Hobbies & interests

Whatever your hobbies or interests, we have a huge range of resources – both online and in our libraries – to help you make the most of them! If you're looking for a new hobby, want to take up a craft or are thinking about a DIY project, look no further for the inspiration you need.

Try some of great online resources now:

Hobbies and Crafts Reference Center

Trying to find a new hobby? Use this resource to develop your hobbies. It includes detailed "how-to" instructions and creative ideas for every hobby-enthusiast. There's home and garden, model building, arts and crafts, needlecraft and textiles, and more.

LinkedIn Learning

Why not learn a new skill from home? Choose from thousands of online courses to learn in-demand skills, including:

• software, web design
• photography, film making and music producing
• game design, 3D animation, social media
• job search tools.

Mango Languages

Are you sitting at home dreaming of your next overseas trip? Why not learn the language of your dream destination with Mango Languages. Choose from more than 70 languages including Spanish, French, Italian, Mandarin and even Pirate!

Explore our eLibrary now to discover more resources to supercharge your hobby. This includes our extensive range of hobby magazines to download to your device free to keep!

Libraries have always been the best place to find out more about a topic you're interested in, or research a project. Our librarians' aim is to find and provide the best range of information you can trust, on an enormous range of subjects.

Our eLibrary offers a huge range of resources to help you explore your interest.

Try the resources below as a starting point

Reference resources

Explore our online reference resources and websites, many available exclusively to library members. Subject areas include history and lifestyle, science and nature, and business and law.

Learning and tutorials

Improve your knowledge, develop a skill or learn a new one. Our eLibrary includes online courses, computer skills learning and lots of resources to help you get more from your interest.

Our eLibrary also offers thousands of newspapers and magazines to download to your device and a huge range of ebooks and eAudiobooks to borrow, anytime, anywhere.

Our collection contains many special interest resources. These include:

• an extensive range of musical scores for vocals, piano, guitar and a variety of other instruments
• an adult literacy collection designed to assist customers develop their literacy skills
• around 10,000 titles in Chinese, Japanese and Italian languages. More community languages are supplied on loan from the State Library of Queensland
• large collection of graphic novels
• our Indigenous Collection, at Southport Library, showcases indigenous cultural heritage. Its emphasis is on the people, culture and history of local language groups, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders and Australian South Sea Islanders.
• our Surfing Collection, at Coolangatta Library, reflects the significance of the southern Gold Coast in world surfing. It showcases the surfing lifestyle which is integral to the Gold Coast way of life. Resources include surfing history, lifestyle, culture and personalities.
• our LGBT Collection, at Southport Library, offers a range of resources for our LGBTQIA customers. The collection includes books, magazines, DVDs and online resources.