If you want to make the most of the 21st century, live like your grandma. That’s how many younger generations are choosing to find happiness and fulfillment in the modern era.
Dubbed “grandmacore” or “granny hobbies,” the trend encompasses a wide range of activities that evoke a sense of nostalgia and slower living and has captured the attention of thousands of mostly millennial and Gen Z women.
Instead of scrolling your social media feed after dinner, grab a pair of crochet hooks and make a doily, become a recreational knitter or create a vegetable garden.
Finding your inner granny at the University of Utah
The social media trend has seen such significant growth that the University of Utah is offering 29 granny-style classes in its Lifelong Learning center this summer.
Class options include baking, knitting, watercolor painting, making homemade bath products, mastering microgreens and even weaving your own personal bag.
“When people immerse themselves in a hobby, they often find an escape from daily pressures, creating a calming space where they can unwind and recharge,” Patricia S. Dixon, a clinical psychologist, told Good Housekeeping regarding the mental health benefits of taking up a granny hobby.
“As they hone their skills, they may experience a boost in self-confidence. Additionally, if the hobby presents a challenge, it encourages cognitive growth and problem-solving. And participating in a shared interest can lead to meaningful social interactions, enhancing feelings of belonging and connection.”
The classes are open to all adults 18 and older, and no degrees or matriculation are required.
The university’s bag-weaving class is offered through the Salt Lake Weaving Studio, which was founded by Catherine Marchant and Deanna Baugh nearly a year ago.
Weaving is not the easiest hobby to get into. It’s an ancient art that often takes years of practice to master, and even the “cheap” beginner looms can cost around $200. A new floor loom might run upward of $8,000.
The weaving studio aims to make the craft more accessible. Students can use the studio’s looms instead of buying their own, and having a community to learn with makes the experience less intimidating.
With the university’s intro class, Marchant says, the hope is to show people the fun side of weaving and introduce them to the craft.
“Hopefully, they’ll have such a good time, they want to come back and learn how to do it all themselves,” she said.
Marchant and Baugh teach a number of other weaving classes at the studio and are active members of the local weaver’s guild, the Mary Meigs Atwater Weaver’s Guild of Utah.
Marchant believes the community aspect is what draws people to activities like weaving and other “granny hobbies.” She says the weaving community in Salt Lake City is especially friendly, with the guild offering regular meetings and opportunities for people to show off their work or ask for advice.
“It’s very nurturing,” she said. “I really believe people need community. … The people are super wonderful. There’s no division.”
Marchant says there are people of all ages in the studio and the guild. One of her youngest students is barely 20, and another is in her 80s. They have a variety of professions — doctors, engineers, professors — and come from all over Utah to take these classes. One student is from Wanship in Summit County, a 45-minute drive, and another comes from Rush Valley in Tooele County, nearly an hour away.
Carol Watts joined the university’s class when a friend invited her to take it together. While she said weaving has been more technical than she expected — lots of calculations and setting up delicate equipment — it’s been a worthwhile experience and a good challenge for her brain.
Watts said she hopes more people continue to take the class.
“Support community arts and come out and take classes,” she said. “It’s a good experience, meeting other people you would (otherwise) never meet and learning something you’d never learn.”
Lee Enyart, also a beginning weaver, said the class has been beneficial for her mental health.
“This is my therapy,” she said. “It’s really nice to create something. It really helps with grieving … it kind of distracts you, gets your mind on something else.”
Jessica Campaign joined the class after taking a number of other courses through the university’s Lifelong Learning program. She credits the rise in hobbies like weaving, knitting and crocheting to a response to fast fashion and consumer culture.
”People are moving away from throwaway clothing and throwaway item culture," she said. “(They want) to have items that actually are one of a kind and mean something.”
Campaign said it’s more meaningful to make something unique that will last a while than to buy something inexpensive and use it for a season. These durable, quality goods can also become gifts or family heirlooms — Campaign intends to give her niece her finished woven bag.
Some say these so-called granny hobbies are dying arts, but Marchant doesn’t believe that. For one thing, the classes have been a success.
“Every single one of our university classes are full,” she said.
Beyond the busy classes, Marchant pointed out that textiles remain essential in modern life.
“Look around you. I mean, you are surrounded by something that’s woven,” she said. “There are people using woven mesh in surgery, your upholstery in your car, everything around you in your home is all woven. It isn’t necessarily hand-woven, but it’s everywhere.”
