5 Creative Hobbies or Outlets For People with Lupus

Still haven’t found a creative outlet? Here are more ideas to try!

Sewing

(Energy Level: Moderate)
When I was a young child, my mother used to sew dresses and jumpers for me to wear. Now that I’m a grown-up, she sews me pillows and curtains for my house. She branched out into creating colorful masks, aprons, and microwaveable bowls during the pandemic. She loves mixing new patterns and textures to create something new and useful.

While I don’t share my mother’s love of sewing, I did discover a book that made sewing fun and also filled the time when I was on medical leave from grad school. Socks Appeal by Brenna Maloney can make you like sewing even if you don’t like sewing. Using just socks and a sewing kit, you can create adorable sock bunnies, sock owls, sock mice, and even sock penguins. It wasn’t long before most of my friends in grad school were sporting sock bunnies on their bookshelves.

Drawing

(Energy Level: Low)
As children, we all doodled in coloring books, on scraps of paper, or in my case, on one of your mother’s Christian devotional books. Being the best artist in your class or grade came with a certain amount of fame that made you walk a little taller in the halls of your elementary school. But as we grow up, most of us stop drawing. Math homework and book reports and worries over whether your crush likes you back push creativity to the side. By the time we reach adulthood, we’ve mostly forgotten the simple joy of letting our pencils race across a blank page. But drawing doesn’t have to look so real it might hop off the page. Some of the best cartoonists use stick figures. Plus, it’s nearly free; all you need is a pencil, some paper, and your dog to sit still long enough for you to capture his essence on paper.

Painting With Oils or Watercolor

(Energy Level: Low)
If drawing isn’t your thing, try painting. With painting, you can be less exact, and there is more margin for error. Claude Monet’s famous Water Lilies isn’t full of precise lines and angles; it’s a blurry image composed of dots and thick paint, yet it still leaves a strong impression. Picasso, Van Gogh, and even Jackson Pollock created beautiful drawings out of oil paint. Just don’t get carried away and cut off an ear.

Refinishing Furniture

(Energy Level: Moderate)
Videos of people painting or refinishing old furniture fill up my feed on YouTube. I love watching YouTubers transform forgotten furniture from Goodwill into elegant nightstands or beautiful dressers. With a few tools from Home Depot and some overlooked furniture gems, you can create creative pieces for your home or to sell. Most YouTubers I watch use Dixie Belle mineral chalk paint, which is good quality paint in a variety of colors.

You can also branch out and create furniture out of everyday objects. This summer, I sanded and painted an old First Aid kit, then attached legs to make a quirky little side table.

Pottery or Ceramics

(Energy Level: Moderate)
Look at the coffee cup beside you. (If you suffer from lupus fatigue, I am assuming you have a coffee cup beside you.) With a little time and know-how, you can make your own ceramic mugs, bowls, or trinkets. Many cities have pottery classes or kilns you can use to create more containers for all the coffee you are probably drinking.

As you embark on a new creative hobby, remember that creativity is good for the soul and for your health. Don’t get discouraged or dragged down by perfectionism; skill is built with time and practice.