Kristine, host of the ‘Learn to Knit’ workshop at the Retreat, writes,
Good yarn is something New Zealand is known for – both for the massive amount of sheep and the classic kiwi term for a good chat. I learned the magic of good yarn when I started knitting 7 years ago. In the midst of a down-trending mental health crisis, I looked up into my bedroom closet and spotted an old box of yarn and knitting needles.
It was a relic from one of the many times my grandmother had tried to teach and inspire me years prior.
I didn’t know what to do with myself, my life, or the growing existential dread, but I decided I could probably learn how to knit. I pulled out a santa-red yarn and a set of needles, brought up an online tutorial, and I started.
The first thing I knit was just that: a thing I knit. It was full of holes and was wonky-shaped (a bookmark as many first projects have been lovingly called in the retreat workshops), but it unknowingly introduced me to a mental health tool that would slowly help heal and change my life.
Over the last year, introducing the Learn to Knit workshop at the retreat has led to countless wholesome yarns. I wasn’t anticipating how much knitting would be a thread through peoples’ lives, how many people connected to their families and ancestors through picking up some yarn and a pair of needles again. Other brave beginners encountered the often distressing act of learning a new skill as an adult, going through the journey of feeling like a failure to realising they’ve successfully knit their first row. Not everyone connected with it, some surrendering their needles with a smile on their face for having tried, others joking that their attempts contributed to rather than helped their mental health.
Every single guest’s journey was different, with some even being disappointed the better they got at it, preferring the individuality of their misshapen, hole-ridden original to their gradually improving copies.
At times I didn’t know how to help when people got triggered by struggling to learn a new skill, but I always tried to bring people back to three central knitting philosophies that has made it so transformational in my own life:
- Knitting is a journey, not a destination
- Every single project is created one stitch at a time
- Unravelling is always an option
These philosophies transformed the workshop from an intimidating task that must be done in a certain way, to a process and space we could all enjoy.
It turns out, the workshops haven’t really been about the yarn, but how much the activity brings people together to hold space for something new to connect with. Much like the knitting journey, the rows we knit were simply a happy outcome to an otherwise much more important process.
Seven years on, I still knit almost every day and it’s my go to activity when I need to rest or find my centre again. I feel so lucky to have been able to share my love of knitting with so many guests that have come through our gates—sharing the magic of some good yarn and starting on a new knitting journey together, one stitch at a time.