It’s been almost a year that we’ve been practicing staying “safer-at-home”: Isolating ourselves from our friends, families and neighbors while we anxiously wait for our vaccinations. During that time, almost everything has come to a screeching halt: We work and attend school and activities from home, we no longer travel to Taekwondo competitions, we shop online while limiting necessary trips to the grocery store.
We’ve managed to take a few trips (Telluride, Norkork Lake, AR and New England) while being vigilant with masks, hand-washing and sanitizing, and avoiding potentially congested areas. (Travel seems to be a very sensitive subject so please don’t @ us.) We’ve also found different activities to keep us busy and entertained at home. I wish I could tell you that we’ve read tons of books, learned a new language, made some home improvements or started our own business, but our hobbies have been less productive than that.
To be fair, Dennis has read several books during quarantine. His reading preferences are mostly science fiction and technical manuals. I’ve been an avid reader throughout my life, but for some reason, I have the focus for reading that I once had. It’s probably due to the internet providing me with quick videos, short articles and even shorter tweets. Listening to audiobooks helps but my mind drifts with those as well, unless I’m driving.
Stay Away from Tik Tok at All Costs
Speaking of quick videos, another way I’ve passed quarantime has been Tik Tok. If you’ve managed to avoid it so far, continue to do so! My obsession started harmlessly enough, with my sister sending me the occasional video she knew I’d find funny or enlightening. Before I knew it, I had my own account. Days will pass where I’ve successfully been able to avoid opening it, but as soon as I do, hours will pass and I’m still sitting there saving recipes or makeup tips. Usually, I’m laughing hysterically at either the wittiest (or dumbest) person alive. Here are a few favorites (Warning: Some of them include NSFW language!)
We’re also watching and re-watching tons of movies, documentaries and TV shows. True crime shows have been a particular fascinating genre. It’s difficult to involve the kids in our binge-watching because they have their own hobbies: Ben unwinds by playing guitar and drums. Jack, in his senior year of high school, spends a lot of time locked in his room studying (allegedly). It’s difficult, but not impossible. In fact, we’re currently doing a slow re-watch of the Harry Potter franchise as a family.
We Finally Joined the Kitchenaid Club!
While entertaining, our binge-watching hobby isn’t exactly productive (or healthy). But another hobby that Dennis and I have enjoyed together has been experimenting with our new Kitchenaid mixer. I’ve always wanted one, but could never justify the cost or counter space. I’m just not much of a cook, especially of the ‘from-scratch’ variety. But during Covid, we’re cooking and eating at home and getting bored of the same old meals. So when Costco had Kitchenaids at Christmas, we splurged. Check out some of our creations!
Recipes
If you’re interested in any of these recipes (except the pineapple upside down cake, which was just thrown together by Dennis), I’ve linked them below. High elevation note: We live at about 7500′ above sea level and did not adjust any of the recipes. They didn’t need it!
Cinnamon Rolls
French Bread
(The French bread looks dry, but it was the perfect amount of crisp on the outside and soft on the inside)
Pretzels
King Cake (Minus the raisins, yuck!)
And of course, Hiking
When we lived in Kentucky, we lived in the cutest hippy town referred to as the Folk Arts & Craft Capital of Kentucky. While there, I learned how to make soap from scratch. Not just a melt-and-pour kit from the crafts store, I’m talking a full-on kitchen science experiment of oils and lye. Terrified of working with the caustic substance, I suited up like Walter White in Breaking Bad precisely measuring each ingredient. The results were much more fruitful than any science project I’d attempted in school. Using oils such as shea butter, coconut oil, olive oil or even Crisco (sounds weird but it makes a great bar of soap!), I was able to produce a sudsy soap that left my skin silky smooth.
I’ve dabbled in soap-making off and on over the years and picked it up again during quarantine. Before long, I had bars of soap coming out of my ears even after forcing numerous bars onto anyone I came in contact with. My short hobby attention span had me looking for other ways to spend my time.
I’ve never been very artistic, but enjoyed hand-painted art over mass produced copies. So I decided to try paint-by-numbers (PBN). You can purchase just about any PBN kit imaginable. Some companies will even custom create a kit based on a photograph. And if you’re tech and color savvy, can even create your own.
Here are two of my favorites!
After PBNs, I wanted to try these paint pours I’ve seen, which involves pouring paint onto a canvas and moving it around so that every space is filled. While I was researching these, I came across videos of epoxy resin projects which I also decided to attempt. Both of these projects were so much fun to do and turned out so well that my plan is to dedicate my next two posts to them. Here’s a sneak preview of one of my favorite paint pour and resin projects!
Stay tuned for Covid Hobbies: Part 2 where I’ll attempt to include a how-to post and video!
TikTok is my new best friend! 😂
I literally went through our text history to find all of these!
Wow! You have been busy. All I have done is read books and binge watch Star Wars, Star Trek, Harry Potter, and a few other series.
Wish I was brave enough to try art projects like you do.
The pretzels look really good and so does the cinnamon rolls and king cake. Did you hide a baby in the king cake?
Can’t wait to see more art.
Thanks for sharing.
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