I (semi-permanently) dyed my hair pink and purple.

As someone who works different jobs all throughout the year, I have held multiple positions where employees could not dye their hair unnatural colours. Since COVID put my working days to a halt, I decided to take advantage of the break to switch things up, and I was not disappointed! I definitely recommend taking this time away from our professional settings to try something a little more spontaneous and fun that we otherwise wouldn’t be able to do.

I trimmed my own hair.

And I don't mean just fixing up my bangs. I whole ass cut my hair all by myself, gave myself a much-needed couple-inch trim(which is a huge step for me, as someone who gets so busy throughout the semester that I'll get a haircut once, MAYBE twice in the whole 16 weeks). Getting rid of those dead ends worked WONDERS on my hair texture. Here’s the before and after, scrunching my hair in the same way with the same products. It’s amazing what a trim can do for you.

I purchased and tested out new hair products.

I blame TikTok, but I don't regret it. I finally tried out the Not Your Mother's Curl Talk products that I was seeing all the wavy/curly-haired girls use in their videos. I found some new everyday items. In the before + after photos of my trim, I was using these! If you're looking for a way to really boost your curls, definitely give these a try!

I also cut my little brother’s hair, TWICE.

I watch enough Brad Mondo to know what I'm doing, and my younger brother let me put that to the test. He asked me to give him a whole new look, and that is exactly what I did. Here's the before, after the first cut, and finishing up the second.

I bought a penny board.

This is one of those things I have wanted to do for YEARS, but I live in the country, so there's not much of a place for skating here. Since I started college, though, I decided I should give it a try, and when quarantine hit, I used my 20th birthday as an excuse to order one and attempt to learn(disclaimer: it is harder than it looks). Enjoy this, oh, so flattering screenshot of me opening the box it came in.

(I ordered this Kryptonics 22.5" penny board for under $60!)

I’ve picked up boxing.

This is something I had thought about since I was probably 6 years old and fell in love with Walker, Texas Ranger. I wanted even then to try out boxing, kickboxing, or martial arts so that I, too, could whoop some bad guy tail. My brothers got a punching bag and set of gloves for Christmas, and finally being home for a while gave me reason and motivation to use it. Unfortunately, I do not have any wonderfully flattering pics of me all red and sweaty, so here is my little brother, flexing on me.

I tried painting for the first time in what’s been nearly a decade.

I loved painting when I was little, but I never seemed to get any better at it and both got tired of it and found other ways to spend my time. But after seeing people getting artsy all over social media, I decided to once again try my hand at it. I dug out the old craft paints and haven't looked back. I never thought I would enjoy art so much, but it's become an everyday thing since.

If you're wanting to get into painting, don't think you need to have a fun painter's kit. I don't own a single canvas, so I paint whatever I can find: vinyl records, planters, even my dog's bedroom door.

I spent more time practicing makeup looks.

Makeup is a hobby I picked up when I was around 16 or 17, when I moved into a dorm and was surrounded by girls for the first time. I grew to love all of the incredible things you could do with it, and I just found it fun to put on, in general. Since being stuck in quarantine, I’ve decided that even if I’m not living with my girls, I should keep up the practice.

I tried my hand at digital art.

The complexity of digital art is incredibly understated. I used it here to touch up my Baby Yoda painting to be converted to stickers(which leads me to the next item on the list)!

I opened a Redbubble shop.

Having someone buy your art seemed like such an awesome concept to me, and because I'd spent so much time recently creating art that just laid around, I decided maybe I should find a way to share it! Redbubble is an online shop where creators can upload their digital art to be put on products that people can purchase, such as stickers, pins, socks, phone and iPad cases, shirts, canvas prints, mugs, water bottles, notebooks, and many, MANY more! Given our current situation, they're even making masks now(not for medical use, but everyday public wear)!

I planted a garden and potted some flowers.

My family has always kept up a garden and some flowerbeds, and I figured that if I'm gonna be stuck in quarantine, I should at least find some way to get outside! Plus, I always sell our surplus produce, so it's a good way to make money, too!

I started making TikToks.

Once I spent a while really getting into trying all these new things, I figured, why not share this with others? I, like so many others my age, spend a pretty good deal of time on TikTok, so I decided to give it a try!