In the modern world, finding a unique and interesting hobby to try is difficult, particularly hobbies for women. Simply put, many of us don’t have time for high effort hobbies due to commitments to family, work, or school.
Despite this, everyone deserves to have a fun passion outside of work and so I’ve compiled this hobby list to help find the perfect activity for you!
You’ll be sure to find some unique ideas here to get started with in the new year
Reading
Reading is a tried and true hobby which most people will enjoy. Even if you don’t think that books are your thing, it may be worth it picking one up and seeing if you enjoy it! There are many different genres, styles, and lengths of books which could potentially catch your interest.
It’s also cheap, since you can borrow books from the library and also works for those with busy schedules since you can finish them at your own pace. This makes reading one of the best hobbies for women, it can fit anyone’s lifestyle!
Baking
Baking is like cooking’s cooler cousin. It’s a creative hobby, letting you experiment with flavours, designs and types of treats. Not to mention, you get a nice sweet treat to reward your efforts.
You could also keep a record of your baking, making a homemade recipes book where you rate the treats you make. In fact you could even turn it into a gift for a family member, as the perfect homemade present. Win-Win!
Herbalism
In a similar vein to baking, herbalism is one of the more unique and practical hobbies for women to pick up. Herbalism involves using herbal ingredients to create homeopathic remedies. This isn’t a replacement for medicine, simply a fun way to treat minor ills and experiment with what’s in your garden.
Half the fun of this hobby is the research into different herbal remedies you can try. For example, you can harvest rosehips for rosehip oil, or you could make ginger and elderberry tea for a cold.
Start your own by using a starter herb garden kit, and use my guide to growing an herb garden to get started!
Hiking & Trail walking
Hiking is a brilliant way to enjoy more of nature and spending some time each week in a calm and peaceful atmosphere. It can be a welcome break from busy, working life. You don’t have to start with an intense hike, you could simple do a clear trail path and build your way up.
This is also a good way to meet new people; you can join a local hiking group and plan trips together!
Pottery & Clay designs,
Pottery is a super easy and cheap creative hobby to try. If you’re using air dry clay you have a large margin for error, meaning you can take your time when making your masterpieces. It also means you don’t need to buy all the equipment when you’re just starting out (but if you want, there are still relatively cheap tool kits you can buy).
You can also paint your pottery once it’s dried, giving you full creative control over the things you create. It’s so simple to start, simply make a Pinterest board for inspiration, take your time, and have fun!
Gardening
Gardening is a great way to get closer to nature from the comfort of your home. You can make your garden as simple or extravagant as you like and can be done both indoors and outdoors. Another great thing about gardening is that you get to see you work and care grow your plants, which is one of the greatest things to experience.
It’s also quite easy to get started with, you simply need some soil, seeds, and a gardening starter kit such as this one. These will allow you to grow your first plants and begin your gardening journey. There’s no need to get all the equipment right away, you can build your kit once your plants develop.
Content Creation
Social media content creation is growing in popularity as an options of hobbies for women, especially with apps like TikTok which allows you to make short, relatively low effort content.
Try posting some fun things; be it dancing trends, a review of your latest read, or a fun video explaining a niche you’re a part of! Whatever you do, make the most of it and have fun.
This is also more rewarding if you end up developing an audience which enjoy your videos, it’s exciting to know that others recognise and enjoy your talents and you can build a community of people.
Writing
Writing is the perfect, calming hobby for when you want to settle your mind or reflect on your day, but it can also be a purely creative outlet. The great thing about writing is that it can take multiple forms depending on your needs.
Want to reflect on your feelings and process the day? Start a Diary!
Want to let out your creative ideas? Start a short story!
Want a bit of both? Start writing some poetry!
All you need is a pen and paper. You could even get a dedicated writing journal, I love writing in a pretty journal and it motivates me to keep adding entries. Be sure to buy a lined notebook, like the one linked, since it will be much easier to write in.
Dancing
Dancing is one of the best hobbies for women to try, it helps keep you healthy and active whilst also providing a creative outlet. You can even choose which style of dance you’d prefer; from ballet, to hip-hop, to contemporary you’ll be sure to find one you like the look of.
If you live in a city, finding beginner classes for your age group will be easy. However if you live more rurally or can’t afford classes, you could always follow a YouTube tutorial and start learning from home!
Learning new cultures
Learning cultures is an activity often overlooked, since many wouldn’t know where to start. However, it is by far one of the most enriching activities you could do. It broadens your world view and introduces you to new things you haven’t tried before.
To make this more fun, you could get your friends in on it and try to host nights inspired by whatever culture you’re learning about. Alternatively, you could each do a different culture and all host for each other.
Running
This is a popular hobby for a reason; it keeps you active, encourages you to get out, and can be a social activity if you join a running club.
If you’re someone who likes having tangible results from a hobby, maybe you could start running to complete a goal. This could a marathon, a 5k run or just fulfilling a certain step count every day; your choice.
Painting
Painting is so fun, can pairs well with several other hobbies on this list. You could paint your clay creations, add images to your short stories, or simply paint on canvas. Either way, it’s one of the best, creative hobbies for women.
There are several types of painting that you could try. Acrylic is probably the easiest for beginners due to being fast drying, and easy to apply to the paper. This acrylic paint set contains a full range of colours, along with all the brushes and tools you’ll need to get started.
If you’re more experienced, you may wish to use oil or watercolours for different effects. However, oil paints are slow drying and watercolours can tear cheap paper.
Photography
Everyone takes pictures, but not everyone has photography as a hobby. The difference? Simply the amount of time, effort and passion!
You don’t need a professional camera to get started, you could even use your iPhone for your first pics or a second hand camera!
You could also try your hand at digitally editing your photos, to better create a mood and elevate your work. Whatever you choose to do, enjoy the process!
Journaling
Journaling (or scrapbooking) is a more aesthetic version of ‘writing’ as mentioned earlier. You still write about various topics but these are paired with other media and visual elements, like torn newspapers, trinkets, and flowers.
half the fun of this hobby is gathering all the materials. I find that collecting little clips throughout your day is so fun. Perhaps, you could press flowers from garden? Or tear off corners from your morning newspaper?
If you’re less worried about gathering materials there are many scrapbook starter kits online containing small bits of paper and stickers that you can use to get started
Volunteering
Volunteering is truly a brilliant hobby which is amazing for boosting your mood. It get’s you out of the house, provides a service to your community, and offers a social circle and sense of community. There are so many levels of volunteering you can try depending on your abilities.
You could try anything from donating a few hours to a local charity shops each week, to applying for a week long conservation program for an international charity. Either way, you get the good feeling of helping others and get the opportunity to try something new.
Colouring Books
Colouring books are a less active creative hobby, which is good for winding down. The simple task can ease a twitchy mind and settle any stress you feel after a long day.
Also, the completion of the coloured picture makes you feel productive and content as opposed to scrolling online which can leave you feeling unfulfilled.
It’s so easy to start colouring, you don’t need expensive pencils or markers and you can choose a colouring book which suits you. This colouring book set is perfect, it has 3 colouring books giving you more designs to choose from and comes with a range of all the coloured pencils you’ll need. I personally prefer using pencils as they’re less messy and won’t stain your hands.
Mosaics
This crafty hobby is a bit more advanced than the rest of those suggested, but with a bit of time and patience I think it is well worth the effort. Mosaics are fairly easy to complete with a gentle hand, and you can search up template ideas for your designs.
I’d recommend getting a mixed colour mosaic tiles pack since this allows you to experiment with a range of ideas and designs before official choosing one. The brilliant part of mosaics is that nothing is set until the stones are glued down, so you have a large margin of error to experiment.
Sewing
Sewing and other craft skills are not just hobbies for women, it’s an important life skill which many should try to learn. However in learning to sew, you open the door to so many other fun opportunities that you might enjoy.
For example, you could try to make your own clothes or tailor some older pieces to fit you better. This hobby is also great for fixing up holes in your clothes, or simply trying some patchwork art.
You will most likely need a sewing machine for this hobby, since hand sewing can be difficult for large projects. If you’re a beginner, definitely ask around to see if any family members have a spare or look though a charity shop.
Aromatherapy and Skincare
Skincare is a very popular past time for a lot of women of all ages, and can be a source of insecurity for many. This is why I believe that professional skincare and aromatherapy are some of the best hobbies for women to try. This takes back skincare and converts it from an insecurity to a source of luxury and relaxation.
This could include learning facial massages, researching pressure points for stress relief, and investing in a high quality facial steamer and essential oils.
Learn an instrument
Instruments are a fun way to pick up something new, and can be a really cool trick to show your friends and family. Especially with the number of free, online tutorials today learning a basic instrument at home is achievable.
Before you start, I would suggest doing some thorough research into the type of instrument you’d like to learn. Make sure that it fits into your lifestyle; more specifically that you’d have the space and time for it.
For example, piano is easier to learn but is expensive and requires a lot of space. In contrast, a violin is lightweight but complex and will likely need a teacher.
Videogames
Videogames get so much flack when, truly, they are one of the best hobbies for women to start! There are a range of genres to choose from and different paces, so you can play your own way. These are also a great way to make new friends, since most games have a strong fanbase surrounding them.
Some games, typically farming sims like Stardew Valley, have a large community of female gamers so they may be a good point to start. However, there are a growing number of women entering gaming as a whole, meaning you’ll always be able to find some sort of community no matter which game you choose.
Hobbies for Women- Final Thoughts
This list is not limited, truly there are hundreds others out there that you could try each with their own benefits and limitation. I hope that you found something within this list which speaks to you and inspires you to try. If not, no worries! Instead, let this list serve as inspiration to help you figure out what hobbies you may be interested in.
Have you got any other hobbies for women that you think would fit into this list? Let me know! I’d love to hear your thoughts on these hobbies and if you’d ever try some of these.
For posts of a similar vein, please check out my creative side hustle ideas for ways to have fun AND make money. Thank you for Reading!