Category: hobbies

#backpainblog, #BACKPAINBLOGUK, backpainbloguk, back pain, chronic pain, fibromyalgia, health, chromic pain, reviews, #covid-19, #COVID-19, #fibromyalgia, #health, #pain, Back Pain, crafting, hobbies, low back pain

TEN LOCKDOWN ACTIVITIES TO INSPIRE CREATIVITY…

barmac5

I am a true craft lover and like to spend all my spare time making something by hand. I have tackled a number of projects over the last year of the Covid-19 pandemic.

During lockdown we found out that we to have another granddaughter in the family in late June of this year. This inspired me to look at creative crafts around babies, andbaby svg graphic designs. I also have a number of other ideas to get you inspired and creative while lockdown is easing. Here are my top ten creative lockdown activities.

1.If you like knitting or even if you are a newcomer to knitting then this project I did would be perfect for you. I decided to use up all my odd bits of wool and knit a granny blanket for using outside on a chilly day. It is so easy to make as all you need are odd bits of wool, and a pair of size 7 knitting needles. For 9″ square just cast on 35 stitches and work until your square measures 9″ in garter stitch ( knitting every row). If this is your first knitting project then garter stitch is the one to start with and you can find lots of videos and books online to help get going. You then simply join each square to make your blanket.

2. Handmade cards is another great creative craft and is such a personal thing to send to someone. I have been making my own cards for a number of years now which I make for friends and family. During lockdown I regularly sent cards out to friends and family to let them know they were in my thoughts even though we could not see each other. It is easy to send a text message but very special to send a card. Fathers Day is a great one to start working on with dad svg graphic downloads. You can get blank cards online from Ebay and Amazon and accessories from them both as well as Hobbycraft. If you then put handmade card into Google search or look on sites like Etsy, Pinterest or Not on the High Street you will soon find ideas from other hand made cards.

3. Sewing is another lovely craft and if the Great British Sewing Bee doesn’t inspire you then maybe some online courses will help you get going. I bought a small mini sewing machine during lockdown from Hobbycraft for some small projects and learnt how to make box cushion covers for my outdoor cushions. I was thrilled with the end product and enjoyed making a few other small projects.

4. A handmade gift for a new arrival can be extremely creative and there are endless things you can make from baby blankets to bibs or baby shower invitations. I had knitted all the baby blankets for my first grand child so I decided I wanted to look at something a bit more personal. With a baby shower not that far away I decided to concentrate on that and simply by using a baby svg graphic download I could create beautiful baby shower cards. By using these graphic downloads there are an endless amount of ideas to choose from. You could make your own creative bibs to onesies, wall art and much more.

5. Cake baking can be as creative as you would like it to be and something I took to during lockdown. It was great to be able to pop over with my bakes to my family. It meant we could see them from a distance, but at least see them for real. It has become a bit of a joke with my family and is now nicknamed ‘Bars Bakes‘. When there cake stash starts to become low I get a text asking when ‘Bars Bakes’ is next delivering. I have enjoyed baking special cakes for my other granddaughter who is 18 months and made her a very special smash cake for her first birthday. You do not need to look far to find a ton of recipes and ideas to get your juices working and it is something you can get quite hooked on. This Fast Cakes Easy Bakes in Minutes by Mary Berry has been the one I have used the most.

6. Gardening is another creative activity which can be good for your health and can be enjoyed outside. Unfortunately due to my spinal problems gardening is not something I can take on but I do enjoy growing my own herbs in a raised herb planter. I do envy people who can spend hours in their gardens with ideas and inspirations on how to grow a beautiful plant to growing your own vegetables. Since lockdown lots of people have taken to gardening and allotments waiting lists are getting longer.

7. Decoupage is another lovely activity you can do at home and easy to achieve something really special. You can easily make this in your home and simply need some lovely paper with patterns on, pretty napkins or downloads you have made just for this purpose. Decoupage derived from the French word decouper, which means “to cut out”, decoupage is the art of decorating objects using paper cut-outs, paint effects, decorative details, and layers of lacquer and varnish. It’s simply cutting out pictures or shapes from paper or napkins, gluing them to an object then coating the cut outs and the object with layers of Mod Podge and finish with a gloss varnish. I made a pretty little pot using a baby svg graphic download and then finishing with the Mod Podge and varnish. It made it something really special for my granddaughter.

8. Paint By Numbers has become very popular now and there are lots of Adult Paint By Numbers kits you can buy online. This is a lovely relaxing and creative activity which takes little effort but gives a great end product. It is lovely watching your art work developing each time you spend a few hours on it. It is also something that would make a great gift for someone who is home alone and feeling a bit lonely.

9. Scrapbooking is another creative activity which has become as popular as photobooks. It involves taking books with blank pages and adding photos, memorabilia, journaling, and embellishments. The main purpose of scrapbooking is to preserve memories for future generations, but its a great way to use up some old photos and create your own memorable book for yourself or for someone in the family. There are literally hundreds of ideas and books you can buy on scrapbooking or head to Pinterest or other sites like Amazon or Paperchase.

10. My final suggestion as a lockdown activity is a photo book. I have had fun with photo books for a few years now and started my first one for my daughter before she got married. From the day she got engaged I took photos whenever I could of everything she was using for the wedding and every visit we had together at the bridal studio. On the night before she got married I gave her the photo book of a memory of her engagement year with me. She loved it. My recent one has literally only just been finished this week and its a book for my granddaughter for Easter. With her being a bit young for Easter Eggs and not understanding what it is all about I decided to write her a story about a Robin that keeps seeing her at the window. She loves watching birds so I wrote this short story then sketched and painted my own pictures around her story. I then took pictures of my artwork and wrote the story as a photobook to make it special. The image below is one of the pages inside the book which I then got it printed through Snapfish.

I hope you have enjoyed my ten ideas on lockdown activities. Most of mine can be done in my craft room upstairs which is set up so I can craft comfortably for quite a few hours. The most important thing to remember if you are suffering from back pain is to make sure your workstation is the right height and a comfortable chair. I went to a lot of trouble to get mine perfect but it was worth getting it spot on. My herb boxes are the right height for me to deal with so it doesn’t hurt my back and I bake cakes that are no too complicated so that I am not on my feet for too long. You can enjoy many activities if you get yourself set up correctly.

#BACKPAINBLOGUK, backpainbloguk, back pain, chronic pain, fibromyalgia, health, chromic pain, reviews, #covid-19, #COVID-19, #fibromyalgia, #health, CHRONIC PAIN, facet joint injections, fibromylagia, hobbies, low back pain

FOURTEEN WAYS TO NATURALLY BOOST YOUR IMMUNE SYSTEM…

barmac5

Here are fourteen ways to naturally boost your immune system to help keep yourself healthy.

  1. Mix up your shower temperature. Changing it to either hot or cold every 2 minutes will boost your immunity by increasing two types of white blood cells.
  2. Drink, drink, and drink. Your immune system relies on the water so drink lots.
  3. Sleep – poor sleep can affect the immune system so the more sleep you get the better you will feel.
  4. Laugh – we all need it nowadays but studies have shown it boosts energy, decreases stress hormones, improves immunity, and diminishes pain. I have a few videos of my granddaughter I watch if I feel like a giggle but there are plenty on YouTube.
  5. Ditch the dairy – try to avoid dairy as it is mucus-forming and an inflammatory product.
  6. Eat to Beat – include pumpkin and sunflower seeds, fish, and leafy green vegetables into your diet. Also garlic, red meats, lentils and berry fruits, papaya, kiwi, peppers, broccoli, and brussels sprouts. All types of leafy greens are great for the immune system.
  7. Leave the sweet stuff alone as sugar can have an inflammatory effect and feeds yeasts and bacteria in our body which can prolong a condition or illness.
  8. Get out in the fresh air – those who exercise moderately are 25% less likely to develop a cold compared to those who recently go out regularly.
  9. Hug a tree as with Covid-19 most of us cannot hug our family and friends. Physical touch has been something we have missed greatly. It can help to decrease the level of the stress hormone cortisol in your body which decreases your immune system. If it is just the two of you living together at the moment then make sure you hug each other regularly.
  10. Pump up your Vitamin D – according to the NHS The Daily Telegraph has reported that “vitamin D ‘triggers and arms’ the immune system”. It said that researchers believe that vitamin D plays a key role in boosting the immune system. It is important to have enough vitamin D to maintain a healthy body. Vitamin D forms in our skin in response to sunlight. However, care should be taken to avoid burning or over-exposure. Vitamin D is also found in foods such as oily fish, eggs, fortified margarine, some breakfast cereals, and vitamin supplements.
  11. Start a new hobby – Woman & Home wrote “Getting into physical hobbies promotes good health,” Dr. Partha Nandi, a medical doctor and leading patient advocate, agrees. “These hobbies not only benefit the body but also help in making your mind more alert and sharp.” But you don’t have to get physical to reap the benefits. “Science is finding that the hobby diverts the focus of attention away from the problem causing the stress and places it on the hobby. People who engaged in leisure activities were 34 percent less stressed and 18 percent less sad during the activities.” Plus, “hobbies are a great way of meeting new people, and interaction is great for the spirit and body”. Also, check my post yesterday on how to find a new hobby here.
  12. Don’t smoke – I’m sure I don’t really need to write why you should not smoke but just as a reminder – the NHS says – People breathe more easily and cough less when they give up smoking because their lung capacity improves by up to 10% within 9 months. Within 2 to 12 weeks of stopping smoking, your blood circulation improves. This makes all physical activity, including walking and running, much easier. When you stop smoking, your senses of smell and taste get a boost. Half of all long-term smokers die early from smoking-related diseases, including heart disease, lung cancer, and chronic bronchitis. This list is a small number of reasons to stop smoking but is very important with how the Covid-19 virus affects your health.
  13. Maintain a healthy weight – start your new year with a determination and mission to lose some weight. You can only feel better. Why not raise some funds in the process and sign up for a charity.
  14. Avoid alcohol. Take advantage of dry January and carry on avoiding alcohol for the time being.

Source NHS, Woman & Home

#backpainblog, #BACKPAINBLOGUK, backpainbloguk, back pain, chronic pain, fibromyalgia, health, chromic pain, reviews, #fibromyalgia, #health, HEALTH, hobbies, Hotel Reviews, Mental Health, mental health challenge, Paint By Numbers

ART THERAPY – PAINTING BY NUMBERS…

barmac5

Finding something relaxing to do to take your mind off the Covid situation over the last few months has been quite a challenge. But, as many of my readers know I’m a keen and enthusiastic crafter and I found a number of crafts to keep me occupied.

More recently, I had sent off for a Paint By Numbers Kit which was flying over to me all the way from America.

I was looking for some colourful artwork for my bathroom and suddenly thought about giving it a go myself. I had looked at Paint By Number Kits (for adults) online on numerous occasions and decided this could be my next project. To be honest with you I could not understand why it has not been as fashionable as it is now before. Paint By Numbers is a relatively simple concept. You buy the outline of a painting that is sectioned off, each given a corresponding number. You will then use paints with numbers on the top of each pot within the kit. It’s that simple.

It’s an easy and satisfying way to get through the next six months. You don’t need to know anything about art or even have an artistic ability ( I certainly haven’t) you just have to be keen to give it a go. You will then end up with your own personalised wall decoration. A beautiful canvas artwork made by yourself to pop on your wall, gift it to someone or even sell it online.

It would also make the perfect gift and with Christmas coming up in the not to distant future a perfect gift for someone else to enjoy. Paint By Numbers Kits used to be something just for the kids but now there are lots to choose from suitable for adults to paint.

To me it’s like a Complementary Therapy in a kit. A very therapeutic process to help you relax and yet concentrate on your painting and take your mind off your pain.

They provide you with a high quality canvas, paints and brushes so you are good to go straight away. Mine arrived nicely packed and once I’d opened it I was surprised at the size of it but then again I’m still in inches and not centimetres so that did not surprise me. I wasn’t blessed with the gift of art drawing although I can copy the odd flower and I have always loved art.

I decided on a Cacti picture as I knew if I decided to not put it in my bathroom it would look great in any room as I have lots of plants around the house. I also thought that a similar colour theme ( mainly green) might be easier to follow for my first try. It has everything in the pack with all the colours and paint brushes so I was keen to get cracking right from the start.

I initially left it on the kitchen table but then moved it into my craft room to sit and do it at leisure rather than looking at it in the kitchen and thinking I should do more work on it. The last thing you want is to feel under pressure to get your Paint By Numbers Kit finished. If you went to a typical painting lesson you would focus on methods and techniques to achieve a result. The purpose to identify and practice formal painting skills. But in mindfulness the painting skill or techniques are not important. What counts is the process of creating.

It is so relaxing that I would recommend it to anyone feeling low or in pain as it is yet another way to escape the doom and gloom of life at the moment. It will involve a lot of detailed painting but I will really enjoy the challenge. I am what you might call well and truly hooked.

For people working it is a great way to relieve the work pressure and take you to another place into another world. If you haven’t tried this before then this is most definitely the time to give it a go. It’s definitely a new and rewarding hobby for me which has been on my bucket list of things I wanted to try for a long time.

Did you know that Leonardo da Vinci came up with the idea of Paint By Numbers. Paint by numbers kits were invented in 1950 by Dan Robbins.

Robbins invented the kits after he was hired on to work at Palmer Show Card Paint Company, where he first worked as an illustrator for children’s books. But after a period of time, the company’s founder, Max Klein, told Robbins he wanted him to come up with a way to sell more paint. A creative thinker, Robbins came up with the paint by numbers kit, a hobby which would help people to enjoy the art of painting.

Paint By Numbers Kits come in a number of different themes from Children’s Room ideas to an Abstract, the world is really your oyster. It is definitely on my Christmas present list to buy for a few friends. Give it a go, you will not be disappointed.