Skip to Content
I may earn a commission if you click on links in this post and make a purchase.

The Importance of Hobbies on the Homestead

Homesteads are busy places. Just the day-to-day life activities can be very time consuming leaving little room for leisure. And yet it is exactly for those reasons that we need to recognize the importance of hobbies.

We love our homesteads, we chose this way of life for specific reasons but constant work isn’t good for anyone and outlets, hobbies are important for a multitude of reasons.

A white cup surrounded by a knitted cup and full of knitting needles, and crochet hooks sitting next to 3 balls of yarn with text overlay reading: the importance of homestead hobbies.

Hobbies Provide Relaxation

Often hobbies allow us to turn off our internal chatter, hobbies take us away from worrying about the beehive surviving winter to simply counting stitches on the knitting needles.

Hobbies give us rest from our daily stresses while giving our brains rejuvenation from the daily chores.

a book and knitting project with needles and ball of yarn on ottoman.

Hobbies also give us rest when we’re tired as well. It’s not sleep and hobbies shouldn’t be a replacement for sleep, but creative pursuits can provide a little mental rest from the monotony or more grueling intellectual aspects of our days giving our brains some rest before getting back to it.

Hobbies Teach A Multitude of Skills

Obviously each hobby teaches us the skills necessary to do that particular task, quilting, spinning, dyeing, etc. However, it goes so much further than that in our daily lives.

Hobbies teach us to get creative about problem solving whether in our craft or in our garden. While not specifically tied to daily homestead survival today learning how to knit or quilt or make soap could at some day be a necessary and valuable skill.

A glass candleholder decorated with pieces of driftwood sitting on an orange placemat surrounded by acorns.

Hobbies also teach us to make the most of what we have available to us at any given time. This is always a good and necessary homesteading skill. That time you picked up a drop stitch with an unfolded paperclip provides the creative problem-solving base for cobbling together fencing and more.

Hobbies Create Meaningful Connections

Hobbies give us connection to our loved ones and our communities a good bit of the time. They allow us to use our creative energy to collect memories in the form of journals, scrapbooks, and more while also giving us the opportunity to create and share with others.

When we gather with our knitting circle, sew an apron with a niece, crochet hats for newborns, or throw pots for a community fundraiser we are creating powerfully deep connections that might not be made in any other way.

A stack of herbal dream pillows on a table.

It can be hard to find time for hobbies, and like anything in a handmade life we have to include time for hobbies amongst our weekly priorities.

Make crafting part of the bedtime ritual, allow it to calm the mind and body making it ready for sleep. Take a few minutes each morning, if possible, to help set the tone for the day.

An image of a cup of colored pencils stacked on top of a green box with text overlay reading: the importance of hobbies on the homestead, stacked on top of an image of a bowl of balls of yarn with knitting needles.

Small blocks of time add up and of course indulge in big blocks whenever possible, like during that blizzard that is keeping you from doing much else.

Hobbies might not be immediately vital to our day-to-day survival but they can help us run our homesteads more effectively and joyfully.

Embrace those creative hobbies as an integral part of your homestead management plan.

Sharing is caring!

Mark Henry

Thursday 1st of February 2018

Thanks for sharing :)

Connie Meyer

Thursday 15th of October 2015

Oh, I completely agree. There is a sense of pride when looking at something and knowing that "I did that". Those skills are teachable moments with the next generation.

Christine | Once Upon a Time in a Bed of Wildflowers

Thursday 15th of October 2015

I agree! I also think it's valuable to have something to look at at the end of the day and say, "Hey, I did that!" So much of homesteading gets "undone" almost as soon as you do it. As soon as you clean up the kitchen, someone puts a dirty dish on the counter; food gets eaten, clothes get worn, weeds grow faster than you can pull them. But when you do a hobby (cross-stitch is especially awesome at this) you can look at it and actually *see* your accomplishment for the day... even if it's just a tiny one! ;) Also I LOVE that book, Full Moon Feast!

Candi

Sunday 15th of February 2015

I completely agree. I believe it is important to have things in our life that 'fill us up'. So many tasks we do take away from us.

In a life where I am cooking, cleaning, homeschooling, working, and homesteading, I need something that energizes me. My hobbies can provide this.

On a bad day, milking the cow changes my world into happy. A quick Zumba workout can also make everything better.

Smile.

Angi @ SchneiderPeeps

Wednesday 28th of January 2015

Very, very true. I find that when I don't allow for creative pursuits that I feel like all I do is work. I also think that it is vital that we pass these skills down to the next generation.