Old Fashioned Winter Hobbies

Is winter a slow time of the year for you? You might find yourself with extra time on your hands and in need of something to do. The winter season is naturally a slower time which is perfect after the busy summer and fall seasons, but there are still many life-giving winter hobbies you can take up that are wholesome and rewarding.

As a homemaker, winter is a great time to learn something new. Life is slowing down for a bit and if you live in an area that gets winter weather, you will probably spend a lot of time indoors. Learning something new is a great way to keep yourself (which in turn keeps the family)from going stir crazy.

There is so much to do and learn in life, why not take this slower season and make it a productive time by adding some winter hobbies!

Reading

Is there a book you have been wanting to read? Perhaps there is a specific genre of literature that you would love to explore this winter.

I have slowly been trying to read all the classics. Books like…

Pride and Prejudice
Persuasion
North and South
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
War and Peace
Ivanhoe
Robin Hood
Lord of the Rings
The Count of Monte Cristo

Once I find an author that I like, I tend to explore all the books they have written before moving on to something else. Some of my favorite authors are….

C.S. Lewis
J. R. R. Tolkien
Jane Austen
Elizabeth Gaskell
Leo Tolstoy
G. A. Henty

Winter is a great time to make a book list and enjoy some extra reading. You’ll have lots of time during the winter and well-chosen books make for great companions.

Sewing

Not only is this a great skill to have, but it is also a hobby, that is worth investing the time and energy to learn. You can save money by handmaking things instead of buying them pre-made. It’s, also, so much fun to go to stores like hobby lobby, and Joanns to browse their fabric selections.

I recently came across this vintage, looking blue floral on a faded background and I can’t wait to do a project with it!

One of my goals for the winter months is to recreate a hope chest. Traditionally, a hope chest is a box or a chest that young woman would fill with homemade linens like tablecloth and napkins in anticipation of becoming a homemaker. Although I am already married, I want to re-create this hope chest idea as a married woman, and learn to make linens for my own home.

Once I make some linens, I also want to get into the next hobby listed here which is needlework.

Needlework

There are so many types of needlework.

Embroidery
Lacemaking
Cross stitching
Crocheting
Knitting

I’ve recently been looking a lot into this activity and it is fresh on my mind. Old-fashioned homemakers believed that the needle was the best way to keep your hands from being idle so they used the little bits of time that was left over from house work to make things and embellish them with all sorts of needlework.

Specifically, the two types I have been looking into are Irish lace making and white work embroidery. Out of all the different types of laces to learn, Irish lace making seems to be the simplest, so I thought I would start there.

White work embroidery is needlework that is done with only white thread. Although embroidery with all the colors is beautiful, the simple elegance of white work is really hard for me to pass up. It’s perfect for the white linens I want to make in case I will need to bleach them to get stains out and make them look nice for longer.

Candle making

Candlemaking is a simple hobby that is not too expensive to get into. All you really need is the type of wax you want to use, some wicks, and some thing to melt the wax in.

It’s also very satisfying to make your own candles to light up your home. Winter is the perfect time for this hobby because it’s so cozy!

Baking

When I think of winter and especially the holidays, I think of delicious desserts and specifically cookies.

I am not a great baker so it’s one of my goals this winter to master baking cookies. Someday I’m going to be that Gramma that always has a cookie jar full just waiting for little hands to dip into. Who knows? I might just be that kind of mom, too!

Homemaking and especially parenting definitely has stressful seasons, so it doesn’t hurt to have a nice little treat on hand for everyone.

Book binding

Something that intrigues me, but I haven’t looked much into is book binding. Not only do I love reading, but I also love decorating with books.

When we go to buy books, we like to see if we can find a decorative printed edition because they are beautiful and it’s much more fun to read a beautiful book then a plain paper back one.

It can be hard to find the perfect decorative book however, so I have been really intrigued by the idea of taking books that I love and rebinding them with fabric that matches or coordinates with the rest of my decor.

Card making

If you’re a little bit artistic, you’ll love the hobby of making your own cards. You can easily buy blank cards to sketch a simple design before writing out a sweet note to friends and family this holiday season.

I’m still new at this hobby myself, but I’m learning to enjoy creating my own cards instead of buying premade ones.

Cooking

Cooking from scratch has become a hobby for me. I’m learning how to make new things and feed my family in a life-giving way because so much of our home’s culture and life revolves around food.

It is a consistent source that we draw from to carry out every other area of our lives. Learning to master cooking is a worthwhile hobby because you have to do it anyways, so why not learn how to do it well?!

There is so much to explore and to learn! It’s been fun taking meals that my family really appreciates and learning, or at least looking into how to make each part of the meal from scratch with the best ingredients that we can afford.

Food really is better when it’s homemade!

Writing

Whether you want to journal or you like storytelling, writing is a life-giving hobby that helps us express our thoughts for our own personal reflection, or even to share with others. So much goodness is shared through words and writing is just one tool that can help us share the goodness that we have received with others.

This is one of the reasons why I have started this blog. Even though I am a young homemaker, there is so much that I know now that I wish I could share with my former self even in my teenage years before marriage.

Although I can’t go back and tell myself all the things I wish I could, writing has enabled me to share the truth, beauty, and goodness that I have learned with other homemakers just like you.

If you love being creative, and want to share your ideas with other people, consider taking up some form of writing in this winter season. You won’t regret it!

Final Thoughts!

Did you find an old fashioned winter hobby to add to your life? There are so many good ones out there and winter is the perfect time to learn something new.

Instead of going stir crazy or getting bored I hope you start something new this winter season and maybe get your family involved in one, too.

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