Knitting appears to be a pastime that is having a bit of a resurgence recently. I have always loved to knit, there is something very therapeutic about the clack of the needles and of being able to create beautiful items from a simple ball of wool. For some time, knitting was considered to be a pastime solely enjoyed by older women however many modern designers are returning to this craft and producing stunning pieces that have put knitting back of map. I knew if I waited long enough it would be fashionable again.
Here at Westhill we have an amazing lifestyle schedule devised by both residents and the team. Our suggestions are never ignored, and every effort is made to accommodate them. When I mentioned my love of knitting to Kerry, the lifestyle manager she jumped at the chance to set up a knitting club even though, as we later discovered Kerry had no idea how to knit.
We met for our first session and had a discussion regarding our first project. We agreed that we wanted to be able to create something that would be of benefit to others and so it was decided, we would make blankets. You can never have too many blankets.
Before we could begin our creation, we had to teach Kerry how to knit and she was a willing student and a fast learner. Before we knew it Kerry was able to cast on and was well on her way to completing her first square for our patchwork masterpiece.
We had a wonderful afternoon, clattering needles, endless tea and aimless chatter about lives and all of our fond memories of jumpers knitted and scarves gifted. We are working hard on our blankets and looking forward to sharing them with others when winter creeps in and that extra layer is needed.
Lifestyle Lead Kerry told us “You really do learn something new every day here. Daisy and Jean were so patient, teaching me how to cast on new stitches and how to knit and pearl. The beauty of spending so much time with our residents is being able to learn from them. They have a wealth of life experience that you just cannot access anywhere else. Jean has kindly donated her knitting book, full of projects to the club. These designs are something for us to work on in future sessions although I will certainly need a little more practice before tackling some of them. I am sure that under the watchful eyes of Jean and Daisy I’ll be an expert in no time.”