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Hobbies & Collectibles

New discoveries, growing collections and something you can’t wait to try.

The hobby brief

What’s happening in hobbies

Pokémon TCG 30th Celebration product collection

Pokémon TCG / Collecting & playing

Thirty years of cards. Plenty of ways to collect.

Explore the 30th Celebration, find your starting point and make room for the cards you love.

01 / Beyond the headlines

Make time for what you love.

The card table / Collect · Play · Discover

Come for the artwork. Stay for the game.

A favourite character. A clever combo. The people across the table. There is more than one way in.

30

Pokémon / An anniversary worth opening

A little nostalgia. A new page in the binder.

The Pokémon TCG 30th Celebration collectionExplore the anniversary collection ↗

Collect a favourite Pokémon, follow an artist, or start with a set you love. Give your collection a story of its own.

One Piece / Under the spotlight

One card can change the conversation.

What the Mihawk restriction means for the next deck you take to the table.

Read the restriction report ↗
Dracule Mihawk OP14-020 card

Disney Lorcana

A little Disney. A different kind of magic.

Catch up with the Ink Drop deep dive ↗

Before the next game

Learn it. Check it. Find your people.

Use the official starting points below. Rules and permitted cards depend on the game and format.

Keep the cards you love in good company.Choose the right sleeves ↗A smarter storage box ↗
Build a world of your own.

Bricks, miniatures and models worth making room for.

Brick by brick

Big ideas. Small bricks.

Fresh releases, remarkable displays and the people who make a pile of bricks into something unexpected.

The full Shenron sculpture and Goku displayed on a red console

Official first look / Dragon Ball

Shenron deserves a closer look.

Follow the green coils to the dragon’s face, then find tiny Goku below. The 1,764-piece display arrives November 4.

Explore the build ↗Photography · The LEGO Group

The display cabinet / New & on the way

A few builds to fall for.

Discover the details and purchase directly from LEGO.com.

In the conversation

When the build is a memory.

The new PlayStation model turns a familiar console into a display piece. For a collection built around games, it offers a different direction from another character or vehicle.

See the console build ↗

Community / LEGO Ideas

What would you build if anything were possible?

Explore fan proposals, see how builders solve tiny architectural problems and follow a project that makes you look twice.

Explore the Ideas community ↗

Out of the display case

Meet the builders. See the details up close.

Fan exhibitions are a chance to explore ambitious layouts, talk to their makers and come home with a new idea for your own table.

Browse the fan-event calendar ↗

Models, miniatures & the worlds around them

Small scale. Huge imagination.

Build the character. Paint the details. Give it a world to belong to.

A Warhammer painter adding texture to a miniature base

At the painting desk

The little details make the model.

Highlights, eyes and basing: the Warhammer painting team tackles the questions that come up when the brush gets small.

Read the team’s painting advice
Illustrated miniature landscape with a stream, rocky banks and patchy snow on a workbench

SMALL WORLDS / ON THE BENCH

Build a little atmosphere.

A stream, exposed ground, the last patches of snow. Work from the shape of the scene to the details that give it a sense of place.

Explore the melting-snow project ↗

01 / SHAPE THE SCENE

Miniature Base vs Gaming Terrain vs Display Diorama: What's Actually the Difference?

02 / ADD THE WATER

How to Make Realistic Water for Dioramas: Gel, Still Water & Puddles

03 / FINISH THE DETAILS

How to Paint Miniatures With Paint Markers: Beginner Step-by-Step Guide

Make something with your hands.

Colour, clay, thread and paper. Pick a material and begin.

The open studio / painting & drawing

Follow the colour.

One bloom, one sky, one page in a sketchbook. Find a subject that makes you want to pick up a brush.

A magnolia watercolour study with brushes and paint
Magnolia study · image: BLICK Art Materials

Try this / watercolour

Let the petals
do the talking.

Transparent washes, deeper layers and a few lifted highlights turn a simple flower study into something worth keeping.

Paint the magnolia, step by step

On watercolour paper, sketch three loose petal shapes lightly. Brush a pale wash inside one shape, leaving a sliver of dry paper for a highlight. Let it dry, then add a smaller, deeper wash near the base. Repeat beside it and compare the layers.

Start on a scrap of watercolour paper. A single petal is enough to practise light, colour and edges.

Pastels / catch the light

Make three bands of colour on pastel paper: dark, middle and light. Blend only where the bands meet, then leave a few crisp strokes on top. Notice how a small light mark changes the whole study.

Colour / meet your palette

Make a row of colour swatches. Below each one, mix a little of its neighbour into it. Label your mixes so you can return to a colour you like.

Print / make an impression

Brush a thin layer of water-based printing ink onto a printing plate, press a textured object into it, then lift a print with suitable paper. The marks left behind are part of the fun.

A potter’s hands shaping a small clay vessel on a turning wheel
Photography · Tuan Nguyen / Unsplash ↗

Clay / hand-building · pottery · texture

Let your hands
do the thinking.

The curve of a little bowl. The press of a thumb. Clay keeps a record of the way you make it.

01 / At home

Pinch a small keepsake.

Press a thumb into a ball of air-dry clay, then turn and gently pinch the walls. Keep this first piece decorative and follow the clay maker’s drying instructions.

02 / At a studio

Try the wheel.

A beginner class gives you the wheel, clay and help with centring. Ask what glazing and firing are included before choosing a session.

Try a texture: a gentle fingertip pattern, a soft brush mark, or the edge of a leaf.

Watch a pot take shape

Small projects / wood · beads

Something made by you.

A satisfying place to begin, without turning every interest into a major project.

Woodworking / start with the finish

A coaster with a little character.

Use a pre-cut wooden blank. Smooth the edges with sandpaper, following the grain. Mask one stripe, paint it, then choose a finish intended for coasters and follow its drying directions.

Wood blank · sandpaper · masking tape · paint
A · B · C · B

Jewellery making / find a rhythm

Three colours. Your signature.

Arrange beads before threading. Try blue, cream, coral, cream; repeat it twice. Swap just the coral for another colour and see how the whole bracelet changes.

Start with a bead layout; choose cord and a closure to suit it.
HobbyPop’s African Flower crochet motif, part 13

African Flower · Part 13 · HobbyPop

HobbyPop / crochet notebook / creator shorts

A little yarn.
A lot of personality.

A flower, a tiny bee, a strawberry. Watch HobbyPop turn small motifs into the pieces of a growing crochet project.

Choose a motif and watch it here.

Watch the original on YouTube ↗
Try a stitch while you’re here
01

One square. One X.

Cross-stitch turns a grid into a picture. Work both diagonals of each square, keeping the top stitches facing the same way.

Try the heart above on a small piece of Aida fabric.
02

Draw a dotted line.

Running stitch: bring the needle up and down along a line, leaving a small gap between stitches. Try a border or a winding stem.

03

Fill it with colour.

Satin stitch: place straight stitches close together across a small shape. Try a leaf before filling a larger motif.

Make it yoursA stitched initial on a pocket. A bright patch over a worn spot. A tiny heart on a fabric bookmark.

Prefer a hook or needles?Crochet, knitting and maker projects have a place here too. Explore the maker videos ↓

Paper craft / An idea with depth

A whole world.
One sheet at a time.

A tunnel book turns flat paper into a tiny stage. Pull this woodland scene apart to see where the depth comes from.

One sheet / a little origami break

Fold here. Pick up your story later.

One paper square → one corner bookmark. A few folds, no glue or cutting.

  1. 01

    Make a triangle

    Start with a 15 cm paper square. Fold corner to corner; turn the long edge towards you.

  2. 02

    Crease both sides

    Fold each bottom corner up to the top point. Press, then open those two folds.

  3. 03

    Make the pocket

    Fold only the front top point down to the centre of the bottom edge. Leave the back layer up.

  4. 04

    Fold & tuck

    Bring both side corners up again. Fold each free tip down into the front pocket.

  5. 05

    Save your page

    Flatten gently. Turn the pocket towards the page and slip it over a corner.

Solid shape = paper · dashed line = crease · arrow = fold

Make another in a different colour, or add a small doodle to the finished pocket.

Step outside. Look a little closer.

Plants, photography and the things you notice along the way.

The growing corner / plants · terrariums · little gardens

A little green.
A world of its own.

A glass garden on a shelf. A pot by the window. Something new to notice every time you pass.

  1. 01

    Start with the light.

    Choose a spot first, then a plant that suits it. A closed terrarium belongs in bright, indirect light, away from hot direct sun.

  2. 02

    Give the plants room.

    Small, slow-growing tropical plants suit a closed glass garden. Check their mature size; leave space between them.

  3. 03

    Notice what changes.

    Look for new leaves and condensation. A closed terrarium needs very little water; avoid leaving the soil waterlogged.

Terrarium care from the RHS ↗
Small green plants and moss growing inside a glass terrarium
Photography · Mr. Pugo / Unsplash ↗
Your first new leaf

Pick a starting point

A windowsill counts as a beginning.

Sow a few seeds

Use a small container with drainage and suitable seed-starting mix. Follow the packet for sowing depth, light and temperature. Label the date, then watch for the first pair of leaves.

Get to know one houseplant

Keep its name and care label. Check the light it prefers and feel the potting mix before watering. Take one photo each week to notice new growth.

Make a garden notebook

Sketch a leaf, record when a seed sprouts, or draw the shape of a new shoot. A date and one sentence are enough to begin.

Watch Epic Gardening’s seed-starting guide ↗

The field notebook / photography · nature journaling

The same walk.
A different way of seeing.

A phone camera is enough. Choose one subject, then find three pictures inside it: the setting, the pattern and the smallest detail.

A fern frond surrounded by woodland greenery
01 / The setting

Leave room around your subject. Let the surroundings tell part of the story.

A closer crop of the fern’s repeating leaf pattern
02 / The pattern

Fill the frame with rhythm: repeating leaves, shadows or shapes.

A tight crop showing individual fern leaflets
03 / The detail

Move closer, then check the focus. Find one small thing you missed.

Three crops of one photograph. Try making your own three views on your next walk.

Artem Balashevsky / Unsplash ↗
Explore photography videos

Keep a tiny nature journal.

Draw the outline of a leaf. Add its colour, the place and the date. You are practising noticing; the drawing can be simple.

Meet a bird you pass every day.

Watch from a distance. Notice its size, beak and behaviour, then jot down the colours you see. Leave nests and resting birds undisturbed.

A quieter kind of discovery.

A good book, a clear night and a little room to wonder.

THE READING ROOM / OCTOBER 2026

Make room for your next good book.

A little romance, a familiar favorite, or an idea that stays with you. See which book catches your eye.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone book cover

J. K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

Explore this book ↗
The Love Hypothesis book cover

Ali Hazelwood

The Love Hypothesis

Explore this book ↗
Pride and Prejudice book cover

Jane Austen

Pride and Prejudice

Explore this book ↗
Atomic Habits book cover

James Clear

Atomic Habits

Explore this book ↗
How to Win Friends and Influence People book cover

Dale Carnegie

How to Win Friends and Influence People

Explore this book ↗
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People book cover

Stephen R. Covey

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

Explore this book ↗
Explore a reading plan →

After dark / astronomy · moon watching

Your next discovery
might be overhead.

Start with the Moon. Look for its bright highlands and darker patches, then return another evening and notice what has changed.

Open NASA’s Daily Moon Guide
01

Look first.

You can begin with your eyes. Binoculars reveal more detail when you are ready.

02

Leave a little record.

Sketch the lit shape and note the date and time. Compare it with your next clear night.

The near side of the Moon, imaged by NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
NASA / GSFC / Arizona State University ↗A full-Moon reference, not tonight’s phase.

A little cosmic curiosity / Just for fun

Your sign. A small spark.

October 6 / Your creative horoscope

Aries: Let a burst of curiosity start something small. Try the first fold, stitch or sketch today; the finished masterpiece can wait.

Little discoveries

Leave room for a new interest.

A few invitations to try something different. No new room, elaborate setup or big commitment required for every hobby.

Music / a little rhythm

Find a beat. Make it yours.

Tap four steady beats. Clap on the second and fourth. Keep the pulse going, then try a different pattern over it.

1234
Find your rhythm with a lesson
See what a curious idea can become.

Tinkering & technology

See what a curious idea can become.

Watch James Bruton experiment with a tentacle robot, or explore 3D printing below.

Watch the experiment

A small idea for your next free hour

Open an interest for a quick starting point.

Journaling

Save one small moment: a sentence, a quick sketch, or a ticket from your day. Put the date beside it. A journal can start with a single line.

Puzzles

Try sorting one small cluster by pattern instead of colour. A window, a face or a patch of sky can be a satisfying first target.

Stencilling

Repeat one simple shape across scrap paper. Change only the spacing: neat rows, scattered marks, then a border.

Candle & soap making

Start by comparing colour, scent and mould ideas. Use a beginner method and materials designed for the craft when you move on to making.

Follow the spark.

Watch a maker, find a technique, or keep reading.

Watch someone make something

Follow your curiosity.

From the first brushstroke to the final reveal. Find a maker, a technique or your next rabbit hole.

Browse all categories +

A few good places to start

Loading the video collection…

The hobby reading room

A good idea is worth following.

Practical guides for your collection and workbench, plus the releases worth a closer look.

Explore the hobby library ↗