Being quarantined at home can send you down a dark hole. Instead of spending your quarantine days in boredom, use this moment to create something. Pick up a project you put off because you were too busy, start a new hobby, find a pastime you genuinely love! Here are a few projects perfect for keeping your mind off of the apocalyptic pandemic we are in right now.

Repurposing an old clothing item

Now is the perfect time to pull out some fabric scissors, glue, needles, threads, whatever you need to repurpose an abandoned clothing item in your closet. Try designing personalized patches, distressing a pair of jeans, painting fun patterns; The world is your oyster. Find old fabric scraps and learn how to sew. Recreate a designer piece. Quarantine is the perfect place to experiment and have fun.

Painting on an unconventional surface

You may not have new canvases or high quality paper lying around to paint on but don’t let that stop you! As long as you have acrylic, tempera or oil paint, surfaces are super easy to find. Bottle caps make perfect canvases for a cute, tiny sunset and the inside of a cereal box provides a versatile toned surface. Painting is relaxing and perfect to take your mind off of any stresses in your life right now; social isolation is hard and painting can help with your mental health.

Knitting

Do you have a pair of knitting needles at home that’s collecting dust? Try learning to knit! There are tons of helpful tutorials online to get you started. Knitting is fun, sometimes even addicting; the engrossing puzzle of perfectly arranged knots can form all sorts of colorful things, from the basic scarf to the complicated pillow cover. If you don’t have knitting needles on hand, your fingers are also a great tool. Try finger-knitting, though, at first, you may end up with a ball of tangled yarn on your fingers, after a few tutorials and practice rounds, it can be super rewarding when you finally produce something with your bare hands.

Paper cutting

You probably remember folding paper into little triangles and cutting snowflakes in elementary school, but paper cutting is an art that extends beyond the grubby little fingers of elementary schoolers. With some colorful pieces of paper and a pair of scissors, there are endless possibilities to what art you can create. Gorgeous patterns and decorations can be made with a just a few simple folds and cuts. If you have an exacto knife, you can make complex cuts to fulfill your wildest ideas: a stack of animals, a dancer, whatever your heart desires. There’s even an entire video streaming platform dedicated to just paper cutting enthusiasts.