From cross-stitching to backgammon, these millennials have picked up delightfully low-tech hobbies to pass the time during lockdown. 

Speaking to FEMAIL, 20 and 30-somethings across the UK told how they are

From cross-stitching to backgammon, these millennials have picked up delightfully low-tech hobbies to pass the time during lockdown. 

Speaking to FEMAIL, 20 and 30-somethings across the UK told how they are seeking out activities that take them away from their screens and help them to unwind after a day spent in front of the laptop while working from home. 

Fashion PR Lauren Normyle, 29, from London, explained she had started drawing trees and birds in a bid to improve her knowledge of local wildlife, while Kirsten Millar, 23, from Edinburgh, has learned how to crochet after being inspired by her grandmother. 

Kathryn Dent, 24, of Hertfordshire is one of millions of Brits who have taken up jigsaws as a way to relax, with toy companies reporting huge spikes in the sale of puzzles in the three weeks since lockdown started and Amazon selling out online.  

CROCHET

Kirsten Millar, 23, Edinburgh

Family tradition: Kirsten, a student at Edinburgh University, took inspiration from her grandmother and learned how to crochet. Pictured, with a blanket and elephant she made

Kirsten, who is studying for a masters degree in Innovation and Technology Law at Edinburgh University, has made the most of her time in lockdown by learning how to crochet. Her favourite piece so far is a blanket made from 'granny squares'.

She said: 'My Italian great granny was a really skilled crocheter. While we were doing the Great Lockdown Clear Out, I found a really intricate, beautiful piece that she made and some of my mums old crochet hooks. 

Kirsten with an adorable crochet elephant

'I’ve always been really creative but I’ve never had the time to properly focus on mastering a crafty hobby and, since I was going to be cooped up for an indefinite amount of time, this seemed like the perfect opportunity. Also I liked the idea of carrying on a bit of a family legacy.

'To make things like clothes or toys you need to follow a set pattern, which involves a lot of focus. It’s a great way of really switching off for a while and concentrating on something other than work or the news, and you get the added bonus of having created something intricate and unique.

'But, to make things like the "granny squares" that I used to make up the blanket, you follow a very simple repetitive pattern. They’re easy to make and you can do other things at the same time (in my case, binge watch the entirety of Sex and the City).'

DRAWING

Lauren Normyle, 29, London

Back to nature: Fashion PR Lauren (left) has challenged herself to sketch a new bird and tree each week (right) in a bid to learn more about local wildlife while relaxing away from screens

Fashion PR Lauren has challenged herself to sketch a new bird and tree each week in a bid to learn more about local wildlife while relaxing. 

She said: 'I had been consciously looking up and around instead of down at my phone during my daily walk and I was embarrassed to realise I couldn’t name many trees or birds that I saw. I made a pact to myself to learn more about them. It’s something that my grandparents would know so why shouldn’t I? 

'I knew I wanted to learn more about nature and I was also keen to practise sketching for a dose of mindfulness. My aim is to draw a new bird and tree each week.' 

She added: 'Drawing provides time out for me, I’ve tried to meditate but it’s hard to think of nothing. When I sketch I concentrate on this 100% with no distractions.' 

CROSS-STITCHING

Nicole Jordan, 24, Walsall, West Midlands

Daily hobby: Civil servant Nicole is working from home during lockdown and uses cross-stitching as a way to unwind after hours in front of the screen. Right, one of her designs

Civil servant Nicole is working from home during lockdown and uses cross-stitching as a way to unwind after hours in front of the screen. 

She said: 'I've always wanted to have a hobby, and of the million I've started, cross stitching is the only one that's stuck and I'm kind of good at. 

'I got a set for my birthday in February and it's just carried on from there. Lockdown has seen me amp up cross stitching, I'm doing it in a daily basis. 

'One of the main reasons I enjoy it is because I can actually do it. It also really relaxes me - once I'm into a rhythm with it, I can mindlessly cross stitch for hours with music on it the background. 

'Particularly being in lockdown, and sitting in front of my computer screen for eight hours a day without the usual mini breaks away from it you get in the office, it stops me spending 16 hours a day in front of either the computer or TV. It's definitely helped my mind focus more in the times were in.' 

She added: 'If anyone wants to get into it, I recommend checking out the geeky stitching co., they have some really cute designs perfect for beginners.'

BACKGAMMON 

Julia Andersson, 30, London

Competitive edge: Julia, sales manager at womenswear brand Chinti and Parker (pictured in the label's knitwear), is spending her free time playing backgammon with her fiancé

Julia, sales manager at womenswear brand Chinti and Parker, is spending her free time playing backgammon. Her fiancé gave her a selection of board games for her 30th birthday in January and backgammon has become the 'clear favourite'.

She said: 'Backgammon is something to do other than watch TV and scroll through Instagram! It gets your brain thinking and keeps you busy. And, as a relatively competitive person (or very, my fiancé would say), it is perfect. You can just keep tallying up the results and it’s like an endless competition.'

While the couple played backgammon before, she said spending more time at home has given her an opportunity to improve her sills.   

Julia added: 'Now more than ever, we all have time to learn new things and can put our phones down. There’s no one waiting for us at the pub and we’re not running late to meet friends. Spend time with each other whilst we have the opportunity and spend the time doing something interactive like playing backgammon.'

JIGSAWS

Charlotte Page, 28, Ware, Hertfordshire 

Simple pleasures: Project surveyor Charlotte Page, pictured, who is currently furloughed, used to enjoy doing puzzles in childhood but hadn't done one in a 'very long time'

Charity shop find: Charlotte completed this 250-piece puzzle she bought before lockdown 

Project surveyor Charlotte, who is currently furloughed, used to enjoy doing puzzles in childhood but hadn't done one in a 'very long time'. Having more time at home during lockdown seemed like a 'good opportunity' to pick the hobby back up. 

She said: 'I like that it can easily be done at home and on my own. The only problem is I don't really have many puzzles myself as they’re all in my parents garage.

'I find it quite relaxing and satisfying when you see it coming together/being finished. This one was pretty tough as it has some very odd puzzle piece shapes! I found it in a charity shop the other week just before the lockdown. 

'It was the only one left as it seems like everyone wants to do puzzles at the moment as they seem to be sold out everywhere.'

Kathryn Dent, 24, Stanstead Abbotts, Hertfordshire 

Puzzle goals: Kathryn Dent, 24, enjoyed the jigsaw because it gave her something to achieve

Superhero effort: Kathryn recently completed this 1,000-piece Marvel superhero puzzle 

Kathryn, a banking assistant analyst who is working remotely from home, is one of millions of Brits who has taken up puzzles as a lockdown hobby. She recently completed a complicated Marvel design. 

She said: 'I started doing jigsaws because they are very time consuming but keep your brain stimulated. I've enjoyed the challenge as it's not my usual past time. It keeps my mind busy and completing puzzles gives me something to focus on achieving.'  

Different kind of post! Young stamp collectors sharing their finds online

By Bridie Pearson-Jones for MailOnline 

It's long-been the preserve of an erstwhile generation, who might trawl through antique shops looking for penny blacks or unblemished limited editions. 

However, it seems stamp collecting has a whole new audience, amongst locked-down millennials seeking a pursuit that doesn't involve the internet - unless they showing off their finds on Instagram, of course.  

Hoping to get a break from their screens, young people are picking up philately - the study of stamps - from their grandparents for escapism, nostalgia and as chance to unplug from their busy lives.

Little pictures of calm: Millennials are turning to stamp collecting as a refuge from the fast pace of modern life. Pictured, an Instagram user showing off her stamp collection

Oh so pretty: Hoping to get a break from their screens, young people are picking up philately - stamp collecting - from their grandparents for escapism, nostalgia and as chance to unplug from their busy lives

Suzanne Rae, chair of the Philatelic Traders Society, told the Observer that Generation Y are picking up the hobby as it's tangible, relaxing and 'very Instagrammable'.  

 Ms Rae, 37, who is only the society's second female chair in 91 years added, added that while many people are using it to unplug, they often share pictures of their pretty stamps online to spread the word and meet other young people with the hobby.  

The hashtag #philately has seen more than 310,000 posts on Instagram and Twitter and is also full of snaps of rare and historic stamps filtered to perfection. 

Speaking last year to All About Stamps magazine, Ms Rae revealed she gave up her job as a management consultant in the City to run a stamp business full-time.

The hashtag #philately has seen more than 310,000 posts on Instagram and Twitter is also full of snaps of rare and historic stamps filtered to perfection

Suzanne Rae, chair of the Philatelic Traders Society, told the Observer that Generation Y are also picking up the hobby as it's tangible, relaxing and 'very Instagrammable'

Ms Rae's online stamp shop, Art Stamped, is the first to sell using social media - and many of her customers are millennials. 

'I collected stamps as a child, spending my spare pocket money at Robert Murray's Stamp Shop in Edinburgh. Like many, and encouraged by my parents, I would buy small bags of GB in the hope of filling some new spaces in my childhood stamp album.

'I loved learning about the world, and about myself as I discovered a hobby which I found competitive yet slow, never-ending yet manageable, adventurous yet calming. As a teenager with a growing number of duplicates, I started making little arts and crafts using old postage stamps, and later in life, I picked it all up again,' she revealed.   

Sadie Medhurst, a 31-year-old fan, added that the idea that stamp collecting is for an older generation is untrue.

'Stamp collecting is presumed to be a solitary endeavour reserved for the older members of society, but this could not be further from the truth. Each stamp tells a story: I often like to think of the many hands they have passed through,' she said.