In My Granny Hobby Era And Thriving — 25+ Slow Hobbies Worth Leaning Into

I’ve fully entered my granny hobby era. And, I declare that proudly. More accurately, I’d say that everyone else has joined in on the grandmother hobbies I’ve long celebrated, haha. I’m talking about the hobbies that take time. The ones that don’t produce instant results. The ones that are quieter, often home-bound and independent. The ones that require patience, presence, and maybe a cup of something cozy nearby. The ones our grandmothers mastered long before “doomscrolling” was even a concept. And maybe a few that have that same classic soul that have just been updated a little for the modern time.

Over the past several years, I’ve found myself naturally gravitating toward slower, more intentional ways to spend my time. Some I’ve loved for years, and some I’m just beginning to explore. And honestly, they’ve brought so much quiet joy into my everyday life. Once upon a time, I don’t think I could list a single hobby, if asked, and today… well, I have a bunch.

In celebration of that and the well deserved hype surrounding the grandmother aesthetic and activities, I’m sharing some of the “granny hobbies” that have become part of my routine (plus a few I’m still romanticizing from afar).

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Cognitive Stimulation & Leisure: Exercising My Brain (Without Stressing It Out)

If there’s one thing I’ll always love, it’s a good, low-pressure way to keep my brain engaged. The things that can actually shut of my mind and keep me away from my phone, distraction, and my own never-ending thoughts.

📚 Reading

This one is at the top of my list because even when I don’t “have time”, I’m finding time to fit it in. Whether it’s a physical book, Kindle, or audiobook, reading is my constant. It’s something I’m always doing, without even planning for it. It’s the thing I get to do while I’m doing other things (treadmill, chores, getting ready, driving), but also the thing I get to look forward to, sinking into my favorite chair, curling up with my heated blanket and a Vitamin String Quartet vinyl, with mood lighting and ambiance.

Tablet Holder | Kindle Paperwhite Signature | Remote Control

🧩 Puzzles

There is something so calming about slowly working through a puzzle. It’s quiet, focused, and oddly therapeutic. I can finally work on a puzzle without the pressure to finish in one sitting and I love having a buddy to puzzle with these days 😉 Bonus points if there’s music playing in the background.

My Bamboo Pajamas | TS 1989 Puzzle | Puzzle Board | Eliza Pajamas

TS Lover Puzzle | TS Eras Puzzle | Puzzle Board | Eliza Pink Satin Pajamas | Eliza Buffalo Check Pajamas

🃏 Games (Backgammon, Playing Cards, Mahjong)

I love the idea of keeping classic games alive — the kind that get pulled out on slow afternoons or family nights. I’m competitive and love to play with Dave, but I’m looking forward to more game nights with friends. My girlfriends and I are working towards a Mahjong lesson soon!

Romanticizing Rituals: Making Everyday Moments Feel Special

This category is all about intention. Sure, there are shortcuts and modernized, simplified, and more streamline options, but the ritual is the majority of the enjoyment.

🎵 Intentional Record Listening

Putting on a vinyl record, sitting down, and actually listening feels like a lost art. It’s become one of my favorite ways to unwind.

Floating Wooden Record Shelves | Record Storage Console | Record Player | Speakers 

📖 Bible Study & Devotional Journaling

This is a quieter, more meaningful rhythm in my life. Setting aside time for reflection, prayer, and journaling grounds me in ways nothing else quite does. Surely by now you’ve seen me talk about The Bible Recap daily bible reading program (on my third cycle), and the daily devotional I’m working through this year.

The Bible Recap Study Bible | No Bleed Highlighters | No Bleed Pens

🏺 Collecting (Physical Media, Antiques, Keepsakes)

Whether it’s vinyl, vintage frames, or little treasures with history, collections are making a huge comeback. It wasn’t long ago that my generation was running away from collections and towards minimalism, but as curation and collection and nostalgia have earned their way back into our lives and aesthetic, the hobby of collecting (whatever) is making a huge resurgence. I love surrounding myself with things that feel personal and lived-in as evidenced by my inherited treasures in my home, my vinyl collection, my travel prints, and more.

Rechargeable Sconces (Set of 2) | Floating Wooden Record Shelves | Record Storage Console | Record Player | Speakers | Acrylic Record Holder | Clear CD Holder (used for singles) | Floor Lamp | Window Shades (in Bali White) | Rug | Storage Ottoman | Pillow | Acrylic & Gold Pedestal Side Table

Credenza | Fabric Storage Bins | Frame TV (32″)

Gallery Wall Frames: 1. | 2. | 3. | 4. | 5. | 6. | 7. (32″ w/ modern teak bezel) | 8. | 9. | 10. | 11. | 12. | 13. | 14. | 15. | 16.

🧣 Infusing Classic Grandmother Style into Everyday Life

Part of romanticizing life, for me, also shows up in how I get dressed, when I get dressed… reaching for a silk neck scarf. Pinning on a vintage brooch. Choosing a structured bag or a well-loved cardigan. I’d argue that dressing outside of athleisure, in general, is a total grandmother move, but I am loving using opportunities to elevate my regular style a little more with thoughtful, classic details. It’s not about being “dressy” — it’s about being intentional. It’s another quiet way of honoring timelessness over trends, and choosing pieces that feel meaningful, collected, and personal. And, this intentional process and the enjoyment of the ritual of dressing and accessorizing is 100% a hobby in my book 😉

(L) Wool Coat | Suede Bag | Boots | Silk Neck Scarf
(R) Coat (similar) | Necklace | Clutch

I am elated to have picked from my mom’s brooches to inherit this pretty, classic collection. And, THIS glass topped hinged jewelry box with customized dividers is the PERFECT storage solution! I was THRILLED!

Velvet Jewelry Organizer

Coat | Button Down Shirt | Joggers | Shopper Tote  | Slingback Flats | Bangle Bracelet

Tuckernuck Toile Dress | Shopper Tote  | Boots | Earrings

Outdoor & Nature: Slowing Down Outside

There’s easy ways to maximize the enjoyment of the outdoors, getting Vitamin E, soaking in all the benefits of fresh air and sunshine, and appreciating nature’s beauty.

🐦 Bird Watching

I never thought I’d be someone who gets excited about backyard birds, but my mom has long enjoyed her little visitors. I got her a Bird Buddy for Christmas and shouldn’t be as surprised as I am by how much I enjoy getting her updates (because I ask for them, haha). We are going to have to get our own

Bird Buddy Pro (Solar)

🚶‍♀️ WalkinG/HIKING

But like, for leisure and enjoyment. You still get the excercize but the intent is for enjoyment, meditation, and settling your body — not just to work out. That kind of walking, to me, would fall more categorically into straight exercise and outside the realm of “hobby”, but, you can can classify it how you like 😉 Simple, underrated, and so good for the soul. Some of my best thinking happens on quiet walks and some of my best audiobook listening, too 😉.

🐚 Shell, Rock, & Nature Collecting

Little pockets of wonder from everyday adventures. It’s such a sweet way to notice the small things. Eliza must be in her granny hobby era too, because she is an expert at collecting nature. We’re saving her spoils from trips and regular play and maybe one day we’ll have a plan on how to repurpose them.

Colored Pencils | Coloring Book

I’ve also seen groups of girlfriends hold craft nights where they go to Hobby Lobby and choose something to do together — and then buy patches, adornments, etc. to personalize their individual crafts. I love this kind of girls night!

Paper, Memory & Sentimental Keepsakes: Preserving Life’s Little Moments

This is where nostalgia lives. And this is a part of life that I don’t want abandoned by the digital age — texting, cellphones, digital images…

📸 Scrapbooking & Photo Albums

I’m such a believer in physical photos. There’s nothing like flipping through real pages of memories. I was a big scrapbooker as a teen (have any of you ever gone to actual scrapbooking stores?) and while physical printed photo albums are a big thing again right now, I would call it major progress to create physical photo books. Which is at the top of my list for this year. I want to start by year since the year Eliza was born and then go back and maybe do some more in depth books of special trips. Scrapbooking and positioning physical photos though is a whole extra level of meaningful and therapeutic photo-documenting.

📓 Journaling & Junk Journaling

Messy, meaningful, layered with life — just how it should be. There are so many ways to journal these days but I am loving the idea of junk journaling — which is basically a scrapbook of your days, composed of mementos and notes. I am considering starting one.

🌳 Genealogy Research

Learning more about where we come was eyeopening to me. While my grandmother actually put in old school hard work (and was in the D.A.R.) as a result of her lineage tracing, I was surprised enough by the results after submitting a test through Ancestry. There is so much I don’t know about my family — members, origins, where they settled — and I think it would be so gratifying being able to piece all that together.

✉️ Sending Handwritten Notes

A handwritten note will never go out of style. Ever. And finding ways to make your notes “extra” — custom stamps, wax seals, special stationery… well, that makes it more fun for both the sender and recipient. I do find joy in making notes beautiful but I really should make more of an effort to turn sending notes into an actual hobby, despite being able to communicate digitally.

Kitchen & Homemaking: Old-School Comfort

Some of my deepest memories of my grandmothers are of them in the kitchen and the things that came out of their kitchens.

🍞 Baking Bread

There’s something magical about turning a few simple ingredients into something warm and nourishing. Sourdough is having a major moment and while I’m not totally on board with all that goes into that (like the dedication and the starter situation), I love baking banana bread and other sweet/fruit bread. It’s such an easy way to make an impression, be “known” for something, and a way to share love with those in your life. Plus, it’s easy and low stakes to experiment! You can find my recipe HERE.

Iridescent Wrap

🫙 Canning & Pickling

I’m not a canner but I envy those who are and those who have amassed a collection of preserved veggies and fruit spreads in their cellars and pantries! Dave pickles and jars jalapeños, and while she doesn’t seal them for long-term storage, I’m obsessed with my mom pickling red onions. I want to eat them on everything. You can find the recipe HERE.

📖 Recipe Testing & Curation

Collecting recipes, tweaking them, digging into cards passed down from your family, and building your own little archive is such a joy. The easiest way to turn this from something you occasionally do into an actual hobby is to decide how to collect your recipes. Not just all the recipes you amass that you find online, but the proven winners, your family favorites, the ones you’ve altered… and then collect those in a strategic, identical way — be in a recipe box or a book that you can continue to add to.

Home & Garden: Nurturing What’s Around Me

It’s a patient hobby — maybe the most frustrating but can also be the most gratifying.

🌿 Herb & Window Sill Gardening

Little green reminders that growth takes time. I don’t put a lot of research into, wing it, and fail a lot, but if I dedicated more time and effort, this is such a great hobby that nurtures.

Clay Herb Markers

🌱 Seed Gardens & Companion Planting

Learning how plants support each other feels like a life lesson in itself. Again, I haven’t gone down this rabbit hole but I admire those who follow the science and plant accordingly.

🌸 Cutting Garden

Fresh flowers from your own yard? Yes, please.

🪴 Plant Parenting

Talking to plants. Googling leaf issues. Celebrating new growth. It’s a lifestyle. I don’t have the biggest green thumb, but I am happy to brag that I have multiple indoor plants that are a few years old at this point.

Leaning Into My “Granny Hobby Era”

These hobbies aren’t about productivity. They’re not about doing more. They’re about doing things slowly. Intentionally. With care.

They’re about choosing presence over pressure. Joy over hustle. Depth over distraction.

Some of these have been part of my life for years. Others are still on my “one day” list. But all of them remind me that a beautiful life isn’t built in big, flashy moments… it’s built in small, quiet ones. And if that makes me a little bit of a modern-day grandma at heart? I’ll happily claim it. If you have granny tendencies and joys — both that we share or some that aren’t mentioned here — please let us know in the comments!