'Untact Life' is the Trend... Unique Hobbies Popular Among Homebodies

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Hyewon] The social distancing campaign due to the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) has made the 'untact life' trend dominant. Accordingly, the number of people looking for video content or hobbies to watch indoors on TV, smartphones, etc., is increasing.

According to a consumer behavior survey released by the Korea Broadcast Advertising Corporation (KOBACO) on the 10th, 75% of 1,000 respondents reported refraining from outdoor activities due to COVID-19.

As the so-called 'Jipkokjok' (homebodies) increase, more consumers are making food and beverages at home. For example, despite the recipe for 'Dalgona coffee' requiring stirring more than 400 times, it has gained popularity with over 95,000 hashtags on the social networking service (SNS) Instagram (as of the 26th). According to the online shopping mall Gmarket, orders for milk frothers surged by 164% in the recent month (from the 21st of last month to the 22nd of this month) compared to the same period last year.

Recipes such as souffle rolled omelets, which require stirring more than 1,000 times, and ice cream made by kneading 1,000 times have also appeared. Riding this wave of popularity, coffee specialty stores are continuously launching related new menu items.

Online games and hobby classes that can be enjoyed at home are also gaining popularity.

The 'Ideal Type Making' that became popular enough to appear on real-time search terms on portal sites on the 16th can be experienced on the Japanese PICREW site. Users can select hairstyles, eyes, nose, mouth, and other facial features to create their desired face or ideal type, and even set detailed styles such as eye color and glasses.

This reflects a substitute desire to decorate characters online as mask-wearing becomes routine and the need for color makeup decreases. It also allows inference of the facial features preferred by many.

Oh Changhyun, director of Banobagi Plastic Surgery Clinic, said, "Although this is a phenomenon gaining temporary attention as a way to kill time, it is possible to infer the preferred facial types of people through it," adding, "It reflects various elements such as the proportion of youthful appearance, clear eyes, and bright impressions that many people like."

According to the online hobby class service 'Class 101,' the field with the largest increase in sales after the COVID-19 outbreak is DIY product-making lectures where participants make miniatures or props themselves. These lectures showed a sales increase rate of about 290% compared to before the COVID-19 spread.

Various online psychological tests are also gaining popularity. The ‘My University Test,’ which helps find the university and department that suits oneself, appeared as a real-time search term on portal sites. In addition, various formats of psychological tests such as ‘Planting My Own Flower’ and ‘Ponpon’ have been shared on SNS, attracting attention.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.