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Mindful Knitz
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How do I plan to do this?
I will be offering regular Mindful Knit day retreats and community gatherings
I will be bringing knitting into communities and organizations where mental health is at the forefront and offer free yarn, needles and classes to individuals that want to explore the healing benefits of knitting.
I portion of all sales will go to hiring teachers to teach knitting at my retreats and within communities and organizations.
I will be taking donations from individuals that have some yarn safely put away and know they will not be using it and would like to bring it to life to heal others in communities and organizations.
My Knitting Story:
I have been knitting for 36 years, the joy and calmness that knitting has brought me over the years has never changed. It has been my supportive and comforting friend in times when I needed it. It offers me something to do when I am waiting around for an appointment, many times making time of waiting pleasurable. Being a knitter also makes me excited for long car rides and trips where I have to wait in an airport and sit on a plane for hours! What else do you know that can serve so many purposes in your life!
There is a lot of research that states the power that knitting has on our healing as well as lessening the effects of stress and anxiety in our lives.. Us knitters could have told them that centuries ago!
My goal of Mindful Knits is to build a community of Mindful Knitters from newbies, those that are coming back to knitting after years of placing their needles in a safe place and those that have always used knitting as the center of the wellness.
Mindful Knit is in the process of looking to get the support of a top-rated yarn supplier. Stay tuned to find out who those Mindful Knit supplier will be!
I will be offering regular Mindful Knit day retreats and community gatherings
I will be bringing knitting into communities and organizations where mental health is at the forefront and offer free yarn, needles and classes to individuals that want to explore the healing benefits of knitting.
I portion of all sales will go to hiring teachers to teach knitting at my retreats and within communities and organizations.
I will be taking donations from individuals that have some yarn safely put away and know they will not be using it and would like to bring it to life to heal others in communities and organizations.
My Knitting Story:
I have been knitting for 36 years, the joy and calmness that knitting has brought me over the years has never changed. It has been my supportive and comforting friend in times when I needed it. It offers me something to do when I am waiting around for an appointment, many times making time of waiting pleasurable. Being a knitter also makes me excited for long car rides and trips where I have to wait in an airport and sit on a plane for hours! What else do you know that can serve so many purposes in your life!
There is a lot of research that states the power that knitting has on our healing as well as lessening the effects of stress and anxiety in our lives.. Us knitters could have told them that centuries ago!
My goal of Mindful Knits is to build a community of Mindful Knitters from newbies, those that are coming back to knitting after years of placing their needles in a safe place and those that have always used knitting as the center of the wellness.
Mindful Knit is in the process of looking to get the support of a top-rated yarn supplier. Stay tuned to find out who those Mindful Knit supplier will be!
A Quiet Mind: Knitting and Meditation
When you first start knitting, it will feel anything but relaxing or therapeutic. You fingers will fumble clumsily trying to get two sticks to do what you want them to do. Then to your surprise suddenly you won't be thinking about what you are doing your fingers and they knit and purl repeatedly with a few errors. It will be a moment of celebration, but you will be too scared to stop in case you don't know how to get started again. Never in your wildest dreams guessing all the benefits, surprises and friendships knitting would later bring.
One of the most unexpected effects will be your ability to help you focus your thoughts and quiet your mind as you create something. Somehow your daily tension will start to wash away with the rhythmic movement. You might find that you are able to focus on the stitch, when at most other times in your life you might feeling constantly distracted. When you are knitting you can focus your thoughts on something refreshing and simple your project at hand taping into your state of creativity where you are freed to roam and explore.
This state opens you up to letting all the annoyances and worries that pile up each day to slip off and disappear as you make stitch after stitch after stitch. As the needles click, the yarn weave through your hands and the item you are making grows before your eyes, this is a process of creating and releasing.
It is in these moments of tactile respite that new thoughts and plans and actions come to you freeing you from feeling trapped by your never ending to-do list. By allowing a few moments for yourself and your creativity, you can give yourself a much-needed break from the chaos of daily life. This break can be a simple addition to your day.
Much of the meditative qualities of knitting come from its repetition. There is safety in repetition. Dr. Herbert Benson, who has spent his career researching the mind-body connection, says "Benefits can come from a spectrum of repetitive, mind-clearing practices that elicit the so-called relaxation response. It was Benson who termed this the Relaxation Response., which works on the principle of getting your whole body to relax. The response itself is defined as "a physical state of deep rest that changes the physical and emotional responses to stress (e.g., decreases in heart rate, blood pressure, rate of breathing and muscle tension)."
You can take the relaxing benefit of knitting and look at it as a meditation. Knitting can support you to clear your mind, turning your focus to your breathing, deepening your experience.
Knitting continually reminds us to stay focused in the moment. This is knitting as meditation.
No Time to Make a Project you say....then do this Simple Knitting Meditation Practice
Knit a Simple Pattern, not worrying about perfection. Sit down with your knitting and strive to knit and meditate for a certain length of time. Once that time has lapsed, cut the yarn, and rip out the work you just did. This way next time you want to do a knitting meditation , you can knit until the yarn runs out, marking the allotted time your wanted to meditate.
More insights ahead about Knitting as a way to deal with difficult emotions, relief from physical pain, oh and the joys that comes from knitting in community!
When you first start knitting, it will feel anything but relaxing or therapeutic. You fingers will fumble clumsily trying to get two sticks to do what you want them to do. Then to your surprise suddenly you won't be thinking about what you are doing your fingers and they knit and purl repeatedly with a few errors. It will be a moment of celebration, but you will be too scared to stop in case you don't know how to get started again. Never in your wildest dreams guessing all the benefits, surprises and friendships knitting would later bring.
One of the most unexpected effects will be your ability to help you focus your thoughts and quiet your mind as you create something. Somehow your daily tension will start to wash away with the rhythmic movement. You might find that you are able to focus on the stitch, when at most other times in your life you might feeling constantly distracted. When you are knitting you can focus your thoughts on something refreshing and simple your project at hand taping into your state of creativity where you are freed to roam and explore.
This state opens you up to letting all the annoyances and worries that pile up each day to slip off and disappear as you make stitch after stitch after stitch. As the needles click, the yarn weave through your hands and the item you are making grows before your eyes, this is a process of creating and releasing.
It is in these moments of tactile respite that new thoughts and plans and actions come to you freeing you from feeling trapped by your never ending to-do list. By allowing a few moments for yourself and your creativity, you can give yourself a much-needed break from the chaos of daily life. This break can be a simple addition to your day.
Much of the meditative qualities of knitting come from its repetition. There is safety in repetition. Dr. Herbert Benson, who has spent his career researching the mind-body connection, says "Benefits can come from a spectrum of repetitive, mind-clearing practices that elicit the so-called relaxation response. It was Benson who termed this the Relaxation Response., which works on the principle of getting your whole body to relax. The response itself is defined as "a physical state of deep rest that changes the physical and emotional responses to stress (e.g., decreases in heart rate, blood pressure, rate of breathing and muscle tension)."
You can take the relaxing benefit of knitting and look at it as a meditation. Knitting can support you to clear your mind, turning your focus to your breathing, deepening your experience.
Knitting continually reminds us to stay focused in the moment. This is knitting as meditation.
No Time to Make a Project you say....then do this Simple Knitting Meditation Practice
Knit a Simple Pattern, not worrying about perfection. Sit down with your knitting and strive to knit and meditate for a certain length of time. Once that time has lapsed, cut the yarn, and rip out the work you just did. This way next time you want to do a knitting meditation , you can knit until the yarn runs out, marking the allotted time your wanted to meditate.
More insights ahead about Knitting as a way to deal with difficult emotions, relief from physical pain, oh and the joys that comes from knitting in community!