Rating My Hobbies
I recently sat down for a podcast interview and got asked how I started HandmadeBySaraKim. As I was telling the story, I realized how many hobbies I've picked up along the way and some turned into part of my business, some I just did for fun, and some I was honestly bad at. So I thought it'd be fun to rate them all and share what I learned from each one.
Paper Making 10/10- I collect every scrap from my paper flower making, and every so often I'll blend it all up into new paper. It comes out so pretty, and you can even press flowers into it. I use a paper making kit for this and love doing it with my kid. We've turned some of it into journals too. There's something so satisfying about recycling paper into more paper. Fully recommend this one. I also taught a whole workshop as a corporate team building activity for a hotel which was so much fun!
Pottery 9/10- I took local classes and of course made vases and even tried making clay flowers. I did this for about a year and loved every second of it but the only reason it's not a 10 is that it hurt my back and dried out my hands. It's such a natural hobby for paper flower artists since you can make your own vases to display your work in. Working in a totally different medium taught me so much, and gave me a new level of appreciation for potters, I get why their pieces are priced the way they are. There's no amount of money I'd sell my own vases for because of how much work (and back pain) went into them. I do want to get back into a class again.
DIY Doormats 10/10- I love personalizing doormats for every season using my cutting machine. It's fun to make for myself and makes a great gift for friends. Always love doing all sorts of different crafts with my cutting machine.
Sourdough 100/10- I took a workshop with friends, and I am not a baker. I'm not great in the kitchen in general. Sourdough is intimidating because there are rules, schedules, and a starter you have to take care of and the process takes over 2–3 days. But if I could do it, you can too. It's genuinely the best hobby on this list because the bread tastes so much better than store bought, probably because there are no preservatives, just flour, water, salt, and sometimes jalapeño and cheddar if I'm feeling fancy. I love gifting loaves in the fall during baking season.
Sewing 5/10- I'm not great at this one either. Sewing takes so much patience with measuring, ironing, sewing in a straight line and it's rough on my back too. It's such a good skill to have for hemming and altering your own clothes and I do sew often but I think it's really a hobby for perfectionists and I am not one. I want to get better at it but between the steps involved and the cost of fabric, sometimes it's just easier to buy the thing. I once made a Halloween costume that took 4 hours and cost $70 and afterward thought, we could've just bought one at the store for less.
Photography 10/10- I'm not a professional but I love it, especially now that I have a Fujifilm. It's made photography so much more enjoyable and my photos look so good. I started printing them and even started a mail club to send out photo prints. It's also made me more intentional with my shots instead of taking 100 photos of the same thing, I'm learning to look for the one right moment.
Book Binding 6/10- So much fun and I love the book I made but it's repetitive and I don't love doing the same motion over and over (same reason crochet never stuck for me, though I've only tried it once so maybe I owe it a second shot for both).
Scrapbooking 10/10- There's no "right" way to scrapbook. You just go with the flow, and that's exactly what I needed, turns out I don't love precision crafts. It's even more fun with friends and I'd genuinely love a weekly scrapbooking club.
Wood Carving 3/10- Really hard on my hands. It gave me a whole new level of respect for violin makers (I used to be a violinist myself). It takes so much patience but it's a fun skill to have and I have a feeling it'll eventually bridge into my paper flower work somehow, you never know.
I've also dabbled in baking classes, jewelry making, stained glass, flower arranging, embroidery, and pie making… and I recently started a hip hop class. I genuinely cannot dance, but I love that the class has adults of every age and skill level so I'm not the only one missing the moves. Maybe one day I'll actually have video proof I can dance.
Below is a random vlog I had where I just craft for fun, I need to do this more often.
What all of this taught me is trying new things keeps me young at heart. Being a student again makes me a better teacher. When I'm learning something new, I notice what I need in that moment and it reminds me what my own workshop students need from me. And so often, a technique from a totally unrelated hobby ends up shaping the way I make paper flowers. It has nothing to do with paper but somehow it always finds its way back in so you never know. What else should I try next?
