Back To The Basics: Why Gen Z Is Turning To Grandmotherly Hobbies For Sustainability And Sanity

Gen Z has taken up a variety of vintage hobbies from sewing, knitting, and crocheting, to baking bread and writing physical letters (probably not in cursive, though). Many seem quite practical given the overall state of the economy, declining garment quality and the health drawbacks of ultra-processed bread, for example, but to hear social media influencers tell it, these hobbies are really about “mindfulness,” “sustainability,” and “slow living.”

Our grandmothers and great-grandmothers commonly crafted baby quilts, Easter dresses, winter mittens and more for their loved ones, but once-widespread home sewing and knitting skills nearly ceased being passed on to Gen X and millennials with the rise of cheap imported clothing and two-income households. Pre-sliced, shelf-stable bread, once considered a homemaking miracle, has fallen out of favor among the health-conscious of the 21st century.

A great-grandmother might once have said she was simply keeping her hands busy knitting in front of the evening news, (perhaps after a long day of baking), with a useful item to show for it later. But Gen Z describes knitting, for example, as a “wellness” practice that allows them to disconnect from screens and slow down. The usefulness of the end product, for them, is more about sustainability, and an explicit rejection of fast fashion, much like the trend toward thrifting and shopping secondhand.

But are mindfulness and sustainability a soothing cover story for real economic uncertainty inspiring these practical skills?

“I think the rise of practical hobbies is less about people suddenly becoming more virtuous and more about people craving agency in a world that feels expensive, fragile and abstract. Sustainability is definitely a part of it, but often indirectly,” says sustainability expert and Finch Founder Lizzie Horvitz. The platform helps consumers make sustainable choices across nearly every aspect of the home, from toothpaste to thermostats, along with other areas of life.

“Making something yourself makes the material, labor and waste visible in a way that clicking order online never does. Once you’ve spent 40 hours sewing a coat, you don’t see clothing as disposable anymore, and that shift in mindset is arguably more powerful than anything written on a sustainability label,” Horvitz says.

“I see these hobbies as sitting at the intersection of cost-of-living pressure, distrust of mass production, and a desire for more grounded, tangible work. Sustainability isnt always the headline motivation, but it often becomes the outcome,” she says.

“One positive aspect of social media is that it’s never been easier or cheaper to learn these skills,” she says. “One example of dozens I have is my husband, who has become a master gardener from watching YouTube.”

According to stress expert Nicholas Greco, founder of C3 Education and Research, the hobbies may be about mindfulness and sustainability for some, but “underlying this would be the need to simplify their lives” and connect with themselves and others by disconnecting electronically.

“This may be a way for them to have a mental break, a respite if you will from the barrage of ads, memes, videos, and endless news cycles,” Greco says. He notes the trend also ties in to the younger generations declining alcohol consumption.

“As we see the younger generations consuming less alcohol, they are health conscious as well as financially aware,” he says.

“Baking bread, eating at home, making their own clothes, and repairing and reusing things, is not only thrifty but also an enjoyable experience and a way to connect with others who are doing the same,” he says. “Its more than just a difficult economy, it is about making the best of your economic situation and learning from past generations on how to not just survive but thrive.”