The Biggest DIY Projects & Hobbies In 2026, According To Michaels' Creativity Trend Report

Hobbies not only have a lot of health benefits, but they can also be used to refresh and personalize your home. To celebrate National Craft Month, Michaels created a report of hobbies that have grown in popularity over the last year. This not only revealed which ones were the most popular, but also how the changing demands showed a shift in society as a whole. According to this 2026 report, people are trying more and more hobbies with multiple uses, such as painting, embroidery, sewing, and patchwork. Like a lot of current aspects of home design, there seems to be a heavy focus on doing things yourself, upcycling, and adding personality to a home.

These hobbies not only improve your space, but help build a community as well. If you're looking for an item to gift someone, look at these DIY projects. Not only are many of them able to be personalized or unique, but they are generally fairly cheap, too. Instead of spending a lot of money on someone, people are looking to spend more time and effort on those they care about. Additionally, most of these projects can be done in a group, so you can bond with partners or friends. Then, at the end, you will have an item in your home that brings back memories every time you see it. With so many benefits, it's easy to see why certain hobbies are trending.

Do you have a stack of documents and small trinkets lying around that provide a lot of memories, but you don't quite know how to sort them? Junk journaling is a growing hobby that allows you to keep bits of your memories and important items, and helps you to stay more organized. The best part is that you just need a journal, glue, and papers and documents you have lying around to get started. Michaels is creating all-in-one junk journaling kits for ease as well, if you feel overwhelmed with a new hobby.

A vision board is a conglomeration of notes, ideas, samples, pictures, and other items to help keep you focused or motivated on a goal. This method has been around for a while, on websites like Pinterest, to give people ideas of what they want for weddings or their home renovations. Recently, though, it has grown in popularity by about 61%, according to Michaels' creativity report. Vision boards are not only useful, but can create one-of-a-kind art pieces for your home as well, making a main statement piece for your office or other room.

Diamond art is a growing art trend focused on creating an image using small diamonds. It's a project that ends with a stunning and shiny piece of art you can hang up in your home. There are so many options and sizes, with some even working as an innovative way to bring wall art into your kitchen. The most basic form of this hobby involves adding diamonds to things like coasters or canvases, but you can also add them to other elements throughout your home, such as book covers or jewelry boxes. 

Another big art hobby that has grown in popularity over the last year is painting kits. According to Michaels, this demand has increased by an impressive 86%. While these were usually made for children, many of the new versions allow you to have fully finished and professional-looking pieces you'll be proud to display in your home. If you want something a little more personal, you can also look up painting guides online. These are similar to those paint and drink places, but that can be done in your home for cheaper with friends and family. 

A couple of needles or hooks and yarn can take you far, which is why these hobbies are starting to come back — with an increase in demand by nearly 40%. The nice thing about knitting and crocheting is that you don't have to only make decorative pieces. You can easily create blankets, clothes, covers for your furniture, and even toys. If you're not sure how to start, these DIY sunflower crochet curtain tiebacks are perfect for beginners to try and add a bright cheeriness to your home. 

If you like yarn, but don't really want to get into knitting and crocheting, there are other trending projects involving this material as well. For example, Michaels has a Latch It collection, which involves using hooks, bits of yarn, and a grid to make beautiful art pieces that can be hung on a wall, used as a rug, or even turned into a pillow. There are plenty of kits available to help you get exactly what you want without too much trial and error until you get the hang of it and make your own. 

Fabric sales are another category that has absolutely blown up over the last year. There are so many ways to use sewing skills to improve your home, including fixing up vintage pieces that might have a tear or need some upgrades. You can also create your own decorations for your home, including pillows, blankets, curtains, and table runners. You can even design adorable organizers for your cords or little baskets to hold all the items in your drawer. With handmade maximalist and cutesy decor being popular, sewing skills are sure to keep soaring.

Patches are another popular item, to the point that there is a patch bar coming to Michael's stores around the country. Usually, patches are added to bags, jackets, and other clothes. However, if you want to add a little more personality to a rather plain blanket or pillow, there's no reason you can't add patches. Some people even hang them on a cork or fabric board to create an art piece that can be ever-changing and fully customizable. For a bolder choice, fabric lamp covers and chairs can also hold patches quite well. 

Placed into a category Michaels calls "Grandmacore 2.0," once old-fashioned hobbies like needlepoint and embroidery are coming back as people look for slower activities to pass the time. A once-popular home decor item that may be making a huge comeback is needlepoint cushions. However, there are other ways to use this hobby in your home design by adding subtle details to curtains and table runners, or making bold tapestries. You can also personalize items with monograms, make delicate but detailed napkins, or even take your boring grocery bag up a notch. 

Another fun and practical hobby is candle-making. Not only do you get to personalize your scents, but you can choose a more decorative option if you want, with fun shapes, colors, or additions. There are kits that include all the items you need for basic ones, including the equipment, so they can be a good initial investment. If you don't feel like going all out and making your own, you can also maximize the mood of your candles with decorative touches like painting the glass jar or decorating around it.

While you can buy faux flowers, you can also make your own. There are many ways to do this, but one that's trending right now involves using colorful pipe cleaners. These are easy and cheap to make, and allow you to fill your home with something bright without needing to swap out the flowers in your vase constantly. Thankfully, because they are so popular, there are lots of tutorials and guides online, including the clever tip that makes your DIY pipe cleaner flowers look so much more realistic. 

Mosaic kits are another category at Michael's that has increased in popularity by exponential numbers (nearly 250%). They help you create beautiful art out of pre-cut materials like glass or ceramic and a few other items, giving you a good start into the hobby. However, you don't have to go and buy glass pieces either. You can create a unique statement decor piece from broken coffee mugs, for example, allowing you to upcycle items in your home that would otherwise get tossed or have sentimental value while also making a stunning art piece.