Other "Weird" Hobbies?

I collect Tarot cards, and have well over a hundred decks. I got my first deck in High School, and I still love it the best. I use to be an avid reader, but getting into BJDs has sort of eclipsed everything else. However, I still meditate with the cards.

I also have a large collection of quartz crystal balls. My prize crystal is from Brazil and it is the size of a large honeydew melon. Just gorgeous! The crystals lend a very positive and cleansing energy to my readings.

And, I love puppets! Im a big Gerry Anderson fan and collect Thunderbirds, Fireball XL5, Supercar, Stingray, and Captain Scarlet memorabilia. (Thunderbirds are GO! ) Most of my American friends don't even know what Im talking about.

 

I've been lurking in the doll Fandom for a while and most people I know think spending hundreds of dollars on dolls iso weird. So it really is all a matter of perspective. I am considered weird because I go beyond just liking anime/manga I like shounen ai and shoujou air. I'm considered odd for my love of antique things, and needlecraft. And my extreme love of the color pink. Oh and my sizable collection of anything hello kitty. I'm into lolita and goth fashion. But not just Gothic lolita like my fashion tastes swing wildly from extreme saccharine sugar sparkle pastel lolita to all black goth with cemeteries, bats, crow ect. And pastel goth... yeah that's me. And though this is dolly related lately I've been into sculpting my own bjds which is considered very odd. Mostly because no one seems capable of understanding the sheer amount of time it takes.......... Oxo So much.

 

Other hobbies: Lolita, Transformers, makeup, graphic design, writing, and handmade plushies made by artists.

 

Ha! Rabbit-moon - I collect Tarot decks as well - I read them for people but normally just use one specific deck for that. Some of the ones I've got have the most beautiful artwork! I've even got a doll-size set LOL I believe I've got about 10 decks all told.
I 'collect' books too - have over 1000 still (I do pass a lot on to others....)

 

this is painfully familiar, so i guess that says enough. i want more.

i go garage sailing every saturday with my grandma. this is a recent thing but it's already really addictive; you find a lot of neat stuff. it might not be "weird", maybe, but it's definitely a hobby! my best finds have been a japanese linden travel clock from the 50s that still ticks (but the hands don't spin) and a dolly parton doll(y) from about 1978 still in her box.

there's a part of me that really wants to collect older gaming systems, too, but i haven't started on that yet!

 

Ah, I still have drawers full of notebooks... a while ago I almost got five on ebay. I have it under control until I enter a shop or browse on ebay. Anything really, not just notebooks. I have one drawer just for pencils and they're all new. Then there's the colored pencils and the markers and mechanical pencils...

 

I've done some historical recreation from paintings/La Mode Illustree (and sewn with modern, Japanese patterns--which are surprisingly similar to La Mode Illustree and Burda--who knew!). Through historical recreating I got into shoemaking and soldering (but with a blow torch, not a soldering iron because they suck for soldering large things--definitely supposed to be used for finishing metallic lame).

I also love dyebaths, particularly with indigo, which got me into shibori (a Japanese tie-dye style that involves pre-sewing fabric before dyeing for geometric patterns) and sashiko (a style of embroidery; because it's usually done over indigo-dyed fabric). Then through sashiko, I got into kogin embroidery (also Japanese--I really like Japanese embroidery's geometric and monochrome style) which is now my preferred method for patching worn pants.

Then, through indigo dye, I got into selvedge/raw denim subculture--which is probably the strangest community I've ever been a part of. Unlike most of my other interest, this one comes from a community which is not as interested in limiting fabric wear and tear, but rather, exacerbating it (sick fadez!111). It's a weird community for a sewer because people tend to avoid washing the denim, and never know how to patch/darn the breaks. I like it, though, because the group is younger than many sewing communities, and they love the fabric as much as I do!

Even though I can't ride a bike (never learned), I got into technical fabric subculture (like for biking) from an interest in sewing selvedge jeans (which I learned about through indigo dyebath communities). I've recreated Outlier's (technical biking clothing company) pivot shirt (before they made a women's version) with darts, and right now I'm searching for a selvedge synthetic fabric for a pair of pants.

 

i have a my little pony collection (its in storage... le sob), a pokemon collection, and an anime figure collection.. i also collect brad pitt movies & johnny depp movies.

 

Oh goodness this list is a long one for me. I collect glass jars in various sizes most of them antique, glass domes, glass fishing floats, apothecary jars, crystals / stones, teeny tiny porcelain animals, cats (decor and some clothing items) creepy antique dolls and doll parts, anything neat with bees, cats, cacti, rodents, mushrooms or snails on it. I believe that's it but I'm sure there's more. I use to also collect ethically sourced taxidermy and specimens but one day I woke up and they made me sad, so I decided to only keep one and get rid of the rest. People are afraid to go into my room it's like an antique mall meets occult bookstore. I go through collecting phases, goddess knows what'll be next on the menu.

 

I play Pathfinder (currently in the middle of 2 campaigns with the same group of people, and we're planning more!), I cosplay (which is getting less weird as it gets more mainstream?), and I keep a bullet journal (which again, isn't necessarily "weird" but people are surprised by how often Im taking my journal out to jot down some notes!).

I used to collect polar bear stuffed animals, which some of my friends thought was strange .. but I just think theyre cute!
I've gotten rid of most of my stuffed animals (polar bear or otherwise) at this point (I gave a good portion to a friend's young child, the rest went to Goodwill!) because I just dont have room anymore, but it was fun while it lasted. (:

 

Oh Golly.
I have lots of little hobbies, but in terms of big weird hobbies, i have three...
I am a huge fan of Firefly/Serenity. Have a lot of collectibles from the 'verse. Been to the conventions. Gotten the autographs. Had the pics taken with ALL the cast members.
I'm a pirate. For a time my home was decorated ala Pirates of the Caribbean. I go to the Ren Faires on Pirate weekend - in full pirate garb.
And if that weren't bad enough - I'm obsessed with India. Music, art, architecture, clothing, jewelry and their MOVIES!!! Shah Rukh Khan is my FAVORITE actor!!! His name is tattooed on my wrist written in devanigari (शाहरुख़). I've taught myself some Hindi so I don't have to read subtitles. Took a National Geographic tour of India (Rajasthan) a few years ago - it was FABulous!
Other than that I'm very boring spending my evenings at home with my cat.

 

I don't think its weird but other people think its weird that I collect dolls , bears, dollhouse all various sizes, I like either very large size (Dolls up to 48 inch tall and Bears up to 46 inch tall) and small to miniature size (dolls, bears, dollhouse). I collect various dolls (bjd, anime, regular doll (American doll, bratz, masterpiece doll, tyco, cpk etc)

 

I have a huge manga collection. I also collect Vespas or old scooter art, although I haven't found the right scooter to buy for riding yet. I scour Goodwill, resale shops, yard sales and flea markets for antiques, art, or old toys or furniture to customize or refinish. (This week's lucky Goodwill finds were a real Coach handbag and two handmade Native American pots; my lucky resale find was a 1962 Lambretta Cento that I sadly decided not to purchase).
And in my spare time (ha ha), I practice krav maga. I used to fence competitively, but that got expensive. I also used to play the viola and violin, but I had to stop after I slipped a disc in my neck. It's mostly healed now, but practicing more than 15 or 20 minutes at a time starts to hurt.
I have a lot of fun when I'm not at the office.

 

Well, my love for Korean ball-jointed dolls led into learning Korean in my spare time. That turned into full-time classes at a university. I'm pursuing a translation certification in Korean, so hopefully it will be more of a hobby, but it can be hard to explain to people.

I also play with paper dolls and vintage Barbie dolls big time, and explore and photograph cemeteries.

 

I spend a ridiculous amount of money on Disney collectibles. Can't even find space for them in my room anymore.

 

Wow everyone has such neat hobbies! As for me, the "weirdest" hobby I have is probably my Reborn Babies, I love painting and collecting. Basically I get to play dress up with babies - which would be exactly what I do with my BJDs if I had more clothes. XD;;

Other than that I have weird quirks like collecting rocks or shells from places I visit. I try to get a bit of sand from every new beach I visit and I write where it was and the date.

I also love to collect Build-a-Bear (only my favorites), adorable plush, pokemon, journals (but in my defense I do write in them!), and planners. I'm also a huge fan of Disney, but I'll only collect my favorite character stuffs. I've recently started getting into decorating planners, I've always customized what I needed but it never really occurred to me that I could design and decorate elaborate layouts - so now I'm going to start.

Oh, and probably not at all weird for the BJD community, but I'm also quite the gamer - World of Warcraft being my life.

 

I collect Bosson heads. I'm not like super into it or anything, I just buy them whenever I see them and hang them in the bathroom. Out of the ones I have, the Kurd is probably my favorite. I'd like to get a Fagin next, but I've been prioritizing my bjds lately and there's only so much money to go around.

 

I've been debating about whether or not I should post in this thread because my other "weird" hobbies are... well, really bizarre. Let's just say that I like the ideas of tulpas and furries and leave it at that.

 

I... really have no scale for what is and isn't 'weird', haha. But I definitely have a lot of hobbies and collections! I'm getting back into collecting rocks, years and years after I lost my childhood mineral collection, and I also collect porcelain and glass animals (mostly cats, and while I collect other things with unicorns on them, I'll never own a glass unicorn)... I'm into lunchboxes but don't really go after them because man, that's a consuming hobby I just don't have the space for (but I feel like it's weirder to be as invested as I am in them when I'm not even a collector, just an admirer of others' collections)... I collect stationery, anything maneki neko-related, dice, anything relating to australian animals, to octopodes... beads and charms that I don't necessarily put on jewelry but I like having them. Enamel pins and also just basic pinback buttons are a big one, though I lost a huge swath of my button collection when I moved... well, I downsized both intentionally and not-so-intentionally quite a lot during the move, but yeah, I collect a lot of different stuff, and that's not even the fandom-related collections.

I'm very into tabletop games, which is sadly one of those hobbies that can easily become expensive, if you don't have friends or relatives with good game collections as well. Being the one serious tabletop gamer with a group of people who are happy to have game nights but not invested in buying games is... oof. I'm also into *creating* tabletop games, which... well, developing a pencil-and-paper RPG is time-consuming but not at all expensive, putting together a prototype euro-style boardgame might cost me the same as my least-expensive doll when all is said and done.

I'm into a lot of stuff that I was always made to feel weird about growing up, but which don't seem at all weird now that the internet has made it easy to find like-minded hobbyists.

 

I am into historical reenactment... like medieval... but not like larping or a Ren fair... more like... a convention of learning. How geeky does that sound? >•.•<
Society of Creative Anachronism

I make glass beads, do paintwork on my mother's pottery, make full sized clothes, study music, and figure out the best way to recreate a society with no written history of its own.

 

Same here, actually! I'm also into historical reenactment, but I'm more interested in the 19th century (with a dash of old Rome becuse why not?). I love the whole process of researching techniques, patterns and materials, and learning how fashion fits into the period I'm reenacting. I've also done a bit of cosplay but I don't enjoy it as much.

 

My boyfriend and I both play Dance Dance revolution and In The Groove, he purchased at system last year but on top of that I also cosplay as well and LARP and online role play.

 

Well, for many years I used to collect ceramic, porcelain and wooden animals, from the very small to big ones. Still have them all, but because of lack of free space I packed them carefully one by one and put them in a safe place. I also used to go to a cat shows with one of my cats, but now she's retired and I'm on a hiatus and we're living happily together.

 

I kinda collect dead insects (and other arthropods). I also photograph the living ones. Because I have a "no kill or goddamn just do the least damage possible woman!!" rule I tend to get a good knowledge about them before looking for a specific one. Knowing their habits makes easier to find groups and eh, they're creatures that either have a short life span or just leave this world in the most derpy fashion (hello cicadas, looking at you!) so it's easy to find what I want.

The ones I find more interesting get some resin treatment.

For pictures (like the one in my profile here, a 2mm wide baby jumping spider) it's harder tho, as many are easily scared or hate any light source. Still, I have tons of fun learning about them.

 

I like jfashion a lot, particularly fairy kei and lolita!! It's so much fun I also collect old my little ponies!

 

Fountain pens, mechanical keyboards, and musicals.

 

Not so much anymore, but when I was younger I used to collect porcelain "princess" dolls. (Had a Rapunzel, and a Pocahontas, etc.) And I used to collect feathers from all kinds of birds.

I don't really have any strange hobbies anymore, though. Anything that was originally a hobby in my life has turned into paid work or a business.

 

Wow! Sorry I'm so late responding! I don't know how I missed this!

That's awesome that you collect Tarot cards, too! And, over 1000 books! That's brilliant! I refuse to get a Kindle or some such thing. I love the experience of reading a real book too much!

 

My dad and I are really into working on the train set we started together. We've been working on it for about 15+ years, and it's not even finished yet. I usually do a lot of the painting and detailing while my dad is the construction guy. We had to start all over a few years ago when one of our cats climbed onto the table and threw up all over it and broke a few buildings.

 

Well, I make cheesy hair bows out of ribbon. The last batch included Nightmare before Christmas, Card Captors, and Pokemon. I also seem to collect fox plushes. I blame my husband.

 

Not sure if the cosplay community is classified as a weird hobby anymore, but if it is I suppose that would work as mine? I also quite enjoy crocheting and making pixel art with beads. And I guess my ever-growing collection of bird decorations could be considered a bit weird?

 

Traditional archery - longbow, DnD, sci-fi obsessive, parrots

 

I collect perfume. It's a little weird, but I totally love it.

 

Anime is becoming more mainstream, so beyond that and the bjd community...I have a weird obsession with gentlemen thieves. The handsome kind who steal from the rich and corrupt and never kill. Weird right? XD

 

I collect cards of all types. Playing cards, trading card games, tarot cards...flipping through a deck of cards is really relaxing to me. I focus on mostly tarot cards though, unless I find a particular MTG card or original playing card deck that I want.

I also like anime and movies and like getting figures from those, but I don't really consider that a hobby. More like random buys here and there when I feel like it.

 

Miniature wargaming-- started in Warhammer 40K, currently focused on Warmachine/Hordes.

 

I don't know if I have many weird hobbies, but I guess one I do too others may seem weird is I collect vintage sewing supplies like buttons, sewing needles in their packages, etc. I also collect vintage men's photos - sporting teams, fraternity & fashion as well as vintage Coca Cola items.

 

I make teddybears and teddydolls, and sometimes miniature food and jewelry. I used to collect Cecile Barker Flower fairies and miniature books. And now I collect miniature oil paintings and do them by myself)

 

The SCA is awesome. *nodnod* *waves from Artemesia*

 

Dunno i I ever mentioned my other weird collection hobbies here.
I have a collection of flutes. I didn't mean for that to happen, it just did! I play the Native American flute in a few varieties, the most common being the 5 hole style, and I play the tinwhistle or penny whistle so I have a bunch of those in various sizes including a big Low whistle.
I collect antique stereoscope cards. I have my great grandmother's stereoscope, and a big box of cards.
I also collect interesting vintage reels for the Viewmaster- that lil red clicky thing you can view 3D pictures in.

 

I practice kendo, and I'm pretty much nuts for languages.

 

It's not super weird but the fact that I'm a girl and I have some game/anime figures of girls (Reflect, Alter, Shunya Yamashita sculpts) surprises some people. One time, we had our airconditioning units cleaned and the personnel who were admiring the figs commented that my husband has good taste. Well! They were shocked to know that said figures are a part of my collection.

When I was around 6, my aunt and I collected stamps. At 10, I began my collection of X-Men comics -- I don't remember how this got started, but I became a big fan. I also collected Sonic the Hedgehog and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics, which was not really the norm for my best friends (all of them are girls).

A year later, I got interested in fantasy novels...I read some Pern books by Anne McCaffrey though I barely understood the lore and fell in love with Dragonlance later on. Then there was the videogame phase which lead me to meet my husband.

I think I'm considered weird enough here in our country. However, people usually can't tell since I screen what I say to them and act all "normal"...talking about pets, or lip gloss, or whatever. I reserve my favorite things for those who can relate. XD

 

I make decoden cases! It started off as a hobby, but I actually managed to turn it into a business, which is great I suppose in some places, specifically Japan where it originated, it might not be so weird; but here in Australia, it's definitely a weird thing to spend hours upon hours upon hours a week working on!

 

It's not very weird... it is? I collect Tea, of course to consume it, but I love having the choice of what I will put in my cup of hot water

Other than that I collect video games, game consoles and also Manga!

 

I collect Isul doll from Groove ! :3
And little pony G3.

 

I uh. I collect dead things. Skulls, bones, teeth, fur, etc. I have some, well, "wet specimens" also.
I don't kill animals, to be clear, I just scavenge my stuff from nature, or buy from flea markets, garage sales, thrift/antique shops, and the like.
Oddly enough, between this and the dolls, most people I meet think the dolls are creepier.
I also like to make masks or customize masks made by other artists.
At this point I feel as if I'm checking off some sort of horror movie trope list, haha.

 

The sense of passion you all have for your hobbies really comes through! Seems like collecting things is a recurring theme. Here's a peek into my life:

I wear lolita fashion. I enjoy the aesthetics, I enjoy feeling cute and feminine, but the emphasis on constant purchases and the middle-school cattishness is starting to get to me. My local community is fun, but I have very little in common with most girls outside of the clothes we are wearing, it seems. My eyes start to glaze over when they start talking about anime and cosplay or their latest trip to Japan. I wonder if I am growing out of the hobby.

I play a few instruments; acoustic and electric guitar, the cello and some violin, though I haven't seriously practiced the last two in a while so as to remain on good terms with the neighbours. I love classic rock and the culture and fashion surrounding it, and I collect and listen to vinyl records. I would like to be in a band one day, just for fun.

I've been passionate about horses since I was very young. I'm into natural horsemanship, a bit of jumping, barefoot trimming and training for bitless/bridleless riding. I experimented with horseback archery and would very much like to resume it.

Lastly, I suppose--although more lifestyle than hobby--for me the words are almost the same--allergies and fitness goals have necessitated for my husband and I low carb diets, no shampoo, barefoot shoes, cutting down on chemicals etc... basically hippie stuff and generally simpler living. Since at the moment I live in town in a basement suite with no yard or view out the windows, it may be my way of trying to connect with the nature I grew up in.

 

Most of my other hobbies involve collecting! Anime figures were what first got me into BJDs (through Dollfie Dreams), and collecting those is still my priority, though my interest has waned a lot recently. (Unfortunately, there usually aren't very many figures for the anime I like best, and I have a tough time justifying purchasing figures just because they're cute or I like the design.)

I also collect vintage My Little Pony toys; I grew up watching it on TV, and it's always had a big place in my heart! I usually go in phases where I'm very determined to purchase as many old G1 ponies as I can, and then I completely forget about it for a few years. 8'D

Otherwise, I'm very into roleplaying and games like World of Warcraft and Guild Wars 2! I like one-on-one forum-based roleplay a lot, though I've kind of fallen out of touch with that community, and prefer to just keep it between friends now; I've always wanted to branch out and do actual in-game roleplay, like in GW2, but I haven't quite gotten there yet! (Mostly I just want to reach level 80 on a character first, aha. I'm getting closer!)

 

I collect perfume, tarot cards, and vintage beauty manuals. I also research historical beauty practices, costume history, economics, sociology, history in general, and hermetic magic. I used to do stand up comedy as well. I'm hoping to start doing more youtube videos soon as well. I also do a fair bit of text based online roleplay and write.

 

I collect tamagotchi/virtual pets as well! (As I see several others are into the same thing. Nothing's ever quite as odd as it seems!) I have a couple of the newer ones, but I'm more fond of the originals and the connects. I'd really like to find a red Rakuraku Dinokun as that's the one I had when I was little, but I'm always just a little too late to the party when one shows up. >_O

I collect vintage monchhichi as well. What's hilarious is I never set out to make these hobbies, I just... somehow ended up with a bunch of both. Go figure.

 

My hobbies are weird mainly because I'm 50 and I collect and play retro video games and consoles. The games are mostly jrpgs. I do have new consoles and also play MMOs. Also, I collect and use vintage film cameras.

 

My twin sister and I are super into exercising - weightlifting primarily. So, we have collected some gym equipment and have converted a garage into our home gym. But it isn't quite big enough for everything . . . so my craft room also serves as a small workout area (with bench, dumbbells, and smaller items) while the big equipment, like my leg press / hack squat, leg extension, etc. is in the garage. Sometimes, I think it's funny that girls who love to "sweat it out" also love delicate and pretty dolls!

Besides weight lifting, we like to sell things. Anything really! But we are a bit of Littlest Pet Shop connoisseurs - I know so much about these cuties, it's outrageous. Also, I airbrush and paint Littlest Pet Shops and Breyer model horses on the side.

As for dolls, we also love Porcelain dolls and art / fashion dolls like Popovy and Enchanted Dolls. I also like Fashion Royalty dolls, Blythe, and Pullip.

 

Uh, I don't know if it's really -that- weird, but I have gotten a few eyebrow-raised looks at the fact that I raise various Venus Fly Trap plants. There's just something about them that makes them really interesting.

 

well, My other hobbies....I like to collect video games, anime figures, mangas, evereything about my fav characters, and antique things. I love steam punk culture and I'm also interested in cosplay and now I must economy for my future dolls, too Oh and I love yaoi. this may be the only "weird" thing

 

I collect "art of" books mainly. Some of which are [I believe] out of print as well.
I currently have:
- The Princess and the Frog
- Brother Bear
- Atlantis: The Lost Empire
- The Legend of Korra: Book 1
- The Legend of Korra: Book 3 [kindle version]
- Rise of the Guardians
- Epic [animated film]
- Dreamworks Animation 50th Anniversary compilation
- Satoshi Kon's masterworks
- Princess Mononoke
- Anastasia
- Zootopia [kindle]
- Big Hero 6 [kindle]
- Dishonored 2 [kindle]
- Dragon Age: Inquisition [kindle]
- Kubo and the Two Strings [kindle]
- The Book of Life [kindle]

Currently I'm saving up for Treasure Planet....

 

I collect odd fake taxidermy pieces like mythical creature kinds. I'm a reenactor who studies historical fashion for fun, hopefully to make the stuff in the future. I do postcrossing which people think is an odd hobby for some reason. I also collect sand for different places that I've been to. I also like to complete bucket list items on my bucket list.

Probably got more but those are it at the moment.

 

I sail, like on boats. Either with my family or on my own.
I collect porcelain dolls including a couple of marionettes that I got in Prague, I used to collect blind-bag my little pony toys but I lost interest and gave them to some little girls who still watch the show. I also play weird european board games with my girlfriend.

Also sometimes my best friend and I explore abandoned houses. I've fallen through rotten floors two separate times and scavenged a lot of weird random stuff

 

I collect old black and white photographs. I honestly don't really know why, probably because I like old things.
I also only buy certain pictures. Those who "speak" to me, I guess. My last purchase was a lady from the 1920s with a hilarious hat.

 

LPs. Got into them in a big way in the early 00s, back in the golden age of second hand LP buying (but the nadir of actual LP production) when as a not-yet-teen managed to pick up most of David Bowie's back-catalogue for pocket money prices, at an average of £5 an album, most of them first pressings over the course of a few years. It felt a bit like a secret world then, of slightly dodgy flea-market esque stalls all competing with each other to have the lowest prices/rarest stock.

Much as I'm enjoying the sudden popularity of my favoured music format, and the ability to pick up crispy mint discs with the groceries, as things apparently were in the 70s and 80s... I do miss those days when the second hand sellers were plentiful and competitive, before the prices suddenly shot up!

Terribly I'm now on the hunt for a third turntable for the household (as though two isn't enough... One of which is at audiophile nerd level quality) Specifically the gorgeous but questionably useful Sony PS-F9 model. A gorgeous bit of engineering that might live up to the hype if certain sections of the Internet are to be believed, and lacking the dubiously sensible unsupported tone-arm that plagues the Soundburger and similarly designed models.

 

Probably collecting How To Train Your Dragon stuff. I don't have everything, but I did get a hold of some of the rarer things, like a Toothless cell phone charm that was only given out to those who pre-ordered tickets to the first movie in Japan. Or the 5ft. long plush that was sold in Australia.

So yeah. Bit strange.

Edit: and apparently Sideshow has a statuette of Toothless. Oooo, ahhhh.