Hobbies Are Hot

Hobbies are often pegged for people with a lot of time or at least a great deal of creativity. I boldly argue that every single person should have a hobby. Making time for something that doesn’t earn money but still connects us to the world has tremendous value in our lives (bonus points if it’s a hobby you’re not great at). There’s a freedom in stepping out of your comfort zone and just doing it because it brings you joy. This year, I set out with the intention of replacing some of my screen time with literally anything else. I’ve noticed an increase in confidence, mood, creativity in other avenues of life, and patience with myself. Sewing, board games, jewelry making, sports, and beekeeping are just a few ways that Memphis business owners are showing up for us in our pursuit of personal growth.

Knitting & Sewing

Sewing is soaked in nostalgia for people all over the world. My grandma tried to get me into the hobby when I was young, but I was more interested in jumping into her fabric pile and playing hide-and-seek with my cousins. It wasn’t until this year of hobby endeavors that I decided to brush up on my very rusty sewing skills. My grandma graciously re-taught me how to thread her machine and keep a steady hand on the fabric while avoiding stitching my fingers. One wonky vest later, and I was hooked.

When it came time to acquire my own supplies, it didn’t take me long to find The Sewing House. Owner Jennifer Reith took her grandma’s hobby to heart much earlier than I did. She has fond memories of exploring her grandma’s quilt shop as a kid in the small Alabama town where her mom grew up. “I remember running my hands along, feeling the fabrics,” Reith said. She loved the community it fostered and the art of sewing even more.

Reith now has a location in Collierville as well as Memphis, across the street from Novel bookstore, and it all sprouted from the craved feeling of childhood. She said, “I felt like I was out there by myself quilting, and I thought about my grandma’s store and how there were always people around.”

Not only do they supply every tool you could possibly need to begin this hobby on your own, but they also have classes you can take to learn everything from bag-making to crocheted socks. There’s a coffee corner in the store where you can mingle, work on your projects, and ask questions for free.

Crocheting is a great way to ease into the world of textiles because you really only need yarn and needles, but sewing is a different story. Sewing machines are the primary expense, but The Sewing House has combated this obstacle to commitment by offering $30 machine rentals for on-site use.

Now Reith has the joy of watching her grandkids run around her own business. It’s a full-circle moment that’s ignited friendships all over the Mid-South.

Board Games

The Memphis Chess Club has been around for almost 150 years, moving from location to location as a nonprofit until 2020, when it became a brick-and-mortar business. The café portion of the space started as a way to pay the bills, but the menu quickly grew in both quality and quantity due to the Memphis Chess Club team’s passion for food.

They serve house-made cocktails, coffee, sandwiches, and more. I ordered the refreshing grenadine soda, made with orange blossom water, lemon, pomegranate juice, and topped off with sparkling water, that revived me during the heatwave. At $50 a year, you have access to the shop while it’s open, plus 10 percent off all food and drink, and dibs on all chess literature in their curated library. If you don’t want to commit to a membership, you can also just come in with your own board for free or rent one for $5. Everyone, from beginners to internationally recognized players, comes to play, and tournaments are hosted every week. If you want to get started yourself, beginner classes are hosted on the first Sunday of every month for $15.

Manager Mike Shuey’s grandpa was the first to teach him chess, but he didn’t really get into the hobby until his early twenties. The thing he admires most about chess is its ability to connect people from all corners of the world. Shuey says, “Chess is kind of its own language.” The pieces and moves become a form of communication beyond words.

The Memphis Chess Club will be hosting the Tennessee Open and State Chess Championship in early September, with $10,000 up for grabs.

If you’re not a chess fan but love the board game dynamic, MCC offers a variety of other games to play. There are even board game-dedicated shops all over the Mid-South, including 901 Games, The Cellar Tabletop Games & Comics, and Unplugged Tabletop Games.

“Proud nerd” and exceptionally sweet podcaster Kristen Schebler’s favorite spot to play is Board to Beers. Her love for gaming began 10 years ago, when a friend introduced her to a group of avid board gamers who would soon become lifelong friends. She says, “Gaming as a hobby is one of the best ways to break down social barriers.” Now they even share a gaming podcast called Astronomica, which Schebler calls “a bridge to people all over the world” in gaming.

Adult Sports Leagues

If you’re like me, childhood was full of dirty cleats, sweaty jerseys, and endless bottles of Gatorade. Sports were a part of everyday life. But somewhere along the way to adulthood, I retired my basketball shoes and volleyball knee pads for jobs. But the addictive competitive quality and a longing for social outlets led me to my first adult league this year, and what came of it was more than I ever expected.

In addition to open tennis courts, golf courses, and swim lessons, the Memphis Parks Department hosts adult sports leagues. Softball is their most loved league, running from fall to spring, while basketball and soccer are scheduled on a yearly basis. To register, it’s important to first put together your team. If you want to join as an individual, give them a call, and they’ll match you with an existing team.

Memphis Parks is also a great resource for connecting with organizations that host other sports, such as 901 Volleyball.

If you’re nervous about getting into sports after a long break, keep in mind that many leagues in Memphis have two levels of skill, so your beginners’ team won’t be crushed by freshly retired college athletes. It’s meant to be fun, and it’s okay to not be amazing at it. You have the opportunity to get out of your comfort zone, exercise, and socialize all at once.

There are countless places in Memphis to participate in athletics year-round. Bellevue Baptist Church, Memphis Jewish Community Center, Bluff City Pickleball, and Memphis Rox are just a few organizations that facilitate adult leagues.

Memphis has a deep and glorious history with sports, practically as old as the city itself, and whether it’s your neighborhood basketball court or a city soccer field, sports foster a competitive fire I can’t get enough of.

BeeKeeping

With beekeeping growing in popularity each year, it doesn’t take too much effort to find a golden jar of honey sourced from the Mid-South. And who can resist drizzling it on pancakes or mixing a spoonful of it in some piping hot Earl Grey tea?

The Memphis Area Beekeepers Association (MABA) is a hodgepodge team of people fascinated with bees, ranging from teenagers to retirees, with two goals: to educate people about the importance of bees and to foster a love for beekeeping.

Ten years ago, seasoned veterinarian Dr. Jimmy Murphy discovered a beehive on a tree branch just outside his building. He ended up calling a beekeeper from MABA to relocate the hive, and that’s how he met his very own mentor. Murphy is now a seasoned beekeeper with several hives in Memphis and Arkansas, and mentors others now with his ample knowledge of the craft.

One of the nonprofits MABA partners with is The Bee Cause Project, which has a cool grant for schools. They install an entire beehive, safely enclosed in clear material, for classrooms to enjoy inside. They attach it to the wall with exit points on the outside for bees to come and go as they please. Students get to see honey being made in real time and observe the special dance bees use for communicating.

Hives are composed of almost all female bees, with the male population at roughly five percent. Their only job is to help the queen make babies, and then they’re promptly kicked out when it gets cold. While sipping on sweet flower nectar, honeybees’ fuzzy little bums pick up the pollen that makes our world go round. As Murphy states simply, “We couldn’t survive without them.”

From a hobby standpoint, you’re receiving the powerhouse of health benefits of honey and preserving the ecosystem at the same time. What’s even cooler is the effect of their buzz on our nervous system. Vibroacoustic healing is caused by a sonic frequency bees emit that releases endorphins and calms the body.

Sadly, bees face a constant threat. Varroa mites latch onto bees, suck out their blood, and leave behind a virus that exponentially shortens their lifespan. It affects every major colony in the United States.

They also fall victim to habitat loss. Bees thrive in a grassland ecosystem because of its abundance of native flowers, but each year these ecosystems are destroyed. While nothing can replace what’s been lost, growing flowers around your community is one small and beautiful way to make a difference.

If you want to help these little guys thrive and enjoy a relaxing hobby, you can join the Memphis Area Beekeepers Association for monthly meetings. They host guest speakers and can connect you with a mentor who will show you the ropes before committing to your own hive.

Jewelry Making

Brandy Boyd is the one-woman show behind BMB Designs, based in Bartlett, who previously worked in the corporate world for almost 20 years while honing her craft in engineering, entrepreneurship, and art. The beautiful chaos of life has led her to become a jewelry maker and teacher, and that all began with weekends at her grandparents’ house.

Boyd’s grandfather was an engineer who tinkered with everything from radios to lamps in his spare time, while her grandmother was a seamstress and florist with her own flower shop. Many art projects began with sitting in front of the TV watching PBS shows and finding things Boyd liked. She said, “We’d go to the store, buy everything, and we would do it together.” She started making and selling beaded jewelry as early as elementary school and fell back into it during college.

Initially, she was pursuing a degree in biomedical engineering at the University of Memphis, but after falling in love with a general credits art history class, she knew she had to make that her new major. Soon after, Boyd started her corporate job and, in 2002, began BMB Designs as a creative outlet.

Boyd sources material from all over America, Mexico, and Canada, and her work is heavily inspired by nature. Petrified wood, fossils, and other unique stones make up the bulk of her material, while she also uses natural metals like sterling silver. A particularly intriguing technique she uses is imprinting plant life on metal.

Besides the weekend classes Boyd hosts in her personal studio, the Memphis Botanic Garden and Metal Museum also use her expertise to teach four- to 10-person classes. Beyond the city limits, Boyd teaches at schools and conferences all over the country. The travel component of her job means she doesn’t have regular hours open at her studio, but everything is kept up to date on her socials.

Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons are available most weeks for you to buy supplies, purchase something from her jewelry collections, and work on your own projects. You can have access to all of her equipment for just $15. Boyd says, “One of the things that’s important to me is making jewelry making accessible for people, regardless of their finances or physical ability.” She will also hand-make tools to fit people’s particular mobility needs.

Hand-making jewelry ensures that what you wear is not only beautiful but also displays who you are and, with the right guidance, can be enjoyed for generations.

Never Stop Learning

In case you need more hobby inspiration, the Meeman Center for Lifelong Learning at Rhodes College offers professor-taught classes for under $50 that anyone, of any age, can attend to learn something new. 

Every niche hobby is taught, from the science of beer-making to the wonders of medieval medicine, from a mystery book analysis featuring fingerprinting to the art of filmmaking. It gives professors the creative freedom to teach a particularly interesting subject in a short amount of time without the pressure of designing a full-blown course. They even provide virtual classes for people who can’t make the drive to campus.

Professor Lori Ann Garner serves as the director of the Meeman Center for Lifelong Learning. She frequently attends classes herself to see what the Rhodes College team has come up with. Her favorite part is seeing generations united under a common curiosity. Students from teenagers to 80-something-year-olds sit together, ask questions, and discuss views on all kinds of literature.

If you’re having trouble finding a group that celebrates the hobby you’re passionate about, consider starting your own! The most important thing you can be is welcoming. Create a space for people to show up. Why not start that craft night you’ve been dreaming of, host a baking class (both messy and delicious), or organize that kickball game in the park?

Professor Garner says, “Hobbies are where our hearts are. It’s where the passion lives. It’s where we build empathy, critical thinking skills, and connections with one another.” 

I hope this adventure through Memphis has inspired you to embrace what makes you special and reap the benefits that activities outside of work provide. There’s always more to learn.