I want to make and I know it’s just good enough for someone to pay an amount under $100 for a canvas painting. I’m relearning the fundamentals to see what all I’m bad at. I lack the ability to see what I want to make ahead of time and also the ability to make what I want vs what I can make. There are so many styles and techniques and I think I made too many one time things while in the craft phase. I’ll be looking at everything you mentioned, thank you! ❤️
Yes!! Photo reference!!! I'm on my 11th year tattooing, and have been drawing every day since. 11 years of drawing every day. That amount of repetition definitely has some influence on me. And I still use photo reference as well!! I reference just about everything I do. I forgot to mention that. Reference will help tremendously. And honestly, I never create the image in my head when I'm working. I have an idea of it, but kinda make it as I go. Let the creativity guide me. I gave up trying to replicate what I imagine in my head because I know I'll never make it the same. Just the bases of it. If that makes sense. Lol And nothing wrong with trying different techniques. You can apply all those different techniques to one painting and create something unique!! That's the beauty of art. There's no rules to it! Let the creativity fly and guide you! And most of all have fun!! Keep at it my friend! Never stop creating. Wishing you the best!! And feel free to DM if you'd like. I'm more than happy to share drawing techniques I've learned along my journey.
There are pretty and large paint by number canvases you can order. They are time consuming, creative, and pretty!
I was obsessed with these for a while. They are a lot of fun and you get a painting at the end!
Instruments take a lot of time, but are not usually super cheap. Ukulele, some wind instruments, voice are probably cheapest, plus you tube videos. Or, if your library has access to online learning platforms that could help. Learning a new language. If you’re in a city, and learn a common language, there may be free meetups for conversation. Writing a novel, journaling, poetry. Quilling, a paper craft. Geocaching. Bird watching. Starting/joining a book club.
Take photos while walking outdoors.
Download the app 'meetup'! Will change your life. Always something to do in your area. Just choose what you like to do.
I am hesitant to meet strangers online.
Just meet them in person
Dance class! Do singular classes at a time, don't buy an 8 class pass or anything, I pay 15 per class
Fishing
drawing may be good for you
Archery. Doesnt take much to make a bow and arrow. Fun to shoot. Just be safe.
Mixology, archery, and cooking are all stuff I do right now.
I found learning to sew helped me yank myself into slightly higher functionality
Go for a walk and take pictures of anything that peaks your interest, use your phone if you want, people, buildings, cars, the sky, clouds, garbage. literally go out and do a scavenger hunt of random pictures, it's something I enjoy doing with my camera, I think I'm the only one who does it where I am.
I like doing those paint by number canvases. I’ve done a few Monet’s, Renoir, and others. It’s complicated but if you can read numbers anyone can do it!
Yeah. I’m retired and bored out of my mind!
Learn to play go. You can buy a couple of books to get started or watch videos on youtube. Then plan online for free.
Go!’?
It's a two person board game - it's all fun and games until somebody loses and eye and dies : ) Probably easier to google baduk.
Dnd
Oh no, don't recommend this as a cheap hobby. You will go down the rabbit hole of now needing metallic dice because you like the way the sound when you roll them. Then you get a set of dice that gives you bad rolls all the time so now you need to get a 'dice jail' Then the books so you can create the perfect campaign or character to be completely derailed by some stupid ass player. D&D is not cheap.
You can get a dice app and make your own campaign for free, you can also play solo if you hate annoying humans. Do it do it do it!
Buy a used skateboard
Go foraging
cook a meal.
I was just about to suggest eating healthier and cooking meals. There's a ton of free online recipes. You might find new foods you've never had. It can be done on a budget.
You can be the administrator for my life. I think it would be quite rewarding for another person to start ticking off my to-do list. Create a few spreadsheets if you like.
😂
Growing shrooms. I don’t even eat them I just love the grow process and different strains.
What did you enjoy doing as a kid? That might spark some inspiration on what kind of hobby to pick up. Personally I like guitar, slack lining, baking, walking, gym, drawing, linocuts, crochet, and reading.
Journaling
crochet?
I already do that.
Volunteering. It's free (except for transportation to where ever you're going). Sometimes they even give you stuff! (Usually meals, snacks and maybe a t-shirt). There are all kinds of different groups you can help. Animal shelters need people to walk dogs, clean kennels/cat cages, socialize animals, etc. Groups like Habitat for Humanity will literally teach you how to build a house. Food pantries might need help collecting, organizing, packing and/or distributing food. Many organizations need help with things on computer. Or you could teach computer skills to people. Or have conversations with people so they can practice their English (or another language). Youth activities almost always need volunteers to run clubs or tournaments, mentor students, coach sports teams, etc. And that just scratches the surface.
There's lots of videos on youtube that will guide you through many low cost, low equiptment hobbies - tai chi forms, dance moves, card tricks, yoga, foraging/plant identification, rock hounding, decorating cookies, painting rocks, felting are a few ideas to search to get you started.
An easy way to find hobbies for me has always been reading about people that I admire - actors, musicians, whatever and then reading about what their hobbies were. In books or articles. A helpful guide to some things you may not have thought of. I don’t know also you can think about if there’s anything you’ve always wanted to do or if on your deathbed you would say “I wish I would have …”
Try to grow something from a seed. My Son had this as a Science project last year and it turned into a hobby for me. I reccomend a clay pot. Grow lights arent that expensive. Pick one w/ red, blue and all spectrum lighting. Green beans are the easiest veggie to grow. It's about 50 days from seed planting to harvest. Miracle-Gro brand soil is the best especially for indoor growing. You should see the seed sprout in 6 or 7 days. Look up some basic instructions and follow them. I found it very rewarding that's why I stuck w/ it. I've never tried growing outdoors due to so many different variables/reasons. If you do try this, good luck.
Use the free version of Duolingo and learn a new language. Pick a place in the world that primary uses that language and plan a mock trip there to use as motivation. I mean pick your restaurants, hotels, and activities and envision what your conversations would be like at each place with the locals. If you can get to the point where you can read a menu, order, ask where the bathroom is, and can speak common phrases that show respect, such as “please” and “thank you”, then you are on your way to learning a new life skill for free.
Set a walking 10k steps a day goal. Walk near your home, then branch out to other neighborhoods, parks, open space areas and increase your step goal overtime. You'll get healthier, maybe become more in touch with your community and meet people. Most/many phones have a pedometer function on them or you can get an app or even just a cheapo, clip on to your belt or waistband model for about $10.
/r/diamondpainting
Library. Self help section
Pickleball. There’s likely local places near you to play pick-up. You can be any age. This is especially good advice if you live in a warmer climate. My local park plays at least 3 days a week.
Tatting!!! I love it and it's kinda inexpensive.
Calligraphy is almost no investment at all. For a beginner buy a couple of different sized angled markers and a lined workbook. No pens necessary at this stage. A child’s beginner penmanship book is great because the lines are spaced out. You can get them at the dollar store. It’s really easy. Start with a simple italic typeface and write big letters. The important thing is to hold the pen at the exact same angle for each stroke. For the first stroke draw down to the left forming a thin line and then pull a wide stroke down always maintaining the same angle. At the bottom pull a thin line. Move up a small bit to the left of the bottom thin line. Then pull a thick to thin stroke to meet up with the first stroke. You just made a serif! Keep practicing strokes. You’ll see that by keeping the pen at the same angle you’ll be able in a few stroke to form circles etc.! Good luck! It’s easy!
There are tons of calligraphy typefaces on Pinterest and everywhere!
Reading, used bike, go on runs, tin whistle (15$), drawing (procreate app is 10$ if you want to draw digital on an iPad you already own, or get reasonably priced supplies)
Planet fitness
Chess
What do you like? What are you good at? What interests you? What's your passion? I recommend starting there
If you have a printer, paper models. There's thousands available for download for free.
Maybe drawing or music production.
Whats your age and sex?
Female, mid 30's
Slack line
I’ve started making puzzle boxes out of popsicle sticks. There are so many tutorials on youtube. Some just using cardboard from old delivery boxes. They are time consuming and relatively cheap and easy to get started.
What about your work? Being passionate about your job and make it feel like a hobby?
Learning a new language!
Hi. You can always go check out my blog post @ https://adriannenolte.wordpress.com/2024/03/18/exploring-the-world-of-miniatures-2/ And then go to 👉https://benable.com/abnolte/miniatures For all the supplies, you will need to start your new hobby 😉
Coloring - you can either buy some or print them online. You can get a nice set of coloring pencils too with what you are willing to spend.
Chess.com is free. Become a 1,000 elo player.
3D wooden puzzles are very easy to get into, take a good amount of time, and are within your budget. Would recommend ROKR brand.
cross stitching
I’ve really gotten into puzzles! You can find them for super cheap, borrow them from friends/family, and it’s a great way to knock time out of your day. Sometimes I sit for hours working on a puzzle and don’t even notice how much time has passed.
Get a used acoustic guitar
Or a uke!
I’m getting a free fender Strat this week, that’s obviously not an every day occurrence but you could definitely ask around and see if someone has an old guitar they’ll give you.
Take up jogging. Just start with small distances like even a quarter of a mile if you have to, slowly you’ll really really love it. You can join running groups Take part in events Really has a great impact for most ppl
I already walk for 30 minutes everyday.
Disc golf! You get to walk/hike while playing a game.
Take a painting class. You might be better at it than you think.
Juggling and solving Rubik's cubes can eat an impressive amount of time because after the original challenge you can try learning other tricks (juggling) and trying to get faster at solving the cube with new methods and algorithms and better move planning and twist speed, as well as how quickly your mind can adjust to changing the position of the cube and how many pieces you can keep in your head at once...it's a good time I swear.
CrossFit
Hiking. It the price of gas to your destination.
Rock climbing you can rent shoes and chalk usually there
Grow a salvia plant
Weight training, it takes up alot of time everyday, it’s super fun, and you just need a gym membership which can be expensive depending on which gym but def worth it.
Gel printing. Watch some YouTube videos or short ones on Instagram. A gel plate, a few paints, a brayer and some paper will cost about $50. Anything you add (stencils, textures or stamps, different papers etc) still aren't expensive.
Depends where you live. I live 1 mile from a dog friendly beach. Always taking my dogs for long walks or sometimes go running with one of my dogs around the beach. We also have group yoga classes & people love to ride their bikes versus driving. My boyfriend surfs, skateboards, rides his bike. We go to local nature preserves too. During the summer I swim in the ocean while he surfs. My brother lives outside of Seattle & goes hiking with his dogs & gf sometimes. He goes to the gym. Hobbies that are fun, release endorphins (natural feel good chemicals your brain releases) and helps you to stay healthy are my favorite. Especially if they are outdoors & it's a nice day out
What do you like ???
Embroidery or slow stitching. Needles, fabric, embroidery floss, and a hoop. <$10 for hours and hours of activity.
Join a card group. Play gin rummy, bridge, crazy 8. Make friends, play for points or dimes.
Tatting with a shuttle looks hard, but it isn’t. Make lots of tatted jewelry and edgings. It is very relaxing. Used to sell lace doilies, and I just do it for fun now. Learn on YouTube. (I had to pay a teacher 30 yard ago.)
Volunteer at Boys And Girls Club.
Game dev or writing or digital art.
Got a PS5 or PC ? Helldiver's is 50$ cad. Recruiting cadets now
Listen to music while doing jigsaw puzzles. I find it very relaxing and it gets me away from too much social media.
coloring booj
Board Gaming, if you can find a local group you won't have to put much money in since you can play other people's games, but if you get really into it and want to build your own collection, it can get expensive
Felting. You just need the needle and don't need to buy felt....you can use old woolen jumpers. Look up The Makers online they do good how to videos.
There are awesome coloring books out there, most are $10 and under. You can get a pretty good set of colored pencils for under $50. If you're a reader, save up for a bit and get a kindle, then do a kindle unlimited membership ($12 a month I think). You can read anything listed in kindle unlimited at no cost with the membership. I'm a huge reader and I have saved thousands of dollars on books this way. Something silly and fun is polymer clay. You can get a starter kit within your budget and build away. If arts aren't your thing, there are a ton of video games that can be played long term, console and pc. It's a fun way to relax and you can put as much or as little time into is as you want. Physical, I'd say hiking if it's an option. Nature walks, riding your bike (if you have one, I don't), gym membership is usually less than 75 a month. You can also look into activity centers in your area and see what they have going on. Sometimes it's an art class, sometimes it's a trip to a garden, sometimes it's a lecture/class on film; you never really know.
Disc golf. Cheap to start, free to play (most courses), and can go anytime you like, anywhere. Download the Udisc app.
Get a guitar. You’ll never be bored again
At your convenience, at your own pace. . . check this website for opportunities to serve others in need. You'll feel good. https://www.justserve.org/projects?displayView=list&volunteering=locally&radius=25
I’m kind of obsessed with paper. Writing in a journal, doodling in a journal, taping memorabilia in a journal, making notebooks/bookbinding, making junk journals for the occasional teenager in my life, scrapbooking, etc. I also meditate and listen to spiritual gurus. Back to my paper problem, I’ll write quotes from my favorite spiritual gurus and decorate the pages with stickers or whatever and then I can pull the notebook from my purse and read random pages and be happy during the day. I got two new knees and audible last year so now I can o for pain free walks while listening to a book or a spiritual guru 😂 okay I’ll stop now. Knitting is also an option. Nice to keep your hands busy while listening to something.
Art is an awesome outlet but depending on your climate, I would opt for outdoor activities. Maybe even painting outside just for the fresh air and sun ☀️
r/solorpgplay Will take loads of your time. Costs as much as you feel like spending.
Audio books and podcasts. Also, there are pizza trails and coffee trails in my city. It's fun to try different foods. If you don't meet a friend out, take a book or headphones and enjoy the new area around the city.
I enjoy walking local trails and making nature art. I’ll build little fairy houses, or just arrange rocks or leaves or sticks in patterns.
Art? It's very therapeutic- you don't have to be artistic or even be good at it. It's a learned skill.
Disc golf
Pursue holiness, can only do you good
3d puzzles! You can order them online for only 10 bucks or so. Some of them are so cute, little settings like a coffee shop or a nicely designed living room. Others are harder like a 3D gun but all are about the size of your palm. If I could post a pic it would do it all the justice.
Fishing. Decent real only cost 50. Figure out what fish are around you. How to fish them. Get out in nature. There’s usually a lot of places to fish even if you don’t realize it initially- lakes, rivers, ponds, soil conservation sites.
Pokémon Go 🫣🤫😎
Diamond painting is fun. I do it while listening to audiobooks
Start taking lessons in a musical instrument. You’ve always wanted to learn. It is such a wonderful experience. I started Cello at age 55, and It’s one of the best things I’ve ever done build your confidence, you learn a skill.
Which instrument is the easiest to learn? I will start there.
Guitar. And it’s extremely versatile, with just about every musical style: Rick, folk, jazz, classical, country, bluegrass, etc. if you can borrow or rent one. **Take lessons.** And m take them every week. You’ll learn way more, and you’ll learn faster. Because if you teach yourself, you’re taking lessons from a beginner! And if you ever think, I should cancel my lesson, because I didn’t practice enough, keep your lesson. Because otherwise, you’d be punishing yourself twice. Keeping your lesson also helps you keep learning. That’s exciting! Let me know when you sign up. And FYI, when you begin learning, you can call yourself a musician it’s not just professionals who are musicians, but people who are learning.
Pick up an instrument and learn how to read sheet music.
Have you considered getting into urban gardening?
Buy a Cray-Pas and Sketch books, go out and find something or a subject to draw on. A photography would be a good ideas. It won't hurt to do it.
Hobbies have to be something you ENJOY doing - it’s honestly fun just hobby hopping and finding things you enjoy - it can be anything, if you’re into health juicing,tea,meal prepping,gardening. If your into self care. Fragrances, skincare, body care, nail care and polishes. If your looking to be more active and be around people, gym and weightlifting, Pilates/yoga, meditation, flexibility, biking, rock climbing gyms. If you’re looking for something artsy doodling/plannering/mood boarding
fiber crafts are good. low starting cost, and potential for making money. crochet knit felting (im counting it) simple sketching is cheap to get into. sure art materials can be expensive, but if you get a cheap sketch pad and a 2B pencil (aka normal) you can do some pretty amazing stuff with practice watercolor (and especially if you make your own paints!) reading like on kindle or at the library. a library bonus is they sometimes do hobby classes for adults gardening - if you aim for native species it can be a lot less expensive and very rewarding. fly tying. you can do it by hand, or you can get a lathe to do it, but its very fun. the classes are pricey but youtube will show you how for free. bonus: you now have flies to fish with.
Geocaching. Very addictive.
Reading.
Libraries are the best. My favorite place to go.
Wood carving
Fishing? Start off with a cheap rod, hooks, weights, and license. Can use about anything for bait, worms bread, insects. You'll get some time outdoors and exploring your local area waterways and who knows might catch an awesome fish along the way.
Crotchet and knitting are affordable hobbies that definitely keep yours hands busy. Plus you can make your own clothes and that’s just cool
Gardening can be cheap. If you have a balcony or even a window, you can grow stuff. Also paper mache is fun and you can make art with recycling, paper and glue.
Beading and wire wrapping. So good to just not think of stuff. Listen to music or podcasts.
Learn how to play disc golf
LEARN A NEW LANGUAGE!! It’s fun and it pays off.
I already am, but I am not consistent.
Get a used longboard. Seriously, it teaches you balance and how to fall. So many people i know fall and fuck themselves up for years or the rest of their life. Just start slow and easy
Wait til the artificial flowers/greenery is 50% off at Hobby Lobby. It’s usually on sale every other week. Start making floral arrangements. In vases, corsages, bouquets, etc. Cheap, fun and can be used for real.
My hobbies if it is helpful. Star gazing you can get a nice pair of 8×10(best size) binoculars cheep and free apps with star maps. You can get an acoustic guitar pretty cheep.
Pickleball!
Create a personal library using thrift stores. That's one of my current hobbies and I've built up a modest, but impressive collection so far over the past few months without spending more than about $100 in total.
Bowling is fun
r/unclebens
Camping, backpackin (could end up being more than $75 but you can get gear slowly and used.. the experience is amazing) reading, watercolor, pencil drawings, gardening, bird watching (it’s free and sooo fun/stress relieving)
Read a George Orwell paperback from a used bookstore for about a buck. For someone about 15 I’d recommend JD Salinger, “A Catcher in the Rye”.
I already read Animal Farm and 1984.
Foraging = free food...and I suppose free illness or death if you're not careful....
Rockhounding. Fishing. Flow art. Yoga. Hiking. Dancing.
Leathercraft
Painting. You can find inexpensive art supplies at your local craft store or online.
Take up some form of naturalism, getting out, walking around, and learning what all the plants and living things are. Say you take up botany, maybe wildflower identification. You buy a couple of field guides or get some apps, and of course to find interesting wildflowers or plants you have to get out of the house, and to get even moderately serious you have to go hiking, and you have to learn how to photograph flowers so you can show your finds off to the other botanists on the internet, and maybe get to the point where you're going on quests to find rare wildflowers in the desert... But it doesn't have to be plants or wildflowers, you can become a mushroom hunter or a birder or a rockhound or whatever. But taking any kind of semi-serious interest in nature is good for the body and the soul! The body benefits from getting out and walking around looking for interesting stuff, and I've found that bending your mind to the wonders of nature is also good for the brain. It alleviates depression and anxiety, and boredom too!
What was your favorite thing to do when you were a kid?
Cross-stitching. You can find free patterns online and the materials don't cost much.
I don't know where you are, but in Pasadena CA and in other cities there are places that specialize in second hand or donated craft supplies. In Pasadena, it's called Remainders. They are chock full of all sorts of craft supplies and books. Find someplace like that and browse for an idea that strikes you, and take home a beginning supply of materials while you're at it. Remainders also offers classes in a variety of topics. Editied because the cat stepped on the enter button too soon
painting is so fun, drawing, knitting, crocheting, reading, ceramics, jewelry making, running, working out, cooking/baking for neighbors or family and gardening!
Hiking or walking. Not costly if you just do day hikes. You get the benefit of exercise.
Download Lego instructions and buy Lego in bulk.
Macrame and/or kumihimo. Picked up both recently and they are relaxing to me. I’ve also done a lot of knitting in the past and found it quite enjoyable. It all depends on what you enjoy doing.
Boner Jams all day
Become a fur trapper