Seven Fun Hobbies to Do at Home From Your Chair or Sofa

For those with a creative flair, painting, colouring or drawing are great hobbies to try at home. While you may associate colouring with children, adult colouring has seen a massive resurgence in recent years – and for good reason! Studies show it’s calming, can reduce stress and anxiety, improve focus and let your creative juices flow. What’s not to love?

You could also try painting by purchasing a small easel for a side table and setting up a canvas to work from. With this, you might like to recreate special photographs from the past, follow an online tutorial (we especially love Bob Ross!) or copy an image from a magazine, newspaper or book. It’s a great hobby to try at home from the comfort of your chair!

Keeping our brains active is vital for our mental and physical wellbeing. Simply, flicking through a newspaper and completing a Sudoku, crossword or brain teaser can boost your memory, enhance cognitive function, help to reduce the risk of dementia and improve hand-eye coordination – not to mention, it’s an immensely satisfying and fun hobby to do at home!

These activities don’t have to come from newspapers alone, they can also come from the internet, puzzle books, or if you’re feeling adventurous, you can even have a go at creating them for yourself to share with a loved one. 

If you’ve lost your love for reading, then maybe it’s time to dive back in! It has to be one of the most popular hobbies of all time and for good reason. As well as keeping your mind active, reading can also expand your knowledge and is a great form of escapism from our busy lives.

If you struggle with your eyesight, then you can always try audiobooks to sit back and listen to. Alternatively, if don’t like to hold a physical book, you could invest in a Kindle or e-book and read it on a smart mobile device. Now all you need is a good reading chair.

Music can bring pleasure for many, and studies suggest that it can boost our mood, improve memory and enhance our wellbeing. It serves to evoke certain memories, helps us relax and generally makes us feel happier.

There are various music platforms, such as Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube, which hold an unimaginably large collection of music that you can easily access on a mobile phone or tablet. Exploring new music or discovering old-time classics is just the start though! You could also learn to play an instrument or try your hand at writing music. It’s a great hobby to take up at home.

Knitting and sewing are not only useful for when garments accidentally get torn, but they’re also one of our favourite hobbies to do at home for hours of enjoyment. Knitting can keep the mind active and fingers nimble; it is one of the most satisfying feelings to go from a piece of thread/wool and needle to a finished jumper, shirt or pair of socks!

You could also give your finished items to charity, friends and family or perhaps even sell them. With starter kits available at many stores, it’s an easy and enjoyable hobby for home relaxation.

Exercise is important at any age, but it’s especially important as we get older. But since we’re talking about hobbies from home, we’re not expecting you to go for a hike or play a round of golf. The good news is that you don’t even have to leave your chair to get active, thanks to chair yoga.

Chair yoga is – exactly as it sounds – yoga that you do in a seated position.  It’s a much more gentle form of yoga than some other types, meaning it’s more accessible for everyone, whatever your mobility needs. Chair yoga can help to improve your strength and flexibility, as well as improve your posture. It’s also got plenty of mental benefits as well as physical ones, and can help to reduce stress and anxiety, making you feel calmer.

Here are some simple chair yoga poses to get you started:

• Seated forward fold: Inhale and lengthen your spine by drawing the top of your head up towards the ceiling. Then as you exhale, hinge at your hips and fold forward. Let your head hang heavy and rest your hands on the floor if they reach. Hold for up to five breaths.
• Seated cat cow: Inhale, arch your back and look up. Then exhale, round your spine, and tuck your chin. Repeat for up to five breaths.
• Side bend: Inhale, and reach your left fingertips up towards the sky. Hold for up to five breaths, then exhale and bring your left hand back down to your side. Repeat on the right side.

If you consider yourself to be artistic, then this is your chance to embrace it! Whatever you’re interested in, whether it’s football, cars, animals or celebrities, there are most likely models available. You can have hours of fun collecting miniature models; most model starter kits will include everything you need to build and paint them to your heart’s content. Model making is a brilliant at-home hobby where you can channel your creative energy into something fun and immensely satisfying.

It’s never too late to find more enjoyment in life with new hobbies to do at home – who knows, you could unearth a whole new talent!

So, the next time you find yourself at home with some spare time, why not put it to good use? Take up a new hobby at home like knitting, painting reading and more.

If you’d like to learn more about how to sit in style and comfort, browse our sofa and chair collections. All of our products have been specially designed with CleverComfort™ and our Exclusive Chair Fitting, developed by our Occupational Therapist, Julie Jennings Dip COT HCPC. This means that each part of your body is properly supported, giving you unrivalled comfort every time you sit.