Mel: Knitting was and still is my go-to creative play and sanity saver. It had become more meaningful and fun once I was able to choose and buy my own yarn, create my own patterns and not be bound and limited to the traditional and conservative styles and patterns I grew up with. Now, knitting my #TtROOS Wolpoppies with all sorts of bits and pieces of yarn, donating it to children and teens needing acknowledgement and comfort allows me to share the joy my knitting has always brought me. Knitting has also connected me with a circle of many women who share a love for YARNS too…

Shahiema: I love knitting as I have been doing it for many years and my family members have been knitting for generations. Recently I have started crocheting as well and find it very calming. I have joined the Athlone Library knitting club and enjoy the time spent with the lovely ladies. Ayesha is a real inspiration and is very empowering. I hope that my knits is an inspiration to others too.

Joanne: I’m a former pre- primary teacher/assistant. I love knitting because my mom loved knitting. She inspired and taught me to knit.

Hildegard: I love knitting I think it gives one a chance to reflect and collect your thoughts and sometimes like an adventure you never know how it’s going to turn out.

Belinda: Because my mom, though illiterate, could knit the most beautiful patterns and was able to shape garments without following a pattern. She once knitted yellow dresses with pompoms at the ends of the waist drawstrings for my sister and I during our preteen years. She also knitted my dad a ‘church window’ pattern cricket jersey and which still survives 65 years on. When I received an award in grade one and she could not afford to buy a white jersey, she knitted me a black one before the event as this was the only wool she had. The teachers were a bit taken aback as I was the only child in a black jersey but instead of asking me to remove it, I was allowed to lead the procession.

Benita: Knitting helps to calm me down and degrees. It helps me to focus on something beautiful. I love trying out new techniques and patterns and I always feel such a lovely sense of achievement when I do something that just the other day seemed way above my paygrade. I’ve been knitting on and off since age 7 when I asked my mom to make a dress for my Barbie and she said she didn’t feel like it, why don’t I show you how. And I still remember how proud I felt of that little Barbie ball gown I made in beige and green with shaping and all. It just blew my mind then and still does. I love that there is always more to learn and explore.

Pauline: My life unravelled a bit in Nov 2022 when I got retrenched.  Taking out my knitting needles after 30 years proved to be exactly what I needed to bring routine and meaning to my days. I have made dozens of caps and neck warmers for friends n family over the past 2 years. I love the KAN group camaraderie.

Aneesah: I love knitting because it is therapeutic and calming especially when you want to wind down from a busy day. My mother taught me how to knit as a lot of my family members knit too. Whenever I am done with something I can proudly say I made it and it gives me a sense of pride. Knitting things makes it look so cozy.

Ayesha: I’m happy that the libraries have reintroduced knitting classes!. I love knitting little bags and caps and adding, beads to embellish it. Love the social aspect, and we share ideas and patterns with a hot cuppa.

Annelise: My name is Annalise…the one that rides the myciti to the knitting club at Artscape. I have not knitted or crochet for years but started again 4 months ago when I joined the knitting club. Still got to get the sizes of the hats right. In the past I crochet a couple of tablecloths with crochet cotton. I knitted on a knitting machine in the late 1970’s …the leg warmers I showed you. Further I used to on weekends do draping of halls for weddings ..60th birthdays etc. I used to make all the fancy candles and flower arrangements for all the tables…drape the brides table and walls ..set tables.  I love any handcraft with my hands

Gene from the Athlone Library Knitting Club: My Knitting Journey: I was taught how to knit in Primary school and also my Mom’s guidance. I love knitting small things especially for babies and stand in awe if I  see what can be created with two knitting needles and a ball of wool. My Crochet Journey: I taught myself how to crochet when I was young. Now I am a retired Nursing Sister and enjoy every minute of crocheting, seeing what I am creating with one hook and a ball of wool or cotton yarn.

Pam: My knitting began when I was approx. 5 years old. My Mom said she hadn’t time to knit my dolls clothes. That definitely got me going. Throughout the years, early 50s, and still knitting, I still get enormous pleasure from the craft. I made thousands of garments throughout the years.  From my personal knitwear, as a child, it was also a part of the junior and high school syllabus at school. Crochet, I learned when I was 22. I also had two knitting machines during the 80’s. I combined pieces of machine knitting with hand knitting and crochet, to produce more attractive garments. Nowadays I have relaxed my “production” and only knit for charities

Annemarie: I think I learnt knitting at school and my grandmother knitted the “Swiss” way. A few years before lockdown I got into it again when a friend gave me a set of size 5 needles and a ball of DK wool and said: “put 60 stitches on and just keep knitting plain. When you are done, it will be a scarf.” That was the start of a renewed love for knitting. It is good for the hands, you get to be creative, you can always start again and it is good for the soul. As with any handcraft, the true test of its success is if you (or someone else) can actually wear and use it. I love the monthly get-togethers at KAN: nice to meet fellow Yarnies, share stories or sommer just to listen.

Trudy: At primary school, we were taught to knit. In Std 3 (Grade 5), a friend taught me to crochet, one day at school. We were living in Durban at the time. I remember crocheting a few ponchos, then. Later on, in my adult life, I knitted quite a few jerseys for myself. In 2000, when I was going through a divorce, I crocheted a brightly- coloured striped blanket. It took me over two years to complete, because there was so much going on, but I loved it, and I still use it today.  In 2020, when our first lockdown was announced, I bought yarn and crocheted a blanket for my daughter. Immediately afterwards, I made one for my son. I just kept making blankets – all striped, but different colour combinations. The crochet bug had bitten again. I gave some to family members and sold some. I also started knitting beanies. Unlike a blanket, which takes me 5 to 8 weeks, a beanie takes half a day. So blankets and beanies were what I just kept making. I find crocheting and knitting very calming and “unputdownable”. I love everything about creating an item: first I conceptualise it, then I draw it, buy the yarn, and start. I love watching the item grow – especially blankets! Most of my blankets have horizontal stripes, so the blanket would keep growing in length. I sit on my bed, and let the blanket keep me warm as I create it. I also love taking arty photos of my blankets as they grow. I love being part of Knit & Natter. I enjoy the harmonious atmosphere and all the opportunities to teach what I know and learn new things. I have learnt a lot from the ladies at Knit & Natter. It’s great being part of Woman Zone and its vision of bringing women from different communities together, around shared interests. Being able to donate handmade items to needy people, every few months, is the cherry on top! We’re having fun, we’re doing what we love, and we get to make a difference in someone’s life.

Sophia: Let me share my story. My love for knitting started with….seeing my mom crocheting squares….sewing it together as a blanket/a throw/pillow covers. Of course, at Primary School….from there, the love just grows. I have learned to read patterns, knitting and crocheting. Used to knit jerseys…..baby matinee outfits….and crocheting doilies. Knitting, has the power of bringing calmness, relaxing the body and mind….which makes it so  therapeutic. The cherry on top is: THE END RESULT.  It is such a satisfactory and fulfilling feeling….WOW. Knitters and Natters have rekindled that fire in me again…..whereby, I haven’t knit and crocheting in years. Trust to spend many sessions with the group….God willing.

For more info check the Knit and Natter facebook page https://www.facebook.com/groups/1350248568857918