What's inside my hobby bag: slow hobbies to quiet your mind

Here in the UK, it has been the May bank holiday, and with it a flush of hot weather than non of us are ever quite prepared for.

On Friday, the schools had started to break up, and I signed myself off social media for the long weekend ahead. All emails were answered, marketing for my business was done, and work with ongoing clients had gently come to a natural pause.

As I signed off socials, I looked around for my journal. It was nowhere to be found. So I started looking for my scrapbook, which was nowhere to be found. Soon I realised, I’d left my hobby bag and its contents at my studio, and of course, I felt that itching feeling of wanting to be creative with the tools you don’t have.

I let the feeling go, attempted to sit down to watch something on TV, only to be disinterested and increasingly frustrated again with myself for forgetting my bag.

Small moments throughout the weekend called me to go and fetch my journal, my book, my colouring, my camera, my art supplies. And each moment was a reminder of how often I utilise all of the above in my normal day-to-day life.

It’s only Tuesday, but I popped into the studio and reunited myself with my bag and its contents, with relief to have my offline hobbies at hand.

This may sound a little extreme, but these hobbies have helped fill the void of potential doom scrolling, consuming news, overthinking, and just being in my own head. They have helped me connect with my childhood joys and the simplicity of colouring, reading for pleasure and writing for gratitude and self-reflection.

All of these combined have helped me to become more creative, and funnily enough, create 10X more content online (than in previous years).

With all of this being said, shall we dive into what’s inside my hobby bag?

P.S. If you are thinking of creating one yourself, just remember this can be filled with hobbies and crafts that bring you joy - there is no one-size-fits-all.

I love colouring, and more precisely the cosy colouring books, because of the simplicity of just colour meets paper, which allows my mind to have some breathing room.

There’s no blank page anxiety you may feel with art, and there is no pressure to create. It’s a really lovely, accessible creative outlet for when the world feels too loud.

Research backs this up with what the body already knows. And that is that, colouring engages with the parts of the brain used in meditation. It gently quietens the amygdala, the part responsible for stress and anxiety.

Colouring helps to bring you to the present, without asking anything of you. No skill required, no outcome to be judged. Just the small satisfying act of filling one small space at a time.

I like to use a combination of alcohol markers for that streak-free finish, and acrylic markers to add tiny details and accents.

Journaling is not about being a good writer. It is about getting the noise out of your head and onto a page.

Whether it is a gratitude list, a brain dump, or a single sentence about how you are feeling, the act of writing by hand creates a pause between thought and reaction that is genuinely hard to find anywhere else.

Studies show that expressive writing can reduce cortisol levels and improve emotional clarity over time.

Journaling helps me to feel lighter, less tangled and more in tune with myself.

I like to use the Midori Journal as the pages lie flat (I have this funny feeling of disliking how the page spiral or centre feels when writing). The minute I feel put off by it, I feel it’s harder to write. Alleviating this allows me to enjoy writing and find my flow.

At the moment, my current read is Your Brain On Art. A fascinating read, and one I truly missed picking up over the weekend!

For photography, I used my little 90’s/00’s style digital camera, which acts like a disposable camera of the late 90’s but with a reusable body and SD card. It’s fun, no screens, and lets you relive a little nostalgia.

I do love a bit of cosy gaming to switch off (quite literally) with low-stress level games like Disney Dreamlight, Camper Van: Make it Home and Minami Lane.

Oh, and let’s not forget Lego, because why is it so enjoyable as an adult?

If any of this resonated, I would love for you to come and watch the full video over on YouTube. I take you through everything inside the bag, how I actually use each one, and why I think building your own little offline toolkit might be one of the kindest things you can do for yourself.

The link is below. I hope to see you there :)

With love,

Hannah x