From Hobby to Avocation : Redefining the Meaning of Hobbies
Beyond Relaxation : Redefining the Meaning of Hobbies
The word hobby seems to be too light and insignificant compared to the meaning and joy it provides me. In Merriam-Webster dictionary, hobby is defined as ‘a pursuit outside of one’s regular occupation engaged in especially for relaxation’.
But what if you take hobbies also to hone a skill and to reach a certain level with zeal? Because if something doesn’t spark a desire in me to become good at, then it means it’s not interesting enough. And without interest, it’s no longer a hobby but just a bore. No?
The Art of Collecting Hobbies : My Journey to Floral Design
I realize I’ve been a hobby collector for a long time. And the ones that have consistently attracted me were all in the area of art – sketching, painting, clay craft, pottery, and floral design. I do dabble in writing and I have plans to dig into music in the future. But for now, the exploration of colors, shapes, texture, emotions and healing using flowers is my bull’s eye focus.
Healing Through Hobbies : Scuba Diving and Gardening in Challenging Times
Hobbies have saved me in so many ways. In my mid-20’s I started scuba diving without any prior awareness or interest. I had just lost my little sister to an accident and was in serious need of a hobby that was both physically demanding and awe-inspiring. Scuba diving took me to exotic places, exhausted me to no end with those heavy oxygen tanks and introduced me to the calm of underwater life – just the thing I needed.
Gardening came to me during just as critical time. As a Korean expat navigating the COVID lockdown in the Netherlands, I found myself gathering all my energy towards my garden. As a complete novice in gardening, I just wanted lots of flowers. Soon, I realized what that entailed for my big, weed-filled, sandy garden and the weight of the challenge completely engulfed me. Such a focus, or an obsession was exactly what I needed during those years in order to keep my sanity. When I think back on COVID19 period, the most prominent memories are me squatting in a small corner of the garden, pulling out weeds. Or devouring books about plants every night. And then going plant shopping on the weekends at one of the garden centers. It was a time of exciting new discoveries and adventure.
Discovering Floristry : When Gardening Blooms into a Passion
My garden gave me those first dahlias that started me on floristry. I thought I was deadheading at first but then discovered that I could match different tree branches with my still-good-looking deadheaded dahlias. From then on, I started to passionately experiment with flower arrangements. The memory of my past struggles with trying to paint flowers came and went as I thought ‘Oh wow, no need to do that anymore.’ The sudden interest in flower arranging boosted my motivation for gardening and more gardening led to more flowers. Things started to click. And the rest is history.
Well, I wish I could say that last sentence. Because I am still in between a hobbyist and a professional florist. But my point is that the word hobby does not convey the desire and love I feel towards the activity. What would you call a very dedicated and passionate hobby? Let me go and talk to Claude for a sec. Okay, I got one. Avocation.
Why Flower Arranging is the Ultimate Avocation : 10 Life-Changing Benefits
It is truly life-changing to have a passionate avocation. To me, it became very clear that this – floral design - is what I live for. It’s what I want to do ALL THE TIME. So, what about floristry makes me so ecstatic? Why is flower arranging, such a good hobby?
1. Flower arrangement is not difficult to start. And it’s also reasonably challenging to become good at. This makes it a fun pursuit that you can enjoy for years.
2. You use four senses, making your eyes, ears, nose and hands happily occupied and thus the activity is immersive.
3. It intensifies your relationship with nature. You handle fresh, live plants for this hobby. Naturally you reflect on the circle of life, the passing of seasons and the environment that you are in through flowers.
4. It’s a fully creative process that doesn’t require any artistic base skill like painting or drawing. The medium is already so beautiful that it’s art in itself without you doing much.
5. This medium happens to be very reasonably priced here in the Netherlands compared to any other places in the world.
6. You get to experience an art form across both 2D and 3D as you consider the painterly aspect as well as the sculptural aspect when you create. The resulting expression can also be both 2D & 3D as you leave behind an arrangement itself and also its photography.
7. It’s a useful skill to have in your daily life, as you can decorate your dinner table with a vase or prepare your own hand-tied bouquet for your friends.
8. While flower arranging isn’t taxing on your body, it will push you to move your body more – as you engage in flower shopping, flower caring, vase washing as well as arranging.
9. You will learn quite a lot about different flowers and plants. This will deepen your love and knowledge of flowers and plants.
10. Take just an hour or two on the weekend to be with flowers, a decent vessel, some music and let yourself go. It will take all your worries away and lift your mood up like nothing else.
When I set out to do this list of 10 benefits of flower hobby, I wasn’t sure if I could fill it up. But once I started, these came really easily and quickly. And such is the deep and diverse benefits of this amazing avocation.
A Few Easy Steps to Start Flower Arranging Hobby Yourself
The minimum and essential supplies to start flower arranging hobby are a) a pair of garden scissors, b) a 20 cm water glass and 3) some plants. I say a glass and not a vase because depending on the shape of the vase it can make your arrangement quite challenging or limiting. Once you have the scissors and a vessel, it’s time to source your plants.
It’s infinitely more fun to have diverse kinds of plants rather than just 1-2 bunch of flowers from a supermarket. So how to achieve that? If you have house plants or balcony plants, you can add some stems from them. If you have a garden, that’s another source of great plants. Cut branches, leaves, flowers from them all. When you cut, make sure the length is sufficient so that these branches don’t sink beneath the height of the vessel.
It will be very uncomfortable to cut from your own plants. But don’t worry, they will grow back. Pruning and deadheading is something that most plants need. After this, add in at one or two bunches of flowers from a flower shop or supermarket. Making a full arrangement requires about 35 stems, at least.
I hope you see yourself discovering this beautiful hobby. If it piqued your interest and you’d like to get your hands in deeper, you can join the flower hobby workshop in the Netherlands I am about to start in September 2024.
For enquiry about the course, please email to info.flowerandflour@gmail.com with your desired course dates and book your flower workshop in Heemstede today. Hope to see you soon.