Pick up a new hobby with these starter kits
Updated
9Product Reviews
From beer making and wood carving to pottery, painting and even podcasting, we have found some of the best hobby starter kits to help you build up a skill, make something crafty and learn something new all without breaking the bank.
NOTE: Prices are accurate at time of publishing.
Hobbies for the home
Apsung Candle Making Kit
9Product Reviews / Apsung
What included: A 500mL wax melting jug and spoon, eight candle tins, four bags of beeswax to melt, 50 wicks, 56 glue stickers for wick placement and two wick placement bow tie clips.
Hobbies for the foodies
The Good Hurt Fuego by Thoughtfully Extreme Hot Sauce Set
9Product Reviews / Thoughtfully
What's included: Five types of peppers (ghost pepper, arbol, red cayenne, guajillo and chipotle), six seasoning and spice packets, two pairs of disposable gloves, a glass bottle of distilled white vinegar, four reusable glass bottles and lids, a metal funnel, a strainer, a pen with eight label stickers and six hot sauce recipes.
Kilner Sourdough Starter Set and Sourdough Flakes Sourdough Starter
9Product Reviews / Sourdough Flakes / Kilner
What's included in the Sourdough Flakes Starter: 15g of dehydrated vegan sourdough starter flakes with a QR guide to rehydration instructions.
What's included in the Kilner Sourdough Starter Set: Two 350mL jars with lids, one measuring lid, one silicone spatula, two rubber bands, six labels and a recipe book.
Craft A Brew Irish Stout Beer Making Kit, 3.785L
9Product Reviews / iStock
What's included: A Craft Brewing Guidebook, a Dry Irish Stout recipe kit, a glass carboy, a funnel, a thermometer, a transfer tube, a tubing clamp, a raking cane, an airlock and a rubber stopper.
There are also other craft brewing kits available including Oktoberfest Ale, White House Honey Ale, Chocolate Milk Stout and Light Lager.
Fungyand Sushi Making Kit
9Product Reviews / Fungyard
What's included: A bazooka roller, two bamboo sushi mats, a gunkan sushi mould, a temaki roller, a sushi ball mould, a sushi cutting mould, a triangle mould, a nigiri maker, a musubi maker, a sushi knife, an avocado knife, a rice paddle, a rice spreader, an oil brush, five pairs of chopsticks, four animal-themed chopstick holders and two sauce dishes.
Country Trading Co. Fermentation Starter Kit
9Product Reviews / iStock
What's included: A 42-page recipe book, 100 pH test strips, four fermentation weights and four waterless airlock lids. Buyers will need to supply their own mason jars to use this kit.
Hobbies for the creatives
Paint by Numbers Kits
9Product Reviews / iStock
What's included: A 50cm x 40cm canvas, a set of acrylic paints, three paint brushes, a number map to compare for reference, a preview picture, a magnifier and hanging hooks.
Movo iVlogger Vlogging Kit
9Product Reviews / Movo
What's included: A phone clamp, a ball-head mount, a tripod, a shotgun microphone, an LED light, a micro-USB cable, a 3.5mm TRRS cable, a carry case and either a Lightning cable or USB-C cable (depending on which model you buy).
Journey of Something Paper Flower Making Kit
9Product Reviews / Journey of Something
What's included: 10 rolls of crepe paper, petal stencils for seven types of flowers (peonies, daffodils, poppies, orchids, hydrangeas, proteas and starflowers), floral wire, PVA glue, stamens, three 5mL acrylic paints and three paint brushes.
Teexpert Epoxy Resin Kit for Beginners
9Product Reviews / Teexpert
What's included: A 237mL bottle of resin, a 237mL bottle of hardener, six bottles of resin pigments, three sachets of mica powder, 10 disposable gloves, six droppers, six mixing sticks, 10 mixing cups, a pair of tweezers, a jar of gilding flakes and four silicone coaster moulds to create your designs on.
Pott'd Home Air-Dry Clay Pottery Kit
9Product Reviews / Pott'd
What's included: Two 1kg bags of air-drying clay, five wooden sculpting tools, a smoothing sponge, eight acrylic paints, two paint brushes, a tool storage bag and four instruction sheets.
READ MORE: The kitchen gadgets you didn't know you needed in 2024
Movo Smartphone Podcast Recording Microphone Kit
9Product Reviews / Movo
What's included: Two cardioid condenser microphones, two pop filters, two foam windscreens, two shock mounts, two microphone table stands, two XLR to XLR cables, a Lightning connector for iPhones, an audio interface controller and 10 cable fasteners.
READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Apple's newest iPad range
Newurban Elephant Wood Carving and Whittling Kit
9Product Reviews / Newurban
What's included: An elephant-shaped linden blank as a guide, a wood carving knife, four sheets of paper-backed sandpaper, a piece of foam rubber sandpaper, a piece of leather and paste from grinding the knife and a 30g jar of oil wax for adding the finishing touches.
If you're looking for different animals to make, there are other sets for giraffes and rhinos as well as a Christmas tree and Santa set.
Joyeee Wax Seal Stamp Kit
9Product Reviews / Joyeee
What's included: Two colours of melting wax beads, a tea light candle, a brass handle with three replaceable seal stamp heads (tulip, peach blossom and plant), a wax spoon and a metallic pen.
For those who need to relax
Remy Gerega Capri Jigsaw Puzzle
9Product Reviews / Remy Gerega
What's included: A 500-piece jigsaw puzzle of the Bay of Naples in Capri, Italy. It will measure 57cm x 42cm when complete.
There are other puzzle designs available from beautiful locations around the world including Barcelona, Santorini and Positano. You can also buy a puzzle of beautiful Australian landmarks like Shark Bay, Sydney Harbour and Manly Beach.
AUTOWT Beginner Cross Stitching Kit
9Product Reviews / iStock
What's included: Three embroidered cloths with printed designs to follow, three embroidery threads, nine needles, three frames and three guide sheets.
Cat Tarot Card Set
9Product Reviews / iStock
What's included: A 78-card Tarot deck with cartoon imagery of cats and a 108-page guidebook on how to perform a Tarot reading.
There are also more traditional tarot card sets available including The Light Seer's and The Wandering Star as well as pop culture-themed cards like Disney Villains and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
Doraking Scrapbook Kit
9Product Reviews / Doraking
What's included: An A6 notebook, 10 sheets of scrapbook paper, 10 sheets of background paper, eight sticker sheets, five paper photo frames, five cards, 10 coated paper cards, two pockets, 10 folding labels, 31 calendar stickers, three memo pads and a notepad with 20 sheets.
You can buy your scrapbook kit in four colours: Purple, Pink, Orange and Brown.
A Little Spirit Flower Press
9Product Reviews / A Little Spirit
What's included: A flower press and a paper making set.