As the days get shorter and the weather gets colder, it becomes harder to do some Corona Proof activities outside. Therefore, we came up with some interesting indoor activities to get you through the coming winter. So put on your oversized sweater, get a steaming mug of tea and sit near the fireplace (read radiator) for some fresh ideas that do not include more Netflix time. 

Getting creative 

If you want to reduce your screen time, it is always an idea to get your creative side in the open. Ofcourse, you can draw or write things, but have you ever considered knitting a scarf or crocheting a stuffed animal (also works great as a Christmas present!).

You can start with knitting and crocheting quite easy: all you need is wool (around 1 euro a piece at Wibra/Action), a crochet hook (not even an euro) and knitting needles (you can all buy them at the Action/Wibra). 

Next, you will need some starting patterns. Since I can recommend you to start in your own language (translating different types of stitches can be quite confusing), you might have to Google some yourself. But it is a rewarding task: you can have hours of fun for a few euros, it’s relaxing after a day of hard work and: you can make something nice out of it! 

If you don’t know what you should make: you can also try to crochet or knit with waste plastics. This is how I made this bag. You first make plarn (plastic yarn), and then knit/crochet your pattern. 

Talking about Christmas, since we are kind of skipping a lot of important parties, bring Christmas inside your house! We did some research for you, and watched a lot of Hallmark movies to get inspired. You can create a lot of your own ornaments.

Create an ornament from old christmas cards, or make a garland from waste paper. You can also make garlands from popcorn! A lot of creative ideas can be found on Pinterest.

Next to decorating, the Christmas spirit is important. Spread some joy by creating the most amazing (Christmas) cards or letters. Send a heartfelt letter to your grandma which you couldn’t visit, your fellow students or to a random person who could use some love. Spread some joy with your words!

Food and drinks

Not in a creative mood? Or you prefer creating food and drinks?  Amaze yourself, and learn some new ways of cooking. Try to create vegetarian or vegan food, or create something from scratch from an entire different cuisine than you’re used to. Make your tastebuds familiar with new flavors by creating our new recipe we shared in the newsletter.

You can make your own Gluhwein with a bottle of red wine, an orange, 2 pieces of cinamon, 4 kruidnagels, 2 steranijs, 3 spoons of honey and 100 ml of cognac/brandy. In which you put everything together in a pan, and let it simmer for 15 minutes (Don’t let it cook!), get the rest out of the pan and serve your drink 😊.

You can find the dutch recipe here

Another idea for a rainy afternoon is to fill your day by baking some nice Christmas cookies or cupcakes! Believe me, you can fill a whole evening with decorating them (and eating them).

With all these kinds of nice foods and drinks you can also surprise your roommates with an evening of winter wonderland (or other theme night) with homemade Gluhwein and cookies, in which you can create your own Lichtjesavond!  

Zero Waste 

Now you might have some spare time, you can invest it in going zero waste! As we have a lot of single use products, you can reuse this by using sustainable products. You might even want to create a bag which you can bring when the festival season starts again. 

As you may notice, now we are home all day: we use a lot of single use plastics, even when we’re at home. Therefore you can make a lot of reusable products: did you know you can get a lot of fresh food in a reusable bag? Think of all the reduced plastics by buying at the local market, or at the baker. 

Or go through your bathroom cabinet: did you know you can make a lot of household products yourself? 

Visit this website to get inspired.

Reading

One of my favorite hobbies I picked up during the lockdown again is reading. When I was little I used to have a book with me all the time, and I have read my way through my local library. I rediscovered that it’s still the best way to escape our reality for a while. And, it doesn’t have to be expensive! Go to your local secondhand store, like Rataplan, where you can buy them for an euro per piece.

Another thing is the bookshare libraries, which you can see in the streets. In Delft there are a lot of these, where you can borrow a book, or leave a book.

Or, exchange books with your friends. You can even start your own book club.

Also, did you know the University of Leiden also has some reading books? Just search their library page for a specific book. No inspiration for a book? Check out Goodreads.

More ideas? Let us know! Send us a message and maybe your idea will be in the next newsletter!