Updated 2026. My mother passed at age 97 (2024) RIP. I will be updating this site so I can help retirees again. Write to me!

Meditation/Being Mindful: Knit, Crochet, Painting etc.

by Wendy, Retirement Enthusiast

Found on Facebook & just HAD to add this!

Found on Facebook & just HAD to add this!

‘Medknitation’ aims to get the overstimulated to turn off their phones and achieve flow by stitching; ‘just try to find your rhythm’... says the Wall Street Journal.

I was pretty surprised and yet it makes perfect sense. Any hobby that is the "no brainer" type... allows your brain to drift off, to dream, to heal itself with simple thoughts.

Google had groups of employees spend time learning to knit. they were asked to shut down their cell phones and knit for 20 minutes. It wasn't about perfect knitting either, it was more about getting away from the distractions of our too busy world to allow the mind to meditate on doing these small stitches until it became brainless -- then drifting away.

The MOST DIFFICULT part of meditation is Staying Still. Quietness, Stillness, then slowing down the hectic brain so it functions at it's best later. It is NOT Easy!

However, as I read this article, I realized how much crocheting would help me here. I only crocheted once in my life, first married, and my new mother-in-law taught me. I made an afghan with small squares bordered in black, so the borders made it look more cohesive since I used way too many colors for the rest of the blocks!

Just a thought for the rest of you -- looking to calm your mind, consider a new hobby where you can dabble without much thought.

---

Source: Wall Street Journal: In Mindful Knitting, Its about the Journey, Not the Scarf
Note: You can Google the article title, you'll find it on their site, but need to subscribe or login to read it. Too often articles are renamed, removed or deleted from site and the links are broken on my site... thus, no link, no break.


Comments for Meditation/Being Mindful: Knit, Crochet, Painting etc.

Click here to add your own comments

knitting
by: Bonney Strong

I knit, crochet, do counted cross stitch and it is all relaxing to me. My husband says "how can you do that, it would drive me nuts." I have to keep my hands busy. I can't just sit. Reading is also good for relaxing.
Retirement Porm
by: Guinn

Yes, I am a simple poemer...
I just gave myself that name: POEMER.

I'm going to try to write a poem about Retirement right now:

I hated it
I felt so bad
No class to teach
Made me so sad
But something clicked
Inside my head
"Step up" it said
And do not dread
You've earned this time
There's much to do
So girl, get started
It's a whole new you!!!

Happy Retirement Friends.....Guinn
Mindful activities
by: Laura in Vermont

Loved your post here!

I've learned to do a lot of things in the last 30 years, mostly from books. To do this you have to immerse yourself in the subject quite a bit, no time for negative thoughts!

My go-to relaxing activities are hand quilting, knitting, and spinning. All have a rhythm and want some attention, but not a lot. You can easily get into a meditative state while your muscles do the activity without much thought.

And the best part about these skills is that they don't take "talent," just a will to learn. And all of them are on YouTube, if you are a visual learner.
So many years...
by: Elizabeth, West Virginia

My Mother taught me to knit during WWII while my Dad was overseas, we knitted socks for him to wear when he returned home. It helped me feel close to him and calm my fears.

When my husband served, I knitted for our troops, feeling closer to him and doing my small bit at home. Hats and slippers to troops living in tents in Afghanistan. No, not looking for kudos, just trying to illustrate now keeping your hands busy while the brain rests can benefit you in time of stress.

Retired and slower on my feet, I have joined several knitting groups, making new friends while still knitting for charity. Again trying to keep me in touch with a world I no longer, sometimes, do not understand or care for..
Mindfulness
by: Nancy

Very good suggestions. My hobby is quilting. There is a satisfaction of finishing a quilt and seeing how it looks; however, that's not all. There is nothing more satisfying to me than seeing the stitch from the sewing machine in the fabric.

I watch videos on YouTube or listen to audio books. I find that whatever I'm watching is woven in with whatever I'm making.

In other words, I go to my happy place and just focus.

Wendy: Perfect!

Click here to add your own comments

Join in and write your own page! It's easy to do. How? Simply click here to return to Meditation.


Senior Voices - Experience retirement living through the voices of our readers!