Creative Hobbies

Painting is another creative hobby that requires its own mention. Many people like to take up painting – particularly watercolours – as they get older and move into retirement. There are many ways you can learn, including classes through your local FE College, activity weekends (look at www.timetolearn.org.uk  ), or on the internet. A good website to start with is www.watercolourpainting.com. Similarly, if you want to paint in oils, try www.zest-it.com 

Whichever you decide on, ease yourself in gently – you don’t want to spend too much on paints and other materials if you find that, after all, it’s not for you.

Music in its many forms also interests people in retirement. How about joining a choir so that you can sing properly and not just in the bath?
Learning a musical instrument is very popular and there are some very good music tuition books available through Amazon and other internet sites -try www.drdowningmusic.com  There will be local teachers in your area if you prefer the personal touch whilst learning.

Writing is another way in which your creative side can come out. There are numerous ways in which you can get published these days – in fact it’s easy because if no-one else will publish your work you can do it yourself by opening a web site. You can write your own blog. Some blogs have been picked up by publishers and turned into books. To get started with a blog, go to www.blogger.com  Also take a look at one of our past features, HOW TO GET YOURSELF PUBLISHED ON THE NET, which describes how Carla Ledbetter became a best-selling author through electronic book publishing. In it she provides a useful checklist of how to go about it.

Another thing you could do is to write your autobiography, both for yourself and to pass down to future generations. By doing this, you help your family history to be preserved and you'll also give yourself immense satisfaction. At laterlife, we can help you with this by introducing you to a course that will teach you how to do it. Just click here to find out the details.

If you would like to get inspiration from other writers, you could join the National Association of Writers’ Groups www.nawg.co.uk ) and go along to your local group.

There are, of course, lots more creative hobbies. To help you think about them and to give you a few more ideas, some of them are listed below:

• Sculpture
• Carving
• Tapestry
• Petit point
• Caligraphy
• Dress making
• Model making        
• Flower arranging
• Stained glass   
   

If you have a particular Hobby or Interest and would like to research and write about it on the web, take a look at our Associate scheme.

Now, take a look through the other pages and see if anything takes your fancy – or something might trigger another inspiration. If you don’t find what you want, however, take a look at the Sports and Activities section, or go to Amazon where you will be certain to find a book on the hobby or interest of your choice.

 

Visit our Pre-retirement Courses section here on laterlife or our dedicated Retirement Courses site