Maybe every hobby is a bit weird to people who don’t do it, but I thought I’d assemble a list of 12 quirky or quirkier hobbies for anyone seeking a bit of inspiration for something new to try.
For info, none of the links I’ve included are affiliate links (I make no money if you click on them), they’re just links if you want to know more.
Ant keeping
Who knew, but ant keeping is actually a thing people do. Apparently they’re fascinating to watch because colonies are excellent at working together to build their home, forage for food, take care of the young etc. Ants are low maintenance pets – once you’re set up, they’ll need food, but little else. These are good links for learning a little about having ants as pets (though they’re both American I think) –
https://www.keepinginsects.com/cockroaches-locusts-ants/ants-as-pets/ and https://www.brumaants.com/why-you-should-keep-ants-as-pets/
Complete starter kits seem to start from about £200 based on this website – https://antsuk.com/ant-keeping-for-beginners/
Axe throwing
According to Woodsmith (https://www.woodsmith.co.uk/woodworking-tools/axes/throwing-axes ) axe throwing is actually a sport that’s quickly growing in popularity at the moment. The idea is to throw the axe at a target, which sounds pretty therapeutic after a bad day, though it does seem to also involve a level of skill to actually kit the bullseye. A quick search showed there are plenty of places doing taster sessions.
Entomology
Entomology is the study of insects. It can be a career or hobby, but is certainly quirky. This article gives some suggestions for how to start entomology as a hobby https://www.myjobquote.co.uk/blog/beginners-guide-to-entomology (it’s about half way down, but quite thorough). In the UK, there are a few entomological societies, one being the Amateur Entomologists’ Society, which has a pretty informative website, including a nice brief article on professional versus amateur entomology (https://www.amentsoc.org/insects/getting-started/proam.html ). So, if you like bugs, why not study them for fun?
Grow your own tea
According to the Royal Horticultural Society, 165 million cups of tea are drunk in the UK every day and it’s actually possible to grow your own tea (https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/articles/misc/grow-your-own-tea ). The tea plant is a type of camellia that likes lime-free soil, but can actually tolerate temperatures down the -10C. So if you like green tea especially, why not grow your own? If gardening isn’t top of your list of favourite activities, another option is to blend your own tea or to make herbal tea using easily accessible plants. Nettle tea is simple to make and a good use for the pesky weed!
Hikaru dorodango
This is definitely one of the quirky hobbies. Hikaru dorodango are balls of mud that have been moulded into spheres and polished. It’s a traditional pastime for kids in Japan and I guess does come under the cheap hobby category too! Although it sounds a little underwhelming as a hobby, some of the balls are actually stunning (https://resobox.com/exhibition/the-art-of-hikaru-dorodango/ ).
This is a simple guide for getting started – https://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Hikaru-Dorodango%2C-or-Shining-Ball-of-Mud
Kintsugi
This is another hobby idea from Japan. Kintsugi is the craft of repairing broken pottery, but making the repair obvious and part of the beauty of the object. The idea is that the break is part of the object’s life and so shouldn’t be disguised. For Kintsugi, the repair uses lacquer dusted with gold or other precious metals. I really like the idea of making a repair part of the story of an item rather than something that’s hidden or a reason to bin the item.
For a bit more info, this Wikipedia article is good – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kintsugi
Lego scene building
From iconic scenes out of movies to recreating special moments, creating mini scenes with lego is a quirky, but fun hobby (and perfect if you like photography too). These two websites show some of what’s possible – https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-berkshire-65413844 and https://ideas.lego.com/
Nålbinding
I’m not sure how quirky this hobby is, but the name was good enough to get it on this list! Nålbinding is making textile items using yarn and a single needle. An alternative to knitting or crochet, though items made with nålbinding don’t fall apart if cut. Nålbinding is also great for using up left-over bits of wool, plus it’s good for people like me who are not good at following patterns because it seems to be more often made freeform.
Nålbinding is often associated with Vikings, though its origin is actually unknown and examples have been found by archaeologists all over the world, with the oldest from about 10,000 years ago found in Israel.
These links are good for starting out and for a bit of background – https://spinoffmagazine.com/nalbinding-basics-oslo-stitch/ and https://spinoffmagazine.com/nalbinding-a-short-history-of-an-ancient-craft/
Re-enactment
If you enjoy history or maybe just enjoy a weekend of dressing up, why not consider re-enactment? Perhaps a bit quirky to some, but re-enactment involves spending time mimicking an era or event from history. The UK has lots of re-enactment/living history societies and associations, some focussing on specific periods or locations and others more flexible. There do seem to be a lot for WW2, but plenty of others too. There are societies who re-enact battles, whereas there are others who focus on keeping a part of history alive or aim to be educational, plus some are musical, and so on. So, if you want to be a Roman for a day or be part of WW2 home guard, then why not?
This is a directory of UK societies – https://www.historic-uk.com/LivingHistory/ReenactorsDirectory/
Scale remote control lorries
Perhaps not the cheapest hobby to start, but how about driving remote control lorries around mini towns? The lorries are scaled down versions of the real thing and made to be as realistic as possible, even down to realistic suspension, sounds and lights etc. You can even get forklift trucks to be able to load lorries, diggers to excavate, and many more options.
This is a random site I found as an example of the lorries – https://alshobbies.co.uk/trucks-trailers
Taphophilia
The name taphophilia comes from the ancient Greek combining philos for friend and taphos for burial, funeral, grave, tomb and so on. According to Wikipedia, tombstone tourist, cemetery enthusiast, cemetery tourist, grave hunter and graver are alternative names for taphophiles (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tombstone_tourist ). As a hobby, taphophilia tends to be about enjoying being in graveyards and cemeteries, perhaps recording grave stones, learning about the people who have been buried there or exploring different graveyards. Lots of people find graveyards fascinating, so why not make it into a hobby?
Yodelling
Yodelling is a form of singing that involves swinging between deep chest noise and high pitch head voice. The name comes from the German and it’s been an alpine region tradition since the 1800s. It’s perhaps the most famous from The Sound of Music, but it’s also fun. This is a quick guide for how to yodel – https://www.classicfm.com/discover-music/how-to-yodel/
Do you have a quirky hobby or hobbies? Tell us all about it!
Dr Eleanor Rogerson founded Hobby Aids because she believes hobbies are good for you and limitations shouldn't stop doing what you enjoy. She is based in North Lincolnshire, UK.
Her background is chemistry, but after years in industry she wanted to work for herself and so went self-employed. During this time she mainly worked as a gardener. Recently she has been diagnosed with arthritis in her hands, which has caused her to discover the gap in the market to cater for hobbies for people with limitations.
Taphophilia… sounds fascinating. Always been intrigued by the churchyard/graveyard in Burton upon stather. Why the headstones were moved. I’d like to know about the lives of the people buried there, especially the service personnel, what their lives were like, families etc. Now I know that it’s an actual hobby I could look for guidance on how to find more information.
That sounds cool – a great project and excuse to wander around the graveyard!