Hobbies at Home – How to Make Space for your Hobbies

Homes as various as the people who inhabit them

As a real estate agent, I enter a lot of homes. The more I visit, the more I am convinced that no two homes are exactly alike. Even when floorplans are identical, there are enough variations in the finishes, textures, and conditions of a place that apples-to-apples comparisons are exceedingly rare. One of the reasons homes vary so much is the wide array of what people do for leisure. In other words, our homes begin to take on the shape of our hobbies.

Even when the previous homeowners have moved out and the home on the market is vacant, you can often spot the signs of the sellers’ pastimes: a heavy bag in the corner of a garage; a detailed model train set stretching across a room in the corner of the basement; surround speaker wire and hardware for a projector in what must have been an impressive home theater set-up.

Because our hobbies and interests shape us, they shape the spaces we inhabit. Even as average screentime goes up year over year and we spend more time focusing on the virtual world, there is no getting around the fact that we are embodied creatures living and moving in physical spaces.

What is a hobby?

The work that you choose to do for no wage.

Of course people need to work to earn a living. But whether one works in hospitality or medicine or delivery, in skilled trades or knowledge work, our flourishing requires us to have something we do for its own sake – independent of any wage. A hobby is the work that you do for fun or for meaning instead of for money.

Our hobbies take up space in our minds.

This important work takes up space in our minds. When we are practicing or participating in them, surely. But also while we daydream about the next time we can get to our hobby. We occupy ourselves with completing tasks so that we can get back to our hobbies. We scroll through interest media feeds and, invariably, for those of with a hobby, the algorithm serves up hobby content there. When we are socializing, our hobbies become the means by which we connect with others.

Our hobbies take up space in our relationships

Sometimes hobbies are the foundation. Think a group of 4 friends who first met because they all happened to respond to a local game store’s flyer about a new Dungeons and Dragons campaign. Or imagine a couple who starts to date after they meet each other at a pick-up beach volleyball game frequented by young adults in their area.

Sometimes our hobbies simply color our interactions with people we already know. Your coworker tells you about the cardinals and the bobolink she saw over the weekend. A classmate slips nautical metaphors into your conversations as his summer plans to take up sailing turn over in the back of his mind. Your friend facetimes you to show you his new mechanical keyboard and wall mounted monitor before he loses track of time working on his next Minecraft mega build.

Our hobbies take up space in our homes.

Since hobbies are hand and mind activities, they necessarily take up physical space. Some, like calligraphy, may only require a small desk. Some, like collecting dinosaur fossils, require a warehouse or museum. Most hobbies are somewhere in between.

Where should the designer put her 3D printer and collection of dynamic sculptures? Why not in that unfinished nook of the basement?

What is a woodworker with a passion for pre-industrial tools to do when he grows tired of tracking sawdust in his kitchen? He takes his hobby from a portion of his attached garage to a dedicated shed.

How can a teenager with a passion for music make space for a recording studio? Why not install acoustic paneling and audio equipment in what used to be a walk-in closet?

What should parents do when they want to take up block printing with a toddler roaming around? Perhaps finish one third of the attic to leave the sharp chisels and the drying linocut prints up there.

A new hobbies-first meta for home searches

Hobbies are so fundamental to the way we spend our time at home that even the way buyers search for their next move has changed.

With the proliferation of AI-assisted tools that allow for natural language searching, a substantial portion of searches now say nothing about bedroom counts or square footage. Instead, buyers are looking for homes with hobby-specific features like:

• Indiana home with large, fenced-in lot and water features suited for large dog training
• One-story ranch with attached garage and workshop
• House with large family room and home-gym space

So whether you use the artificial intelligence of an advanced real estate tool or the human intelligence of a licensed real estate agent, one of the best ways to find a home with space for your hobby is to simply ask about in your own words. If you are willing and able to move to an upgraded space, it can be that simple.

But what if I’m not ready to move? How do I make space to start a new hobby where I live now?

Highest and Best use – Making Space for Hobbies at Home

If you are tired of racing to finish the 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle on your dining room table before you have to clear it for family dinner, I feel your pain. Here are some ideas to maximize the space that you already have at home so that you have more room for fun to lock into a special interest.

A Hobby on a Cart

Okay, I admit it. I stole this idea from the locking carts that grad students could rent from the Hesburgh Library at Notre Dame. Can you fit your art supplies or tools in a cart that you can move out of the way, maybe by stuffing it into a hall cleaning closet? Can you start your new tilapia farm with a 55 gallon drum on wheels and a drop-in aerator?

Maximize Vertical Space

If you’re not in a rush to add square footage to your home or lot, the first step to make the most of the square footage you have is to go vertical. This goes beyond utility shelves and storage bins in the basement. Which are a great idea, by the way!

• Could you stack your vintage toy collection on a rotating floor-to-ceiling corner shelf?
• Is there enough clearance above the track of your garage door to build a storage loft that could free up precious basement space?
• Do you need a place to store your ever growing pile of crochet yarn? Maybe cute floating shelves in the kitchen help you reclaim some space in the walk-in pantry.
• Can you increase the output of your garden by starting a multi-layered food forest rather than dedicated monocrop rows?
• Can you make space for your canning equipment on the counter by replacing your knife block with magnetic strips high out of reach of curious hands?

Make Use of Multi-Purpose Furniture

More expensive than wall hooks and engineered wood shelving but cheaper than moving, specialized fold-down furniture can help you make the most of each room. If your hobby is papercraft or needlepoint, a dedicated fold-down desk could be a great option. Do you wish you had more space for indoor calisthenics year round? Consider replacing that queen sized bed in your guest bedroom with a murphy bed. Want to play table tennis without building an entire rec room in your one-bedroom apartment? Then, like my friends, you may be able to find a pop-up net and table-top specially made to sit on your mattress.

Consider An Outbuilding

If you are out of space in the house, sometimes an outbuilding is the way to go. Are you an air brush painter? Install a spray booth in the detached garage. Tired of dropping your bolts in the driveway when you work on your Harley? Consider cleaning out an old shed so you can switch out handlebars there in peace. Need a better place to practice your loves for reupholstery and upcycling? What’s stopping you from building a shed from recycled materials and practicing your craft in there?

Build An Addition

What should you do if you are feeling space constrained after you have exhausted the above options? If moving is an option, maybe it’s time to connect with your real estate agent and see what’s on the market. But what if you count yourself among the 28% of people surveyed by the National Association of Realtors who say they’re in their forever home but you still need space? Consider building an addition. Just make sure you work with a reputable builder!

Don’t have a hobby? Looking for one more to try?

No need to worry. I’ve got you covered.

I have a started a Homes and Hobbies series in honor of the hobbies that are so important to the way that we live and move. As the series goes on, I’ll be spotlighting hobbies and what it is about each one that people love and that makes it feel like home.

Hobbies I’ve Covered So Far

• Dungeons and Dragons

Don’t see one of your hobbies mentioned? Leave a comment to let me know what I’m missing!