Go to a delicious, nutritious, and cheap 'healing' workshop

At 9am on a weekend morning, about 30 young people were excited at a small-scale bonsai decoration and planting workshop in District 1 (HCMC). On the table were white pots, substrates, paints, bonsai plants… beautifully arranged.

Students learn to knit in Linh Dan and Khanh Ha's workshop to give to children in the highlands - Photo: N.SANG

Nowadays, there are many workshops that teach young people how to make handicrafts, decorate, draw pictures... With costs ranging from only a few tens to a few hundred thousand VND/session and allowing them to take home the products, this is a way for young people to relieve stress and "heal" better than staying at home surfing the phone.

Let's plant a pot of plants

Spreading her colored fingers, wearing an apron around her neck, looking excited, Nguyen Phuong Thu (27 years old, office worker, living in District 3) shared: "I went here with my friend. It's the weekend so I wanted to do something relaxing and useful instead of lying at home lazily watching TikTok."

Having said that, Thu continued to carefully hold the thin brush and paint colorful flowers on the outside of the pot. When it came to planting, she placed the substrate at the bottom of the pot and used a wooden spoon to scoop in the nutritious "soil". She planted three small plants including silver dollar, ivy, and velvet.

The whole thing lasted for more than an hour, but for Thu and the young people, this really brought freshness and a sense of relaxation. Hong Tham (26 years old, Thu's friend) said: "I have participated in some workshops before, making scented candles, drawing pictures according to models... The cost was a few hundred thousand VND but I really enjoyed it. Looking at such pretty, lovely things made the stress of the week disappear."

For this workshop, the organizer 9X Garden provides necessary items for participants. After completion, participants are given a paper bag to carry the potted plants home. The process of prioritizing the use of environmentally friendly materials is considered a plus point in the hearts of young people who love a green lifestyle.

In addition to the decoration and planting workshops, some places also organize terrarium decoration workshops. This is a miniature ecosystem in a glass jar, helping participants explore the vivid miniature world, creating their own world including small plants, moss, pebbles, water... The workshop will guide young people about the origin, classification, care and preservation with a cost of 400,000 VND/person.

Young people decorate and plant small pots of plants - Photo: Y.TR.

Affordable workshops, attentive service

On Sunday, at the "Weekend Crafting" workshop on making cards and gift bags organized by 2Hi Closet in Phu Nhuan district, young people were excited to make their own products.

This is a free workshop, it only takes 1-2 hours to have a product and is suitable for beginners in making handicrafts. If young people bring the product home, they will have to pay a fee, on average 10,000 - 115,000 VND depending on the topic.

"We prioritize using available, recycled, environmentally friendly materials such as fabric, paper... in the spirit of reducing costs for participants," said a representative of the unit.

This shop also has a "handmade" type, suitable for those who have a clear product goal or make a large quantity, want to have their own space or go with a group of friends. Ticket price is 180,000 VND/person for 3 hours, unlimited products to take home.

Nowadays, young people in urban areas often have many workshops to choose from. For handicrafts, they often choose workshops on flower making, knitting, baking, gardening, perfume making, soap making, etc.

One of the purposes of the organization, as introduced by a unit: "How have you been lately? Deadline makes you forget to eat, forget to sleep, forget about yourself.

Motivation at work, relationships are no longer like the first days... You need a place to find peace and tranquility. Or simply you want to make a meaningful gift for someone?".

Mr. Tran Duc Lap, founder of 9X Garden, said that this place has been holding workshops since 2016 when this trend was only popular in Europe, Hong Kong and Thailand. He shared: "In recent years, people who love green plants tend to increase their experiences rather than buy finished products, so workshop services have also opened up rapidly.

This is an opportunity for us to share with customers knowledge about how to grow and care for indoor plants in the most systematic and effective way."

He said his unit is promoting the organization of workshops. For customers who participate directly, the unit will have flexible time slots during the day for registration. There are many ages participating but the majority are young people and office workers.

Expanding customer base to include all ages and professions

The trend of organizing for groups, teams, companies… is the business model that workshop units aim for.

A representative of 2Hi Closet said that in addition to organizing for individual customers, the unit also has "mobile workshops" according to orders from groups, schools, and businesses. If customers request, the store can come to serve on-site.

According to Mr. Duc Lap, 9X Garden has workshops for businesses and individual customers or small groups. Business customers will be organized according to the event time that the customer gives.

The duration and content of the program prioritize direct experience activities instead of giving a complete gift. "Everyone has time to do the workshop together. This will help increase the cohesion, team spirit of employees or improve the service experience for customers of that business," he shared.

Workshop business models like this are being welcomed by many people, especially young people. Therefore, many units are trying to create new and more diverse types. Each place will have products from simple to high-end and more difficult techniques. The cost ranges from a few hundred thousand to millions of VND depending on the product to be made.

According to Mr. Duc Lap, recently in big cities like Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi and many other provinces, workshop activities are expanding with many types.

This is a trend for young people who love DIY activities or want to find a relaxing space. "We hope that these types of activities will be more popular and develop," he said.

Spread the spirit of giving

In addition to the relaxing effect, there are now a number of workshops for charitable purposes.

After school hours, two sisters Truong Bao Linh Dan (11th grade student) and Truong Bao Khanh Ha (8th grade student, living in Binh Thanh district) organize free crochet instruction for children in the highlands.

Taught crochet by their grandmother, the two sisters have been conducting workshops since March 2024. Participants are lent tools, and at the end of the session can take the products home or donate them to children in the highlands.

Khanh Ha said: "When the cold season comes, children in the highlands do not have warm clothes, gloves, or hats and will be freezing, so we often do charity work and give away things to keep people warm."

Good way to reduce internet addiction

According to Master of Psychology Nguyen Thi Tam - Center for Applied Psychology Training Hon Viet, drawing, immersing oneself in nature, planting bonsai, making handicrafts... have a psychological therapeutic effect.

Young people who are stressed and tense to the point of having difficulty concentrating can participate in these activities to get out and focus. This also helps them express their emotions better.

For young office workers who often sit within four walls with repetitive, boring or overly stressful work, the above activities have a relaxing and stress-relieving effect.

When a person regularly performs an activity such as playing games or surfing social networks, it will gradually become dependent on behavior and attention. If you want to limit it, young people can replace it with another more attractive activity such as taking care of bonsai, drawing, decorating, etc. to help gradually eliminate the old habit of behavioral dependence.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/di-workshop-chua-lanh-ngon-bo-re-20250102093429466.htm