Latest / Why I Knit / Crafting a connection to self and others with Nasreen Imrit

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Crafting a connection to self and others with Nasreen Imrit · Why I Knit

0:04
Mia Hobbs: Hello and welcome back to series two of the Why I
0:07
Knit podcast. My name is Dr Mia Hobbs and I'm a clinical
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psychologist who's passionate about knitting and its benefits
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for our mental wellbeing. Each episode I interview a different
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knitter about why they knit and how it benefits their mental
0:20
health. This week on the podcast, I'm joined by Nasreen
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Imrit, also known as @sewcraftynaz on Instagram.
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Nasreen is quite a new knitter but an experienced crocheter and
0:32
sewer and multicrafter.
0:37
Hi, Nasreen. Welcome to the podcast.
0:39
Nasreen Imrit: Hi, Mia. Thank you for inviting me on to the
0:42
podcast.
0:43
Mia Hobbs: You're very welcome. I'm delighted to have you! So
0:46
you are a multicrafter? And a relatively new knitter, is that
0:53
right?
0:54
Nasreen Imrit: Yes, that's right. My crafting journey
0:58
probably started when I was about 11/12, so starting
1:02
secondary school and doing Textiles, which was known as
1:06
Home Economics at the time. We had to make these aprons for the
1:11
next module, which was going to be Cookery. So we had to start
1:14
embroidering, to embroider something on the little pocket.
1:17
So that's how I discovered thread, and then started to do a
1:22
hand embroidery, and I really, really enjoyed it. And then I
1:26
think my dad noticed and was like, "Oh, what's this?" and I
1:29
said, "Oh, we have to embroider this thing", and then he... So
1:33
my mum passed away when I was really little, when I was five,
1:35
and she enjoyed crochet. She made mostly doilies and I think
1:41
she made a couple of shawls, so my father kept all those things
1:44
for when myself and my sister would be a bit older; we might
1:48
be interested. So that's how I discovered yarn and crochet. And
1:53
at the time, obviously there was the books that she had, and I
1:59
just picked up whatever crochet hooks she had, which were really
2:02
small ones because she was making more doilies and really
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fine lace things.
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Mia Hobbs: So was she using thread more than yarn?
2:08
Nasreen Imrit: Yeah, she actually had some fingering yarn
2:12
as well. And then I just picked it up and I thought, "Let's just
2:16
try this". And I remember the first things I made ended up
2:21
being tiny beanies for my Barbie dolls.
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Mia Hobbs: Okay, wow!
2:26
Nasreen Imrit: Because I didn't know how to increase so I just
2:28
kept going in the round, so it became a little bowl. So I was
2:30
like, "Well, that could be a good little hat for my dolls."
2:34
So that's how I started to crochet. I made anything that
2:39
would work out through the bowl, because that's all I could do,
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little baskets...
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Mia Hobbs: Yeah, kids are so great at finding a use for
2:44
something. They've made something and they're going to
2:46
turn it into a thing. I found that in my knitting groups, as
2:49
well. They're really good at seeing the potential in
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something that's an unusual shape.
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Nasreen Imrit: Yeah they are, absolutely. And yeah, so that's
2:57
how I started crochet, then dabbled in lots of little
3:01
things, mostly cross stitch and embroidery. And then when I
3:05
started having my children, I started to crochet again and do
3:09
blankets and hats and things. But I probably took it bit more
3:15
seriously in the last few years, as the kids grew up a little.
3:22
I've just always wanted to keep trying new crafts and keep
3:26
trying new things. Cross stitch was a favourite for a while but
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obviously the work's quite slow. And so then I discovered quicker
3:38
crafts, things like dot printing, screen printing (that
3:44
was a fad for a little while), so really transforming tote bags
3:49
and things like that. And then as I had children, they wanted
3:53
to get involved. "Come on, I'm going to come into your craft
3:57
room. What can I do?" And I'm like, "Oh, what can you do...?
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Don't touch anything!" (Laughs) So that's been quite interesting
4:07
because it's helped me understand craft on many levels,
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in terms of doing it for myself and how do I connect my children
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with it. And so then obviously my next challenge was to learn
4:22
to knit. And for me it was just seeing jumpers like yours,
4:29
constantly, on Instagram! And I was like, "I want to make this!
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I want to make this!" And although with crochet you can
4:35
kind of get a little bit close, you can't get that same effect
4:39
that you get with knitting.
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Mia Hobbs: Yeah, it's the different kind of texture, I
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suppose, of the fabric, isn't it?
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Nasreen Imrit: So that was my main inspiration to learn to
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knit. And then I somehow, in one of those competitions they have
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in Instagram giveaways, won some circular needles and I was like,
4:56
"Ooh, I must start using them!" And so I kind of fell in and out
5:02
of love with it initially because I could do so many other
5:05
things quicker. I could crochet quicker, I could sew quicker.
5:10
But when I did start it, I actually found it quite
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addictive because it was the use of both hands, which initially
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was challenging as I kept dropping the left needle quite a
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lot.
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Mia Hobbs: Because you're used to just having one implement.
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Nasreen Imrit: And I was like, "Oh no, oh no, oh no, I need to
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save the stitches!"
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Mia Hobbs: And I guess just one stitch, usually, with crochet as
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Nasreen Imrit: That was it! You work stitch by stitch and you
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well.
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can stop your work, you can lose your crochet needle, it wouldn't
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matter.
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Mia Hobbs: I always lose my crochet hook, just in the sofa!
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When we take the sofa cushions off, there's always a crochet
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hook in there!
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Nasreen Imrit: Yeah, likewise. So I think that that initially
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felt a bit new to me, like, "Ooh, I can't just whip this up
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really quickly, I have to really sit down and concentrate." But
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Mia Hobbs: Oh, great!
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once I kind of accepted it as a different craft - not because
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Nasreen Imrit: It was a variegated yarn but I tried some
6:02
colourwork with yellow, because I was like, "No no no, that's
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I'm a crocheter, I can just knit - I actually enjoyed it. So I
6:08
where I'm going, I want to do colourwork." And I actually
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would do it more to relax rather than to produce something. I
6:12
made a phone sock as my first project, which I think I have
6:13
really enjoyed it! But then again, with lots of WIPs going
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saved somewhere, with some scrap yarn, and I even tried some
6:18
on, I thought, "Okay, I will pick that up at some point when
6:22
colourwork on it.
6:23
I've got time." But then my mother-in-law came to stay with
6:28
us for a bit, to spend some time with us, and then she was like,
6:34
"Ooh, I've always wanted to learn to knit." And I was like,
6:39
"Okay, let's do it!" And we both sat down in front of the laptop
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with YouTube on, and she took to it really quickly. She made a
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mini thing, just garter stitch, that ended up being a little
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neck wrap that you could wear if you're cold around the house,
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and she really loved it. So I picked up knitting again, just
7:06
to do it together with her, and thought I was gonna make myself
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a top. So that's still ongoing. I pick it up, put it down,
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depending on whether I just need something to relax and not to
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follow any pattern because it's just going to be a rectangle
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really. But yeah, it's a slow start but I'm learning to see it
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as very different from my other crafts that I do. I'm seeing it
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more like cross stitch: I know there's going to be an end but I
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enjoy just the bit that I'm doing at that time. I wasn't too
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sure about it to start with but I think it's growing on me quite
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nicely.
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Mia Hobbs: There's so much I want to ask you about what
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you've already said. You've had a slightly different journey to
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many people because you've got quite good in other similar
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crafts that are similar but a bit different, and I wonder
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whether that just made you... Like, most new knitters wouldn't
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even think about a colourwork sweater, probably, whereas I
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wonder whether you felt like you had this springboard and you
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almost had higher expectations of knitting to start with
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because you already were really good at crochet, for example,
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and maybe that was a tricky experience!
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Nasreen Imrit: I think you're right because I started doing
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Mia Hobbs: Oh, that's good!
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colourwork in crochet. There's a stitch that actually resembles
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knitting a bit, which is the centre stitch. So I started
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doing some colourwork in crochet and I really, really enjoyed it.
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And then I was like, "Ooh, now this is the next step", not
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actually really appreciating that it is actually a complete
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different skill. And I was like,"Yeah, if you can crochet
9:01
you will be able to knit really quickly". On Instagram,
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obviously, I know a lot of crocheters-knitters and they
9:06
Nasreen Imrit: I know! He's like, "Oh, you're knitting!"
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were like, "You'll be absolutely fine". And they've been really
9:14
really helpful with pointing me in the right directions, what
9:18
patterns to try first, etc. And I'm like, "No, I'm going for a
9:23
colourwork sweater!" (Laughs) But then I thought no, maybe a
9:27
hat, let's start with a hat. I think that that expectation was
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what probably set me back initially, because I was like,
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"It's yarn, it's two needles, I crochet, I should be able to do
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"Yes I am!" (Laughs) It's something that I'm going to
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it." But once I kind of set that aside, I realised actually I
9:45
enjoyed it so much more, and I accepted it as its own craft, as
9:49
its own skill. Even my husband can tell the difference between
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knitting and crochet now!
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develop more this year, I think. And yeah, let's watch this
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space, see what I make!
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Mia Hobbs: And I'm interested in the idea that you might have
10:12
different crafts that give you different things, like the idea
10:17
of having some times where you might need something that feels
10:20
more relaxing, and it's okay for it to be slow. And maybe there
10:23
are other times where you feel like, I need... I think you used
10:26
the words "quick fix" just before we started recording. I'm
10:29
interested in hearing a bit more about that, like how you decide
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whether it's based on your mood, or what else is going on in your
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life or...?
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Nasreen Imrit: Yeah, so I find that each week, I need to make
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something.
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Mia Hobbs: Does it need to be finished, or just spend some
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time making it?
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Nasreen Imrit: No, just spend some time making it, but at
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least it's tangible. It's a tangible progress. I work part
10:57
time, and the rest of the time is kids, etc. But then if I do
11:03
make something or make progress on something, it makes me feel
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like, "Oh, yeah, I've done something for myself this week".
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Mia Hobbs: So it feels like your thing, for you.
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Nasreen Imrit: Yeah, it's my thing, for me. And sometimes
11:16
with large projects, even though I've done two or three rows, it
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doesn't feel tangible because it's large, and it's going to be
11:26
ages before it's finished. So I have little quick projects, like
11:31
block printing which I quite like, and often, if I want to do
11:35
that in an evening, my boys will always come in, "Can I try it?"
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And then they will use one of their old vests and they will
11:41
join in and print their vests.
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Mia Hobbs: And how old are they?
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Nasreen Imrit: They're seven and four. They just want to spend
11:50
that time, and then they will come in (and if one comes in,
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the other one will come in). And I was like, "Okay, well find
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some old vests and you can block print." And they block printed a
12:00
couple of vests, it was quite funny. I always have some spare
12:06
tote bags and scrap fabrics that are plain, so I'll block print
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them. If it's a tote bag, that will probably be gifted at some
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point. If it's a piece of fabric, then I know that I'll
12:19
probably use it to make a little pouch for something. And then
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I'll be like, "Ooh, that feels finished." Or I will actually
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look up a pattern and choose yarn for it and put it
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separately so it'll make me feel like I've decided something or
12:35
I've made something. So my quick crafts tend to be things (like
12:39
with block printing) that are quite small, or I'll arrange all
12:44
my scraps to decide a project that I can use all my scraps
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for. Or sometimes I'll make things that are just squares, so
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crochet squares. If you made a square, that can take about 45
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minutes, and then feel like, "Okay, I've added another square
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to this project." So it would depend on the week that I've had
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as to whether I need my quick fix. If I know I won't have much
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time, got to wait in the car for somebody to finish something,
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I'll just do a quick thing and then I'll be like, "Yep! Done
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it. I'm okay now."
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Mia Hobbs: Do you plan that quite deliberately, like to sit
13:19
and think what do I need right now? Do I need to have something
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quick that I finish, or could I just do a couple of rounds on
13:27
this knitted thing?
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Nasreen Imrit: I do think about it deliberately a lot more now.
13:34
When I used to work a lot more, I would find that the day that I
13:38
was off I'd be floating about just kind of doing the things
13:43
that needed to be done, and at the end of the day you just
13:46
still feel mentally tired, even though you've achieved quite a
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lot. I wasn't consciously making time for that break, to think
13:53
how do I break away from work and everything else. So now,
13:58
towards the end of my working week (which is Wednesday) I will
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actually think during my lunch break, "Okay, what do I feel
14:04
like this week?" and then I will know if I'm putting on too much,
14:08
"Okay, now I don't have to finish that, that can wait." So
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I will deliberately make myself think, "Okay, I'll probably try
14:13
and finish a border on this. And actually, I'm not going to pick
14:17
up another new project, I'll try and finish this a little bit
14:20
longer. I'm a bit bored with this. Maybe I'll just put this
14:23
aside." So I'll talk myself through it for 10 minutes or so.
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So then I actually do feel that when I've done it I'm like,
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"Yeah, actually, that was alright." It was contained, it
14:36
was planned. I actually feel better that I've achieved what I
14:38
wrote down. So it's all that feeling of having made a list
14:41
and having achieved it as well.
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Mia Hobbs: So you're quite goal-focused.
14:47
Nasreen Imrit: Yeah, I find that works better for me because I
14:50
have a lot of WIPs across all the crafts. So I can get lost
15:01
into it. I get distracted very quickly, so I've found that
15:06
helps keep me focused.
15:09
Mia Hobbs: Interestingly, Nasreen, no-one else has
15:11
mentioned school in their crafting origins story, which is
15:18
interesting. And certainly in my own experience, I'd kind of
15:21
almost forgotten I'd done Textiles at school because it
15:24
was so off-putting. (Laughs) The teachers were so scary that I
15:28
was 100% convinced I would sew through my finger on the
15:32
machine. I haven't done that yet! Similarly, making pastry:
15:40
also filled with terror. So that's interesting, actually.
15:44
Obviously there was enough good about it that it got you hooked,
15:49
actually. It was a positive experience for you.
15:50
Nasreen Imrit: Yes, it was. And I think because obviously, there
15:54
wasn't anybody who really did any crafts in the immediate
15:59
family, obviously I didn't know my mum, so I think for me it was
16:03
like a lightbulb moment. I was like, "Wow!" I grew up in
16:09
Mauritius for a bit, so that's where I'm from originally, and I
16:13
remember on the way back from school there was one little
16:17
embroidery shop, a craft shop, on the way home. And I would
16:21
save my pocket money and I would buy embroidery thread on the way
16:23
home. And I would buy a new colour each time. And those
16:29
moments still are quite vivid, because I would remember "Oh my
16:32
god, I've got so many shades of this one!" And I even made a
16:37
cross stitch for my brother when I was 15 because he travelled
16:41
and he was missing home, so I made him a little Home Sweet
16:44
Home cross stitch project. So the memories of that actually
16:49
are quite nice in the sense that I'm really glad I discovered it
16:54
through school.
16:56
Mia Hobbs: It sounds like it also was a really nice link to
16:59
your mum.
17:00
Nasreen Imrit: It was, and I think obviously having lost her
17:03
so young, we always found ways to reconnect with her. And she
17:06
was a baker, she crocheted, she sewed. I still have her books
17:11
from the 80s. I was looking at them the other day and was like,
17:15
"I should try and make something that doesn't look terribly
17:18
dated. There are some things I could probably make." And I
17:20
thought I might do that. So my dad said, "Okay, there you go."
17:25
So my sister's got the baking side of things. She loves baking
17:28
and decorating cakes. And I do more of the crafting, the sewing
17:33
and the crochet. So it was really, really nice to have that
17:37
connection and actually love crafting. My dad would always
17:41
tell me,"Your mum used to make that." And that was actually
17:43
quite nice to have that.
17:45
Mia Hobbs: And also special that he kept some of the things she
17:49
actually made and her crochet hooks.
17:52
Nasreen Imrit: Yeah, so I still have her crochet hooks and some
17:55
bits and bobs that she made. A lot of it used to be home decor
18:01
things, like little doilies and things like that. They've kept
18:04
really well, actually. So that was very precious. I guess
18:09
that's how my love for craft actually started, which is
18:13
really nice, and I carried on with it. And yeah, it's a big
18:17
part of my life, I would say.
18:21
Mia Hobbs: And that must be a special thing to share with your
18:22
kids as well, that they can see those things that their grandma
18:25
made.
18:26
Nasreen Imrit: That's it! Yeah, I was showing it to my daughter
18:28
the other day, and I was like, "Oh look, this is my mum's
18:32
book." She was like, "Oh, wow!" And she was amazed it wasn't in
18:35
black and white. I was like, "No, colour did exist!" (Laughs)
18:40
And we were looking at it, and obviously the patterns used to
18:45
be in these little foldable paper flyer type things when
18:51
they bought the patterns, and very brief. It's really
18:54
interesting to see how it was, you know, none of the yarns
18:57
exist anymore. It's really interesting. She was like, "Oh,
19:01
this one's cute. You could make that!" for one of my little
19:04
nieces. So it was really nice to show that, and also to pass on
19:14
the love of making to them as well, although they're
19:18
interested in different things. I find it's an integral part of
19:24
home, actually making, for us. Well, not my husband probably
19:28
but the rest of them! (Laughs)
19:30
Mia Hobbs: I suppose part of this podcast is about thinking
19:33
about how crafting can benefit our mental wellbeing, and that
19:37
those of us who do it a lot feel like we get lots of benefit on a
19:42
kind of wellbeing level from doing it. And I think there are
19:46
many ways you can interpret craft, like some people do Lego,
19:50
I had a client who was making circuit boards, doing all these
19:55
things I didn't understand. But the the feeling behind it, I
19:59
suppose, was very similar to the feeling I get from making
20:03
something from scratch, with yarn and needles or sewing a
20:07
dress or something. The idea of having something where the
20:11
outcome is not high stakes, nobody else cares about it, you
20:16
can kind of experiment or be creative and a safe place to
20:20
make mistakes, and that it's kind of just for you with no
20:24
other useful purpose, necessarily.
20:26
Nasreen Imrit: Absolutely. I noticed that with my daughter,
20:35
she's more into calligraphy, so she can sit there and will do
20:38
beautiful lettering, and she will apply that to her art or
20:41
her homework and things. So that's her thing. My middle one
20:45
will cross stitch. He actually asked me the other day... we've
20:49
run out of the size of the aida that he actually uses, and he
20:55
was like, "Can I do a cross stitch?" and I was like, "I
20:57
don't think we've got the size that you use, we have to get
20:58
some other ones." So it's a nice quiet space for him. And he'll
21:03
cross stitch mostly vehicles, but it doesn't matter. So he
21:06
cross stitches anything that he likes, and if he makes a
21:09
mistake, I'll say "It's alright! We'll just cut it and start
21:11
again." So he really, really likes it. And I think they've
21:17
noticed, especially my middle one, that if you need some quiet
21:21
time, that's a nice space for him to recharge, and feel that
21:26
this is something that's just his. He uses it a lot when he
21:33
feels like the world's getting too much or schools getting too
21:36
much and things like that. So he really does enjoy that. And you
21:39
won't hear him! He's the loudest, but you will not hear
21:41
him at all. And then he started sewing. So he's got interested
21:46
in sewing a little bit. He does keep coming into my room saying,
21:49
"What can we sew?", and I was like, "I don't have any boy
21:51
fabric anymore!." (Laughs) Because I bought some for their
21:55
room but they've used it all up. And I was like, "Well, I don't
21:58
have anything with cars or planets or dinosaurs anymore."
22:03
But yeah, I really love the way that they're all, in their own
22:06
way, discovering working with their hands a lot more and
22:12
creating things themselves actually.
22:14
Mia Hobbs: Yeah and it sounds like you really notice that
22:16
having an impact on them, that they kind of feel regulated and
22:21
calm when they're doing it.
22:23
Nasreen Imrit: They do. And I think it's really nice because
22:26
it's something that they've done and they've made; it's not just
22:31
their homework or their school activities, all these scripted
22:35
things. So things where they have a blank canvas and they can
22:38
go wild. They can decide what they want to make and what they
22:41
want to draw and what they want to write and things like that.
22:45
So I think that's quite important, especially during
22:48
lockdown when we couldn't go very far anywhere. It was
22:54
somewhere to actually explore, these avenues to think how can
22:59
they express themselves and find an outlet. And I think that was
23:01
really useful at the time.
23:03
Mia Hobbs: And I think with kids, they don't get that many
23:06
choices over things really, do they? Like they're told what
23:08
their English homework is and there's probably very little
23:11
scope for choice, and the older they get, probably the less
23:13
scope there is for choice, what they write about. So it's nice
23:17
for them to have a space to create something where they're
23:20
the boss.
23:21
Nasreen Imrit: Yes! Yeah, absolutely, and I think we
23:24
noticed that a lot more over lockdown. My daughter started
23:28
making little furniture out of paper. So she would have the
23:32
boxes of cardboard and she would make a little bedroom.
23:34
Everything was made out of tiny cardboard or paper. She'd make
23:38
this little scene. That's her idea of making. She's more pen
23:41
and paper now. And my son did the cross stitch. The little one
23:45
just kind of dabbles into everything at the moment. He's
23:47
not quite sure yet. They will come into my room and be like,
23:54
"Ooh, what can I have to put in my little project?" So I was
23:58
like, "Okay, you can have ribbons, you can have this, you
24:00
can have this." But yeah, I do think that it has a big, big
24:05
space for mental wellbeing, to promote mental wellbeing in all
24:13
children and adults.
24:16
Mia Hobbs: And it's a great thing to send them out into the
24:19
world with, isn't it, for the rest of their lives really, this
24:22
kind of little hidden superpower that when they need to feel
24:25
calmer, they can go and do that. Take themselves off. Certainly
24:29
at university, I hadn't discovered knitting then but I
24:31
did some cross stitch. I would go and secretly do it in my room
24:35
when everyone else was cramming and I'd had enough of revision (laughs).
24:39
Nasreen Imrit: Yeah, absolutely. And you reminded me actually...
24:42
I studied in Manchester at the same med school as Atia (Azmi).
24:46
There's lots of fabric shops there, so I remember buying
24:50
this piece of fabric that was enough to cover my single bed
24:54
but the weave was as such that you could cross stitch through
24:58
it. I had it on my bed and I decided that I would just add
25:02
little bits to it. So that's why I would take breaks from my
25:06
revision. I would go and say, "Oh, I'll make a little piece on
25:10
it." I don't have it anymore, I think. I'd put a little piece on
25:15
there and then I'd go back to my revision. So it was basically
25:19
several years of bits of cross stitch on it for a while. I
25:23
might be able to locate it. I can't remember where I've left it.
25:28
Mia Hobbs: Have you got a photograph? That sounds like an
25:30
amazing keepsake!
25:32
Nasreen Imrit: It does! I know that it's been around for ages.
25:36
I haven't seen it recently. We've moved a few times, so I
25:39
need to try and find it. Photos... it's going to be from
25:41
a very long time ago, probably not digital even.
25:44
Mia Hobbs: Yeah, that's the tricky thing, isn't it, with
25:47
pre-digital?
25:49
Nasreen Imrit: I'm going to try and find out if I can still see
25:51
it. I think I can still find it somewhere. But yeah, you just
25:55
reminded me of that. Yes, at uni...
25:57
Mia Hobbs: So were you crafting buddies, you and Atia?
26:01
Nasreen Imrit: For a little while. We spent three or four
26:03
weeks, I think, doing a project in Wales. So we went to Wales
26:06
together; there was me, her and another friend. And I remember
26:09
spending a lot of time in libraries looking at cross
26:12
stitch books and other craft books. So we would spend a lot
26:18
of our spare time being in the library and think, "Oh wow, look
26:21
at these patterns!" and things like that. So we spent that
26:24
three... I think it was three weeks, actually... three weeks
26:26
in Wales together, a good few years ago now. But we didn't do
26:30
much crafting together at uni as such. But I reconnected with her
26:37
a few years ago through Instagram. That's when I
26:40
discovered Instagram.
26:47
Mia Hobbs: I've had quite a few health professionals get in
26:50
touch with me who are knitters or crafters. Parlty maybe that's
26:53
because I am a psychologist and they're more attracted to the
26:57
idea of what I'm talking about. It was something I noticed when
27:01
I did salsa dancing years ago, that there were loads of doctors
27:05
there, and I suppose I developed this theory that being a doctor
27:09
is quite stressful and quite taxing on the brain, and that
27:13
maybe that means you need kind of an active way of turning off
27:17
your brain from your work. So the idea of dancing, I suppose
27:20
it's hard to think about anything else if you're trying
27:24
to coordinate what your feet and your hands are doing at the same
27:28
time. And I wondered also about craft, whether that's the
27:31
appeal: that it's quite an active way of switching your
27:35
brain off from other things and having this... I don't know...
27:39
escape. I don't know what your thoughts are.
27:41
Nasreen Imrit: Yeah, I would agree with you, because I would
27:44
remember the time where crafting was there but not a major part
27:49
of my life. So if I had a hard day, so probably at the
27:52
beginning, when I went into my first years as a doctor, I would
27:57
be so tired I'd probably spend the evening watching TV, but
28:05
that would not relax me at all. You think that if you empty your
28:11
brain, you're filling it with something else. And I think
28:14
after doing that for a while I did notice that actually I just
28:18
felt more and more tired, which is when then picking up a
28:21
craft... the fact that you're concentrating on it, reading a
28:24
pattern to it... you're actually actively emptying your mind of
28:29
the other things, rather than just blocking it and watching a
28:33
screen which obviously doesn't do that at all. So I do think
28:38
that it has that effect of cleansing your mind in the way
28:45
that you're concentrating on something repetitive, something
28:48
creative. And I do notice the difference after doing some
28:54
crafts if I've had a stressful day. So after finishing work,
28:58
catching up with everything I have to do, if I shut myself in
29:01
a room and decide to just crochet for a couple of hours or
29:04
even sew, I will notice the difference. When I come out I do
29:08
feel mentally refreshed in a way. So I yeah, I definitely
29:15
believe that it does actually healthily help you kind of
29:21
cleanse rather than forget. And at the same time you're creating
29:27
something. I think it does have a big part to play towards
29:35
preventing burnout for a lot of people who feel burnt out,
29:39
because it is difficult to switch off. Possibly from the
29:43
work that YOU do, as well: it's quite difficult to switch off
29:46
from the things that you have to listen to, you have to hear.
29:48
Even though you've got your professional hat on, you still
29:51
absorb it. You're still human, you still absorb it. And to
29:55
learn to let that go is necessary, I think. To have a
30:02
method of really switching off and recharging before the next
30:09
day or the next thing. So yeah, I'm a strong believer in that.
30:13
I'd go everywhere with my crochet stuff if I could!
30:17
(Laughs) Even when there's no time, I take it with me. You
30:19
never know, you might get stuck in traffic!
30:20
Mia Hobbs: Yeah, definitely. That's really interesting, the
30:28
idea about preventing burnout. I think burnout's an increasingly
30:31
big problem, isn't it, in the health service, certainly here.
30:37
And yeah, I resonate a lot with what you say about finding a way
30:42
of... I find sometimes I'm attracted to really complicated
30:44
patterns because, like you say, I want to absorb myself fully in
30:47
something so my brain can't be thinking about other things from
30:51
my day. But also the idea of having this kind of soothing
30:56
repetitive motion. It almost sounded like you get something
31:00
almost a bit rejuvenating from it, like that time you spend in
31:04
your craft room.
31:05
Nasreen Imrit: I do. It's like my little haven. I'm quite lucky
31:08
to have a space, and that the children know I'm generally off
31:12
limits. (Laughs) So on the days when they're at school and I'm
31:20
not at work, I will actually have the door closed and maybe
31:24
listen to something, maybe not, depending on whether I want
31:26
quiet. And it will just be like the best time in the world, just
31:30
making something. Over time, as I've learned to understand what
31:37
crafting means to me, I've realised actually I need it.
31:39
It's part of something that I need to be who I have to be, at
31:44
home at work, etc. rather than just being this thing that I do
31:48
because I enjoy it. I remember when I was cross stitching in my
31:52
late teens/early 20s, I used to get comments like, "Why are you
31:59
doing that? This is what old people do." They would say it in
32:03
a laughing way and it would be relatives. "Why are you doing
32:06
that? You should be going out!" And I'm like, "Well, I really
32:09
like it. I love watching this white fabric just burst with
32:13
colour, and I made this!" They wouldn't really understand it,
32:17
but I'm glad it's not something that anyone's been able to ever
32:22
take away from me, even from that age.
32:25
Mia Hobbs: Do you think you understood then? Because I think
32:27
certainly for myself, I don't think I really understood that I
32:32
needed it and that it was beneficial to my mental well
32:35
being until really relatively recently. Maybe the last five or
32:40
so years, I've really thought deliberately about what do I
32:43
need right now for me in terms of crafting, and just how
32:48
important it was to me. And I had certainly lots of those
32:52
comments about being an old lady and those kind of things at
32:55
university, when I was literally the only person doing cross
32:58
stitch or knitting. I'd be interested to hear about the
33:02
journey you've been on in terms of your understanding about how
33:05
much you've needed craft.
33:08
Nasreen Imrit: I would say in my early years I didn't link it to
33:12
my mental health as such. It was really just, "Mum used to do it.
33:15
I really want to do it." So I kind of grew into that. And then
33:20
I always just liked it. That was just it. I just liked thread and
33:24
I did it on and off, on and off, through uni as well. But I would
33:27
say in terms of benefit to my mental health, probably the last
33:36
four or five years, I would say. That's possibly because now my
33:44
youngest is four, so I was too busy to actually think about it.
33:50
And then recently, obviously now they're all a bit older, but
33:57
there is still lots more to do. I started thinking about it more
34:03
deliberately. As they get older their needs increase, and work's
34:08
been more stressful with Covid times, and I think that's made
34:11
me a lot more aware of it. It's gone from being a hobby to
34:16
something that's more therapy. When I discovered Instagram,
34:23
that was mad because I was like, "(Gasp) Look at all these
34:27
patterns! Look at all these people!" So that's how I learned
34:29
to sew, when I discovered Instagram, and I self-taught.
34:33
Mia Hobbs: And when you say sew, what do you mean by sewing? Is
34:37
that like machine-sewing or hand-sewing or...?
34:39
Nasreen Imrit: Yes, I do mainly machine-sewing.
34:42
Mia Hobbs: And is it clothes or...?
34:43
Nasreen Imrit: Yeah, so I made the dress that I'm wearing at
34:46
the moment. I do mostly clothes and I will make random things
34:50
for my children, like if they need a little bag I'll make them
34:55
pouches for things, clothes for their little teddies and stuff.
34:59
But then Instagram initially stressed me out because I had to
35:03
make everything that I saw. (Laughs) I had a bit of a
35:07
love/hate relationship with my craft, because it kind of tipped
35:11
into being this stressful thing from being this relaxing thing,
35:16
because there was always something that I had on my list.
35:20
The lists are still there but they don't stress me out so
35:24
much. I had to learn to tip that balance, that actually my craft
35:28
was to relax me not because I need to churn out three things
35:32
by the end of the week.
35:35
Mia Hobbs: It sounds like your automatic thing is kind of an
35:39
ambitious drive sensation of "Ooh, look at all these things!
35:44
I could make them." And I can hear the doctor in you there,
35:47
like the ambitious person wants to go for it, and that you've
35:50
kind of slowly reined that in into "No, this can be a bit more
35:54
about process and not just about achievement."
35:56
Nasreen Imrit: Exactly. And I think that's where knitting has
36:00
really come in, because obviously, as I've started to be
36:03
more mindful of what I'm doing, meditating, taking that time
36:07
out, the knitting actually fits in really nicely with that. You
36:13
enjoy the process of knitting because it's not one stitch at a
36:16
time; you've got to do a few rows before you can actually see
36:19
what you're doing and see what's come out. Whereas with crochet,
36:22
you've done a few stitches, "Oh yeah, I can see, yeah that's
36:24
going to look like that for the next..." But with knitting, you
36:27
have to be patient with it for a bit before you can actually
36:30
understand. So that's where I was just thinking actually,
36:34
yeah, I'm ready to start to take this on. But yeah, the last
36:40
couple of years, as I've taken sewing and crochet and now
36:43
knitting more seriously, I've had to find my balance between
36:47
wanting to make everything that exists and, you know, having a
36:52
sweater like yours (which I will get to one day!) to actually
36:55
just putting it back and making sure that my craft doesn't
37:00
become like everything else that I have to do. So that's been
37:04
very interesting. And it sounds
37:05
Mia Hobbs: And it sounds like now, Nasreen, it's very much
37:08
part of a deliberate part of your self-care strategy.
37:12
Nasreen Imrit: Yeah, absolutely. So, for example, normally if I
37:15
make something I would say, "Okay, I'm going to follow this
37:18
pattern and then I'm going to make it." Because I know it will
37:21
only take me two days to make it, for example a sewing
37:23
pattern. But when I sit and think about it, what I really
37:26
want to do is I want to create. So I know that actually I don't
37:33
like this bit of it, but I'd like to add some applique to it;
37:36
I could even add some crochet to it. If I gave myself that little
37:40
bit of time to think, I would come up with something that I'd
37:43
absolutely love because I took the time and I was mindful about
37:46
it. So I'm learning to do that a little bit more, rather than
37:49
just think, "Yeah, I made it." And I'm finding that initially
37:54
challenging, but I'm getting better at it. So I can let
37:56
something sit for a while and think, "Actually, let me come
37:59
back when I feel that I really love what I'm doing right now,
38:04
and it is me" rather than "I've done this pattern. There you go,
38:09
guys. Look, I made it."
38:12
Mia Hobbs: Do you feel like it's more rewarding when you do it
38:14
the second way? Slower and slightly more creative, giving
38:19
yourself time to have those ideas in the first place?
38:22
Nasreen Imrit: I do. I've made a couple of pieces of clothing
38:25
like that, a dress that I made with an old shawl... So that
38:32
shawl was a beautiful shawl I bought from India. For some
38:35
reason I decided to put it on a surface. I put candles on,
38:39
didn't put a plate, the candles kind of ruined some of it. It
38:42
was so beautiful, I kept the part that was still okay. And
38:46
then I decided to incorporate it as part of a dress, but
38:48
obviously I had to redesign the dress slightly to make it work.
38:53
It took me longer but when I look at it, I love it so much
38:58
more because I was like "Okay, it is exactly as I wanted it to
39:01
be." So I'm learning to do that a little bit more, rather than
39:05
just say, "Yep, made this pattern, made this one, made
39:07
this one".
39:08
Mia Hobbs: And there'd be none others in the entire world that
39:10
are exactly the same as yours.
39:12
Nasreen Imrit: Exactly. So yeah, my relationship with craft has
39:18
evolved through the years to somewhere where I think I wanted
39:23
to be.
39:24
Mia Hobbs: And how about your relationship with the finished
39:27
objects? I don't know whether there's anything about that that
39:30
still gives you kind of therapeutic value. For example,
39:34
like today you're wearing a dress you made; does that make a
39:37
difference to your mental health on a daily basis, do you think?
39:41
Nasreen Imrit: Now it does! When I first started, I didn't like
39:44
the things I made! I don't know whether I was just too self
39:48
critical, or is it that perfectionist in me that, you
39:52
know... It wasn't quite... It was a bit rough round the edges.
39:56
So I remember with first few things I made, I'd be like,
39:57
"Hmm, I'll wear that thing that I bought instead." But now, most
40:03
days I will wear something that I made. And it just gives you
40:07
that sense of warmth that nothing else tends to. And I'm
40:12
like living in this dress at the moment because it's warm. And
40:15
I'm like, "Ooh, should I buy some more fabric the same and
40:17
just make a top? Because it's actually quite nice and warm."
40:20
And I'll add pockets to designs that do not have pockets,
40:23
because we all need pockets all the time. But generally, I
40:28
notice myself sometimes, I'll be like, "Oh, am I wearing anything
40:30
I made today?" and usually there would be one item. And I don't
40:37
find myself buying clothes anymore, much. I will look, but
40:42
generally if I'm browsing online I'm taking pictures of what
40:45
people are wearing! I'm like, "Oh, I could make this!" rather
40:48
than actually buying it. But yes, it does make me feel more
40:54
confident, and it's like a silent confidence that yeah, you
41:00
know, I made this and I'm comfortable in this, and it's
41:02
me.
41:04
Mia Hobbs: And do people around you know? Like people at work,
41:07
do they know about that side of you and notice if there's
41:11
something you've made, or think that you might have made it?
41:14
Nasreen Imrit: Yes, at work there's a few of my colleagues
41:19
who do know that I make things. So every now and then they will
41:21
look at me like "Did you make that?" And sometimes it'll be
41:23
yes, sometimes it'll be no, because sometimes they can't
41:25
tell!
41:26
Mia Hobbs: No, with sewing I think it's harder to tell, isn't
41:28
it? Whereas with a knitted jumper, it probably looks more
41:31
obviously hand-knitted.
41:31
Nasreen Imrit: Yeah, it looks more handmade. So they do
41:34
comment on it. And I've made a few things for a couple of
41:37
people at work as well. So they do know that I make it. I was
41:41
Mia Hobbs: People ask me about knitted things, but the hourly
41:41
making something at work the other day. We had a training
41:45
afternoon over Zoom, and one of my colleagues came in. She was
41:49
like, "Are you making that? Are you selling it?" And I said, "I
41:53
haven't thought about it yet!" She was like, "Well, if you're
41:56
not doing anything about it, I'll buy it, I'll buy it!"
42:00
(Laughs) I find that really hard. I've never thought of
42:03
selling things I make!
42:09
rate would be 0.00p! (Laughs) So it's not something I'm
42:14
interested in.
42:15
Nasreen Imrit: That's the thing! I was speaking to my husband
42:17
about it and I said, "I wouldn't know what to sell this for,
42:20
because the amount of time I've spent on it... people won't be
42:25
willing to pay what it's worth!" So yeah, my crafting bug or
42:36
obsession (whichever one!) is generally well known. Family as
42:43
well - they will always ask me, "What are you making?" But yeah,
42:47
it's part of me now, and I'm kind of glad it's not this thing
42:52
that old people make. And you know, I've found a lot more
42:55
confidence in it, that actually I'm glad I did it. I'm glad I
42:58
discovered it when I did.
43:00
Mia Hobbs: And did it help finding other similar people on
43:03
Instagram, as in people who were younger? Certainly when I
43:07
discovered Instagram, which was long after I started to knit, I
43:12
felt like I'm not the only person my age who's doing this,
43:16
and found more patterns that were more things I would be
43:20
interested in wearing, for example.
43:23
Nasreen Imrit: My sister asked me to go on Instagram and I was
43:25
like, "Nah, I don't see why I would." And then I decided to,
43:30
about three years ago, and then I developed a lot more as a
43:34
crocheter and a sewer at that point, because I discovered
43:40
everything: all the indie sewing designers, all the beginner
43:45
patterns. And then I started doing colourwork in crochet
43:50
which are things that I hadn't ventured into before. I started
43:55
doing tapestry; I designed a blanket then a cushion about
44:01
three years ago. I've designed several things. I have too
44:04
many... I get distracted too easily. I haven't followed
44:06
through into publishing them. I've got about two or three
44:11
other things that I've made and designed but not written up or
44:15
released, so that might come one day.
44:18
Mia Hobbs: Yeah? That's exciting!
44:20
Nasreen Imrit: I've met designers as young as 15 on
44:23
Instagram who are so so talented, yarn dyers and stuff,
44:30
and it's been such an amazing space to find other people who
44:34
do what I do. Because before that I was the only one who did
44:38
what I did. Which is fine... everyone's like, "Oh you do
44:41
this!" but now it's like no no no, ALL these people do this.
44:44
There's a whole world out there! So yeah, it's an app where I've
44:49
learned so much. So so much. And I still keep learning. But I've
44:53
certainly learned so much from all the people I've come across
44:57
online. You help each other. You know, they've tested my pattern,
45:02
I've tested patterns for a lot of people, so made some nice
45:06
Insta friends. I made face masks for them during the pandemic, at
45:12
the beginning. So yeah, it's been really lovely to build that
45:17
community.
45:18
Mia Hobbs: I'd love to hear about a significant project. It
45:21
doesn't have to be knitting; it could be crochet or any other
45:24
craft. I don't know if you can think of something that stands
45:26
out as being a kind of significant project for you.
45:29
Nasreen Imrit: I have a couple. So I have one that I made. It's
45:36
upstairs. It's actually made on a canvas. It was the last one I
45:39
made before I had children, and it was made with scraps from a
45:45
cushion cover. It was a combination of... so if you
45:50
imagine a large rectangular canvas, and it has fabric stuck
45:53
on it with a ribbonwork and embroidery and paint. So then I
45:59
painted in Arabic on it. So it was just a massive combination
46:03
of loads of different crafts, and that was like the biggest
46:07
thing I made for the house. Apart from that, I'd probably
46:12
say the things that I make for my children. So they all have
46:15
this little teddy that's exactly the same. My daughter had it,
46:19
and by the time we realised she was so attached to it we bought
46:22
a spare, just in case she ever lost it. She never lost it, so
46:25
then the second one got the teddy. And then when we had a
46:29
third, we were like, "Well, he's going to be left out!" Every so
46:33
often I have to renew their outfits. They have mini jackets
46:38
- crochet jackets - and I think that's the thing that's just the
46:42
most loved. So they will put their jackets on in winter; in
46:45
summer they're hot so they'll take their jackets off. So their
46:48
jackets go on and off, and then after a few years my daughter
46:51
was like, "We need to make a new jacket. This is just getting
46:52
really tatty." So they will choose their yarn, and it's a
46:55
good way to use up scraps. That will be the thing that is hugged
46:59
the most, all the time. So I think that's probably my nicest
47:04
project that I've made, the things that I've made for them.
47:07
Or the blankets. I've made a few blankets for them. It'll always
47:09
be dens, but it's the fact that they choose those blankets to
47:13
make the dens with, and they know that I made it for them.
47:18
And then they will always proudly say, "Oh my mum made
47:20
this!" "No no no, that's my blanket!" you know, if somebody
47:24
else touches them. "That's my one, go and touch the one that
47:27
my mum made for you." So, you know, they really find it
47:31
something quite precious. So I'd probably say those are my most
47:35
significant makes in that sense.
47:38
Mia Hobbs: Yeah, so the family connection is really special.
47:42
Oh, that's amazing. I always end with asking: what's the greatest
47:46
gift that craft has given you for the rest of your life?
47:49
Nasreen Imrit: I would say connection, because I guess
47:53
that's how my relationship with craft started, was trying to
47:58
connect with my mum's memory and what she did. And then obviously
48:04
moving into kind of connecting with myself, and then connecting
48:09
with other people through the web, and then finding a
48:14
different way to connect with my children and passing that on to
48:16
them. So my middle one who loves crafting is waiting for me to
48:23
make a next... we make little reels about how to do easy
48:26
things... so easy projects. So he's looking forward... I told
48:30
him we'll try and make another one this weekend. So I get to
48:34
have a one to one time with them, with something that they
48:36
enjoy. And it's always something crafty. So I think that that
48:40
connection and that love that's been passed on - I think that
48:45
would probably be my main takeaway, my main connection
48:52
(I'm using the word connect again!) to crafts. It's what
48:55
links me to it that's the strongest thing, I would say.
48:58
Mia Hobbs: Yeah, that's really special. And it's really
49:00
interesting that you said it's connection in your family, but
49:03
also to yourself... like feeling really you.
49:06
Nasreen Imrit: Yeah! It's so versatile because you can have
49:11
it be something that's completely your own, but it can
49:14
also be something that creates friendships and creates... You
49:18
know, like the other day we were talking about health and
49:21
wellbeing at work, and I was saying to one of my colleagues,
49:24
"How about if we started to teach crochet and stuff?" She
49:27
was like, "Yes, yes, yes, yes!" Not sure how it's going to
49:30
materialise but it's something that we would like to try and do
49:33
and see if people are interested to learn crafting - different
49:36
types of craft to promote health and wellbeing at work.
49:40
Mia Hobbs: I think it's such a lovely... I mean, I did it for a
49:43
few... it wasn't deliberately for that but I had a colleague
49:48
who had twins and they were very special babies (long-awaited and
49:54
two of them) and lots of people came up to me and said "I know
49:58
you knit. Can you help me knit a cardigan for these babies?" and
50:01
I was thinking, "The last thing these poor children need is 15
50:05
half-knitted holey cardigans in the same size!" (laughs) and I
50:10
was like, "This is what we're going to do: I'll buy yarn, you
50:14
can knit squares, or crochet squares, and I'll crochet them
50:19
together to make blankets." Because that's easier,
50:22
obviously, than doing the shaping and everything, for
50:24
people who were... some of them were rusty knitters, some of
50:27
them were completely new to knitting. But actually it was
50:31
lovely! Often on a Friday, and it was just a very short amount
50:34
of time, like half an hour, where we'd go in the staff room,
50:38
and I could help people with various dropped stitches and
50:41
things, and some people did crochet, some people did
50:43
knitting, but it really did give people a... Like lots of people
50:48
commented on having that little space, because so many people
50:51
were just eating at their desks (me included!) and we had some
50:58
different conversations about, you know, family stories about
51:01
knitting and crochet. And I got to know people in a different
51:04
way, who I didn't really know much about their personal life.
51:08
It was really a boost to team morale, I think.
51:12
Nasreen Imrit: I think you're absolutely right, and that comes
51:15
back to the whole connection thing,. You know, the people we
51:20
work with, we just talk about work. But to have a space which
51:24
is away from that and be able to talk to them and to have a chat
51:31
with them on a different level completely is just too rare, I
51:39
think.
51:40
Mia Hobbs: And just to give them that skill, like you've done
51:42
with your kids, to give them this kind of therapeutic
51:48
potentiaI, I suppose, that they can whip out on a bus or at home
51:51
or wherever they need to.
51:53
Nasreen Imrit: Absolutely. And I do wish that there are things
51:58
like that, that are more widely available in terms of helping to
52:02
promote mental wellbeing, that is available at the moment for
52:08
people. And I don't know, maybe that will come on the NHS that's
52:13
more available for people, because I think there's a lot of
52:15
people that I see that I think could benefit from something
52:18
like that. But it's very difficult for me to say it when
52:20
there is nowhere to actually provide it. Yeah, so you never
52:27
know.
52:29
Mia Hobbs: I mean, that's one of my hopes for the podcast, and my
52:32
kind of project in general. But I think it's tricky finding the
52:36
money and the people to value it enough to pay for it and to give
52:43
staff the time to do it also. Nasreen, it was an absolute
52:47
pleasure to hear your wonderful stories and to hear all your
52:51
insights on craft. So thank you so much for coming on the
52:56
podcast. If people want to follow you on Instagram or find
52:59
out more about your makes, how would they do that?
53:02
Nasreen Imrit: So I am on Instagram, and my handle is
53:07
@sewcraftynaz. That's where you will find me and all my makes
53:13
and half-makes and everything else (laughs).
53:15
Mia Hobbs: And is it sew as in sewing? S-E-W?
53:19
Nasreen Imrit: S-E-W crafty Naz with a Z, as one word. But yes,
53:23
that's where you'll find my creative corner. But thank you
53:26
so much for having me on! I've really enjoyed it. This is my
53:30
first podcast, so I'm very honoured that it's yours. So
53:35
that's really lovely.
53:35
Mia Hobbs: Thank you, it's been a privilege.
53:38
Thank you so much for listening to the Why I Knit podcast. If
53:41
you'd like to find out more about therapeutic knitting, you
53:44
can follow me on Instagram @knittingistherapeutic, or at my
53:47
website therapeuticknitting.org, where you can also sign up to my
53:51
newsletter to receive my blog on the themes from series one. If
53:56
you're enjoying the podcast, I would really appreciate it if
53:58
you could leave a rating and a review on your podcast app. This
54:01
will help grow the podcast and let more people know about the
54:04
therapeutic benefits of knitting. And don't forget to
54:06
subscribe too. Thank you!