One month down of quarantine and physical distancing and who knows how much longer this will last? All of the concerts I was going to this summer got postponed or canceled (super sad about Lover Fest being moved to 2021) and my online classes are ending in less than two weeks soooo I will have a lot of free time coming up which is kinda scary as I'm so used to being productive. REMINDER: you don't have to force yourself to be productive during a pandemic. It's a frightening time and spend your time at home how you want to spend it- you don't have to get started on writing a freaking novel.
However, I do have some fun activities planned when my school schedule is completely cleared and I've already been filling my weekends and evenings with many meaningful activities. Surprisingly I haven't been bored yet during my time at home, so I'm going to share some of the things I've already done during quarantine and things I plan to do!
1. Buy a portable hammock and spend some time in it: Buying a portable Wise Owl hammock on Amazon was one of my best quarantine purchases! It's so easy to set up the hammock in a (sturdy) tree and then you can lay in it for however long you please! It's so cozy and enjoyable laying out among nature.
2. Learn embroidery: A few weeks ago before the virus got really bad I took a quick trip to Walmart and bought a simple embroidery kit and made the cutest tri-colored rainbow. It looks a little rough as I was learning the techniques as I went along, but learning how to embroider is something I want to know how to do in general so this is a great time to practice and build my skills! & you guys should try it out too!
3. Redecorate your room as you always wanted it: Chances are you're home in your childhood bedroom for the next few weeks or months so take the time to redecorate and make it a cozy and inspiring space! I recently hung up some fairy lights in my room and just adding that made so much more cuter!
4. Change up your Instagram profile: I had the same Instagram profile picture for the longest time so I commissioned a friend to create a graphic of me for my Insta profile pic and it's SO cute. I also changed up my Instagram bio to reflect my nature & personality more by adding cute emoticons and I changed my highlight covers to some bright, retro wallpapers for a positive vibe. Check out my Instagram @thesarahdipity to see my new profile! I love how this quarantine is giving me so much time to spruce up my Instagram so it reflects ME more.
5. Write cards to friends: In the coming days, I plan to write cards to friends just like the old days. Growing up, I kept in touch with my friends during several moves by making them my pen pals and it was so fun. I was always so eager to get their letters in the mail! I still love receiving letters and it's so much more personal than sending a text so this will be a unique thing to try while we're all at home.
6. Host happy hour on Zoom: Keeping up with your friends via letters and cards may be super fun & personal, but hosting a happy hour on Zoom or any other video conferencing site is another enjoyable activity to catch up with friends!
7. Try out a new recipe: I have never baked so much in my life than now! I've made cheesecake for the first time, banana muffins, and I perfected making chocolate chip cookies. Next I want to try making churros and bread for the first time! Bake what makes your heart happy :))
8. Clean out your closet: At the start of quarantine, I cleaned out my closet and made a huge donation pile. There were so many clothes I don't need and haven't worn in months! Using the Marie Kondo method of "sparking joy" was super beneficial. I love all the clothes in my closet, but some I never see me wearing again. So when the stay at home order is lifted I'll be going straight to Goodwill and/or Plato's Closet to drop off my clothes.
9. Delete all those extra photos on your phone: I have 20,000+ photos on my phone and it's driving me insane! I'm an absolute hoarder of photos and I always think I'm going to need a random meme from 2017 at any moment so I never want to delete my photos unless they serve no purpose. This is going to be something that I will spend time on during quarantine because a lot of my friends gasp when I tell them I have that many photos on my phone. So if you have any photo deleting tips please send them my way!
10. Make a smoothie bowl(s): I love making smoothie bowls! They're so easy to make if you have a Ninja or any kind of blender. I always top mine off with coconut, honey, granola, and bananas.
11. Pick up all the trash in your neighborhood: Obviously do this at your own discretion during the pandemic, but if you pick up trash using gloves and a grabber tool you should be fine! I've done this a few times already and so much trash piles up on my street within a week that it's pretty unfortunate- there's always so many to-go bags and beer cans. I always fill up a whole garbage bag, but it feels good to help the environment and clean up the street to make it look more presentable.
12. Create a dried fruit/citrus garland: I've seen so many bloggers do this and so automatically I want to try it for myself. It seems like an easy (and sustainable!) craft that would make a cute room decoration! Next time I go to the store I will pick up some oranges and the other needed tools! I found a tutorial here.
13. Make a yarn wrapped rainbow: I found this yarn wrapped rainbow tutorial on Michael's the other day so I ordered all the materials I need online. I'm still waiting on the yarn, but when that comes in the mail I'm gonna spend a day making one of these! It would look perfect in my room and it's easy & cheap to make! I hope you guys try this unique craft out too.
14. Take an Enneagram personality test: Ok I've been seeing so many Enneagram memes on Instagram and I had no idea what an Enneagram test was until recently. But an Enneagram is essentially a personality test that defines the 9 personality types each with its own strengths, weakness, and opportunities for personal growth. I just took a free test here and it looks like Personality #1 prevails the most for me....sounds about right.
15. Experiment with new makeup looks: Put on that makeup look you've always wanted to try! I've been drawing inspiration from Pinterest lately and I really want to try out a 70s eye makeup look.
16. Become more creative with your photo editing: I've been experimenting SO much with my photo editing skills during this time using simple and FREE apps like Tezza and PicsArt. So many content creators are using PicsArt these days and the options on there are endless. It seems like you can do anything on this app! Check out some of my recent Instagram pictures to see for yourself. Also if you use any other free editing apps that you love please let me know! It's amazing how much you can edit your photos to look professional using these kind of apps! We love being creative!!!
17. Decorate your laptop or water bottle with stickers: I love expressing myself by adding stickers to my laptop and water bottle(s)! I buy a lot of fun stickers online like at Redbubble where there really seems to be a sticker for everything. I've also acquired stickers at Glossier, Brandy Melville (where there's always a big pile for free,) and other smaller shops. I even have a post for this right here, but my laptop stickers have changed a lot since then. Just make sure to apply the stickers on the correct side of your laptop and if you are going to put stickers on your laptop I recommend buying a laptop cover and putting them on there just in case you don't like the stickers anymore or you have a formal job interview.....you never know.
18. Make a mini mood board: A mood board is an easy way to acquire inspiration for projects, clothes, films, etc and it's SO easy to make. My full tutorial is here because yes I have made multiple mood boards before. All you need are magazines, scissors, construction paper, and glue/tape. It's one of my favorite activities to do when I'm board and also because I have sooo many old Seventeen and Teen Vogue magazines laying around.
19. Explore your hometown: I feel like I'm always at school in Boston so I never get to explore Connecticut and my hometown! But now that I'm home I've taken to exploring places like Holy Land in Waterbury which used to be a religious theme park (it is now abandoned, but it is still opened to visitors!) and Little People's Village in Middlebury which used to be on the trolly line for Quassy Amusement Park, but now it's just an abounded building in the woods with mini houses scattered around built for "little people." Get out and explore! But still remember to practice physical distancing.
20. Make some chalk drawings: Chalk is so fun at any age! Make a cute chalk drawing like a rainbow or a unicorn or give your thanks to healthcare and other essential workers in the form of a chalk drawing!
Please let me know if you try any of these fun activities and let's hope quarantine doesn't continue on any longer and that a vaccine is coming soon! WE WILL GET THROUGH THIS :)))
Sarah, xo