Knitting in the News: Help for Dementia Patients and Knitting is Good for You

I love stories about how people use knitting to help others, and thankfully there are lots of ways that we can use our needles for good. The staff and patients of Southmead Hospital in the UK (as well as other volunteers) have been busy making “twiddlemuffs,” knit muffs that feature a variety of textures, buttons, knit flowers and little toys, which are used by dementia patients to keep their hands warm and busy.

It’s frustrating for patients who have been active (and maybe even crafters themselves) to not be able to see or concentrate long enough to do activities they used to enjoy, and these knit objects give them something to focus on, as well as tactile and mental stimulation.

The hospital had been the site of a knitting program, and joined forces with a local knitting group to provide after-work knitting times for staff and yarn for the project.

You can find a pattern on Ravelry if you want to get a closer look.

There have been untold numbers of stories about the health benefits of knitting, and the latest one making the rounds on the Internet comes from Yahoo! Makers and covers a study at Northern Arizona University looking at Textile Therapy, or how working with needles and yarn — or a needle and thread, for that matter — provides mental health benefits.

Clinical psychologist Ann Futterman-Collier studied 60 women with varying levels of stress and had them either write, craft or meditate and keep track of their mood during the activity. People who made something with their hands showed the greatest “mood repair” including decreased negative feelings and less inflammatory response in the face of stressors. Yet another reason to keep your needles close at all times!

[Photo from the Yate and Sodbury News.]

Next Pattern:

Why should the fireplace get all the fun? Instead of knitting stockings this year, why not whip up a pair of Christmas themed socks? These Christmas sock knitting patterns are lots of fun to make and you can wear them to holiday gatherings for years to come.

For our friends in the southern part of the world, there are the Christmas in July socks from the Kiwi Lodge – Kylie (Ravelry link). These shorty socks are covered in Christmas trees and have bright pink heels and toes for a tropical feel. There’s also an option to make a longer sock if you celebrate somewhere it’s colder.

Twin Stitches Designs (Ravelry) has a fun pattern with mix and match colorwork motifs you can use to build your own cozy Christmas socks. From the sample socks I see Christmas puddings, trucks hauling trees, Santa belts, ornaments and a couple of different borders. There may be more patterns included but the listing doesn’t say. Make a pair that matches or use different motifs on each foot for extra holiday cheer.

If you want to stick to Christmas puddings on your holiday socks, check out this cute pattern from Stone Knits. These lovely socks feature a band of puddings around the leg and a bit of holly by the toes.

These vintage holiday light socks from Grey Owl Knits by Sarah are classic looking and lots of fun at the same time. I love this color combination but of course you can make your lights and stripes whatever colors you like or have on hand. They’re worked using stranded knitting.

And if you’d like even more of a mix of patterns for your socks, try Barbara Ceglédi’s Christmas Chaos socks, a free pattern on Ravelry. The pattern includes 25 little motifs you can choose from, ranging from snowflakes and Christmas trees to elf hats, reindeer and hearts.

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