Are you sick of your weekends and evenings being filled with despair and boredom? A new hobby or fun flat activity is a good way to build connections with others and yourself. Take this quiz and find out which Critic-approved activities you and your friends should get amongst. Turns out getting your craft on can cost a pretty penny, so we’ve helpfully included a budget-friendly option for each!
1. Where is your hometown?
- Somewhere cool... so, overseas
- Auckland
- Wellington
- Christchurch
- Dunedin
- The middle of buttfuck nowhere
2. You go to an anything-but-a-cup party. What is your vessel of choice?
- A pot
- A spray bottle
- Water gun
- Watering can
- Petrol can (unused)
- A shoe
3. What is the best time of the day to wake up?
- 7:15 am. You've got to get to the library early for the aesthetic sunrise study timelapse
- Noon. Nothing worth being awake for happens before then
- Whenever the sun comes up. You enjoy being awoken by warm sun rays
- 9:00 am. A very normal time for a very normal person
- 2:12 pm. Everyone knows you should let your body wake up only when it is rested enough
- Sleep? You’ll sleep when you are dead
4. If you had to choose a new degree, what would it be?
- Classics. Percy Jackson made me do it
- Marketing. You have seen the aesthetic marketing life on TikTok and want it
- Finance. Wolf of Wall Street is on repeat in your flat
- Marine Biology. You feel the need to go to St Kilda at least once a week
- Sports and Exercise Science. You signed up for the half marathon and it's your new personality
- Forensic Analytical Science. True crime podcasts are your bread and butter
5. What 2010s song best describes your Wednesday night?
- ‘Rolling in the Deep’ by Adele
- ‘Party Rock Anthem’ by LMFAO
- ‘Wake Me Up’ by Avicii
- ‘Stressed Out’ by Twenty One Pilots
- ‘Young, Dumb and Broke’ by Khalid
- ‘Sucker’ by the Jonas Brothers
6. What upcoming Dunedin event are you the most excited for?
- Southern Sounds
- Law Ball
- Mid-semester break. You just want to leave Dunedin
- Shrek Rave
- Dunedin Marathon
- Student poker game
7. What is the best way to quickly get to the front of the Catacombs’ line?
- Just cutting to the front and inevitably being sent to the back by the bouncer
- “Trust bro, I know the DJ”
- Saying, “Sorry, my friend’s in a K-hole inside”
- Chatting up the seccy
- Slipping through the crowd whispering “sorry, sorry, sorry”
- Catacombs? Nah, Pequeño is your jam – and you wait in line, like an adult
8. What hall did you live in?
- Unicol, with your fellow basic bitches and breathas
- Carrington
- One of the irrelevant ones. You had fun, but have to defend your choice in every conversation (Salmond probs)
- Hayward
- Selwyn
- Arana
9. What is the best sauce to put on the meals that your only-child flatmate cooks?
- Wattie’s tomato sauce
- Nando's Peri Peri sauce
- DIY Raising Canes
- Kewpie mayo
- BBQ sauce
- You feed it to the metaphorical dog (the rubbish bin) and eat seven slices of toast instead
10. What is the best room decor?
- Bongs as vases
- Used condoms (yummy)
- Road cones
- Critic centrefold posters
- A falling-apart Temu rug
- Road sign with your last name
Mostly A’s – Pottery
Boujee: Introduction to Ceramics Night Class
Price: From $240
Where & When: Tuesdays at 6pm from 16 September – 8 November, at the Dunedin School of Art
Description: These classes cater to people of all skill levels, from complete noobs to the Picassos of bong-sculpting. The course covers a variety of techniques, including hand-building, wheel throwing, glaze mixing and application, and basic firing methods – so you’re sure to make the coolest ashtray ever to exist.
Good idea to be drunk? This seems like something you could put on your CV, so probably not
Budget: Airdry Clay kit
Price: $12
Where & When: From Kmart – anywhere, any time
Description: No kiln, no problem! This is a great flat activity to bond over, but at least one of you will inevitably end up with a graphic, veiny, life-sized dick-shaped incense holder. The clay can take a while to dry, but during this you can argue about who does the most in the flat (spoiler alert: it’s not you).
Good idea to be drunk? Excellent idea. The drunker you are, the sexier your sculpture will be
Mostly B’s – Paint 'n Sip
Boujee: The Dish Paint ‘n Sip night
Price: $42
Where & When: 6:30 pm, Thursday 5 September, The Dish
Description: With their themed nights, The Dish’s Paint ‘n Sip nights are sure to bring a smile to your mum's face when you forget about buying her a Christmas present and end up pulling this gorgeous (?) piece of art out of the closet.
Good idea to be drunk? Yes, I think that's the whole point
Budget: Cleanskin Sauvignon Blanc, Warehouse art paint, and paper stolen from Uni printers
Where & When: Living room, probably on a Wednesday evening for Pint Night pres
Price: Minimum $7.75 if you shop at PAK’nSAVE
Description: Whether you’re painting a bowl of fruit or mildly deformed portraits of your friends, this is sure to end with some sick new flat decor. With your lounge kitted out in art that would make Warhol gasp, your landlord is sure to overlook the burn marks on the carpet and the weird musty smell.
Good idea to be drunk? “The drunker, the better,” as the artists say
Mostly C’s – Printmaking
Boujee: Printmaking Class
Price: $240
Where & When: Wednesday morning or evening, 16th September – 8th November, Dunedin School of Art
Description: If posters from This N That aren’t cutting it, it's time to upgrade by making your own. Whether you are just looking to re-decorate or to even upskill yourself, you can’t go wrong with a little creative time.
Good idea to be drunk? If you’re drunk on a Wednesday morning, you have a problem
Budget: Grabbing your mate's dirty white shirt and finger painting on it
Price: Free
Where & When: Living room of the flat while they are away
Description: When your flatmates leave their washing out for days on end, put their clothes to good use! Possession is nine-twelfths of the law, after all. Either finger painting or potato stamps are a great way to get your vision down onto the material.
Good idea to be drunk? It’ll give you an excuse if it causes a problem – drunk mistakes and all that
Mostly D’s – Jewellery-making
Boujee: Otago Polytechnic Jewellery classes
Price: $240 (short course)
Where & When: Term 4 intakes start September 16th, Wednesday morning class for beginners at 10 am – 12 pm
Description: Spend your morning/evenings making jewellery for your SO <3 It’s a nice, personal touch, and if you ever break up it will give you something to remember your varsity romance by.
Good idea to be drunk? Uh not really, the side-eyes wouldn’t be worth it
Budget: Make It Real jewellery kit
Price: $14
Where & When: The Warehouse, hungover and feeling crafty
Description: Post-flat meeting, sit your flatties down for some DIY Swiftie friendship bracelet-making. This may make or break the flat, depending on how rough the meeting was (do your dishes, godammit), but just shake it off!
Good idea to be drunk? With alcohol, it would make a mess. Without, it could be super wholesome. Pick your player, ig
Mostly E’s - Photography
Boujee: Otago Wildlife Photography Masterclass
Price: $3,995
Where & When: Four-day photography masterclass, October 19 - 22nd
Description: Spend four days with experienced photographers around the Otago Peninsula taking photos of Dunedin wildlife (animals, not students) including penguins, albatross and seals. This is a career path kind of situation, and decisions that big should not be based on the answers of a silly little quiz in Critic.
Good idea to be drunk? Lowkey is a waste of money if you do. Also being drunk for four days straight is reserved for Flo, Ori, Re-Ori and when the Stags finally beat Otago
Budget: Disposable film camera from Photo Warehouse
Price: About $40.90
Where & When: Go to the Botans or the Octagon on a Saturday night and take pics of the native flora and fauna
Description: Grab the cheapest disposable film camera and bring it on a night on the town prowl. Your mate is puking on the seesaws on George St? Snap a pic – maybe even a follow-up the next day during a hungover feed. Bonus points if you remember the photos!
Good idea to be drunk? It will make your photos more artsy and whimsical (blurry and unhinged)
Mostly F’s - Sewing
Boujee: Stitch Kitchen beginners wardrobe basic class
Price: $120
Where & When: Stitch Kitchen, 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm, August 28th – September 11th
Description: Do you want to own a pair of pants which you can tell everyone that you made yourself? Of course you do. Stitch Kitchen has lots of sewing classes, this term's project being PJ pants (that can probably be worn to the library).
Good idea to be drunk? Nah, but a wine to unwind would be fitting
Budget: Te Oraka Sip & Sew
Price: $5
Where & When: Throughout the semester at Te Oraka. Keep an eye on their socials!
Description: Are your clothes getting lots of wear and tear? Close those tabs with $600 carts on them, head to Te Oraka, and repair the clothes you already have! Then you can buy more alcohol #girlmath.
Good idea to be drunk? If you want your clothes to have more holes than you came with: yes! (The sip means coffee, pisshead)