Flash back to a 10 year old me, sitting with my grandma as she put a pair of aluminum size US 10 knitting needles in my hand and a ball of yarn. Like Mr. Miyagi, she taught me to cast on, cast off, cast on, cast off...with a bit of knitting and purling in between. I created my first scarf that summer and, as full of random holes and imperfections as it was, I was incredibly proud and she made me feel like it was the most dazzling scarf she had ever seen.
Zip through to the present day and I forgot the art of knitting my grandma had taught me. School, daily stress and work throughout my life kept me busy with other things and I had left my childhood hobby in the past. Then the pandemic struck and I was able to turn to that long forgotten craft that my grandmother had shown me years ago.
I turned to Youtube to digest all the information I could about knitting and discovered a true passion for it that I didn’t expect. I thought it would just turn into an occasional hobby but it has been so much more than that. It has allowed me to believe in myself by giving me the ability to create any design and vision in my head and make it with my hands into a reality. It helps relieve my anxiety with its calm soothing motions that now feel familiar and comforting to me. It reduces my stress by giving me a way to stay present and focused on the task at hand.
Every part of the knitting journey is exciting to me, from finding the right project to the perfect yarn, the cathartic clinking of my needles as I knit away, to the sound of the scissors snipping the tail end of my project to signal it is completed. That’s the final step in the creation journey where I can sit back and say “I’ve created something from nothing, I’ve made this!”
Knitting hasn’t only given me something to do to cope with stress, anxiety and boredom. It has also allowed me to connect with others in a way I wouldn’t have expected. I got married last year and due to flying restrictions I haven’t been able to meet my mother-in-law in person yet. As a fellow knitter, this hobby has given us the ability to form a connection and bond over a common interest.
I’ve also been able to step out of my shell and find an incredibly kind and welcoming community of knitters on social media who are quick to share tips and kind words, share in the ‘ripping your work back’ frustrations, and who are always supportive of your ideas and creations. It's truly an extraordinarily positive community and having that support system can be so important for anyone struggling with anxiety, depression or stress. It encourages you to keep on persevering and stick to your hobby because there's someone out there to appreciate it.
I now understand the phrase ‘craft as therapy’ because that's exactly what knitting has become for me.
Fast forward to the future and how I envision knitting. It's completely changed my life and I know this hobby is here to stay this time around. It’s given me the courage to attempt designing patterns from scratch and put out something new and entirely my own out into the world. The power of creativity this hobby inspires is incredible and I hope to share my newfound passion with others.
I want to help others find peace and joy with craft as therapy, teach others how to knit and empower them to create their own items, and to eliminate the stigma that knitting is only for grandmas. I hope to bring happiness to people’s faces when they create my designs and feel confident wearing them out and getting to say “This ol’ thing? Oh, I made this with my own two hands.”
I want to share this hobby and spread the bliss it's brought me because being able to create and design something for yourself gives you a wholesome feeling that few other things can. In a constantly evolving world where technology is front and center and there are so many distractions, knitting allows you to take a step back. You can slow down and lose yourself entirely in the combinations of knits and purls. It allows you to achieve a conscious meditative state and help you stay present and mindful.
There's a perfect knit for everyone and there’s a world of inspiration out there!
About the Creator
Maryim Alfaro
A project manager turned knitter.
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