Isolation boredom busters: Things to try while in lockdown
Looking for something to fill in the extra hours during lockdown II? A crafty Melbourne community has found several ways to spend their days at home — and they’ve even been able to make some extra cash while doing so.
Inner South
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You know all those extra hours in the day you once complained about not having? Well, they’re here.
And while you can’t fill them with long lunches, team sports or going to the movies, there’s now ample opportunity to try your hand at that thing you always wanted to do.
For most of us, lockdown feels so much harder this time around — you’ve already cleaned out your wardrobe, tidied the house from top to bottom and binged all the TV shows you wanted to catch up on.
From building guitars and restoring bicycles, to creating homemade hats to wear to virtual work meetings, Port Phillip’s crafty residents have come up with some creative ways to while away the hours.
So if you’re looking for some inspiration, check out some of the iso projects they’ve tackled to help ease boredom — and make some extra cash.
UP(BI)CYCLING
When Jeremy Watson’s job “disappeared” in April, the former sales executive from Elwood wasted no time in getting to work restoring a run-down bicycle he’d picked up for $20.
Since then, he’s completed 11 bike upcycling projects — and sold them to people from as far away as Ballarat.
“My wife and I were in the Clare Valley over Christmas and did lots of bike riding and when we got back she decided she wanted a bike so I went to buy one off Facebook for $20 to do it up for her — and I came back with two,” he said.
“I spent the last lockdown doing them up and the other one sold really quickly and I’ve just kept repeating that process.”
Mr Watson said he’d noticed a cycling boom during the pandemic, as people avoided public transport.
And he’s been able to pick up a few bargain bikes to restore as people spent isolation clearing out their garages.
“I got a beautiful 1950s Italian bike in need of some love, which comes with an incredibly sweet story of a marriage proposal,” he said.
“It belonged to the woman I bought it from’s grandmother, and basically it broke down in a village in northern Italy and all these men stopped to help her — so her boyfriend came dashing to her aid and promptly proposed to fend of the other suitors.”
Mr Watson said his restoration projects all had a big emphasis on recycling and reusing, with bikes that were beyond repair used “for organ donation” in some cases.
Once complete, the bikes have been sold for $170 to $400 to people from Collingwood, Fitzroy, St Kilda, Wyndham and Ballarat.
Check out Mr Watson’s bicycles on Instagram @upcycle.garage
MAKING MUSIC
Along with tackling some tricky jigsaw puzzles, Port Melbourne’s Maurie Jones has used his time in isolation to build guitars.
His pride and joy is a Gibson Firebird he made from a plank of mahogany.
“It took about 10 weeks to make and the fret work was probably the hardest part,” he said.
“I’m really proud of it — the grandkids will get it one day.”
Mr Jones has also made a Fender Telecaster similar to the one played by Keith Richards and a Gibson Gary Moore limited edition guitar, which he plans to sell.
“I’ve always been interested in music and guitars but I’ve only ever played in a garage band, never in public and now I build them,” he said.
Mr Jones has made four guitars since the first lockdown started in late March.
POTTERING AROUND
Adelle Stevenson is using lockdown to “find new passions” after she was stood down from her job as a flight attendant during the COVID-19 crisis.
“I used to play about 140 hours a month and I’ve done about four days of flying in the past four months,” she said.
“It’s definitely not the best job to be in right now but it seems most industries are either booming or busting — there’s not much middle ground.”
The self-taught artist has turned her Port Melbourne carport into a studio where she transforms terracotta pots into one-off hand painted pieces.
“I call it ‘intuitive art’, it’s all very random,” she said.
“It’s layer upon layer of paint, lots of different shapes in bright colours.”
Ms Stevenson likened the colourful planters to patterns you’d find at popular Melbourne clothing brand Gorman.
She had just started selling the pots on her Etsy site HappyASCreations, with prices starting at $45.
She has also started making colourful Shibori (a Japanese tie dye technique) cushions.
“I don’t understand the ins and outs of selling online yet but it’s another thing I’m learning during lockdown,” she said.
HAT’S OFF TO YOU
At the start of lockdown, Rebecca Ford set herself the challenge of wearing a “jaunty hat” to every virtual work meeting.
With meetings three times a week and a new mandatory lockdown, the Elwood costume lover has finally run out of quirky headwear — so she’s started making her own.
“The first time around I made the bold claim that I had ‘more jaunty hats than there are isolation days’, now we’re locked down for another six weeks at least,” she said.
“Just before this lockdown I went to the Salvos on Balaclava Rd and my local $2 shop and bought up all the hats and glitter, paint and feathers so I can keep the jaunty hats coming.”
Ms Ford has even taken some annual leave days so she can spend time whipping up more hats.
“It’s nice to have a break from work and computer screens and get messy with paints and glues and things — it’s good for mental health,” she said.
“My bathroom is chock-full of craft supplies now.”
Ms Ford’s headwear has boosted morale and created a talking point, with colleagues eagerly awaiting her latest creations each week.
“I was running late once and grabbed a hat I thought I hadn’t worn yet but someone called me out and said ‘I’ve seen that one before’ so I had to find something else to wear,” she said.
“It’s my way of getting away from the desk and I’m loving it.”
ISOLATION IDOL
The coronavirus pandemic might mean live stage shows are out of the question for now but that didn’t stop a new non-profit theatre company from running an online singing competition.
Theatrical Inc founder Andrew Gyopar, from Elwood, said more than 100 people entered the Isolation Idol competition to give people a chance to perform.
“It’s mind boggling how much talent there is in our community,” he said.
“I set up Theatrical to provide a good, fun, safe, creative space for people to express themselves.
“A lot of people in the theatre community have really been struggling with the idea of not having a chance to perform — an outlet they rely on for mental health — so Isolation Idol provided a space for people to do that.
“It also gave people an excuse to put on something other than a tracksuit and have a sing.”
Winners of the over 21 and under 21 categories received Uber Eats vouchers.
Mr Gyopar said the company planned to stage the musical Little Women at Chapel Off Chapel in April next year — pandemic permitting, of course.
For more information, visit theatrical.com.au
EAR CANDY
A product designer for stationery brand Smiggle by trade, Danielle Fergusson is no stranger to working with colour.
While she waits to get the go-ahead to return to work, she’s burning off her creative energy making statement earrings.
“I don’t want to just sit here and watch Netflix, I’d rather be doing something productive,” she said.
The earrings sell for between $6 and $30 on Ms Fergusson’s Etsy site and have proved popular in recent times.
“I sold quite a few when the first lockdown started — lots of people said they wanted colourful earrings to wear while they did Zoom meetings for work,” she said.
Ms Fergusson, from Port Melbourne, said she was also working on her cooking skills during lockdown.
She will also sell the earrings at markets in the area once they are running again.
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