According to the National Institute of Health, one in every five teenage Americans suffer from mental health illnesses. 

Luckily, knitting has been proven to improve mental health.  

In an article at wellnesswithin.org, a cancer support service, “the act of knitting can trigger the body’s relaxation response, helping to ease anxiety and depression.” 

Prior Lake High School hosts its very own Yarn Club. Founded by Gracie Brown, Malin Ray, and Eve Wylde, the club works with people of various levels: “If they are interested in learning how to knit or crochet, we take all types of people from complete beginners to people that already know how to knit or crochet,” said Gracie Brown, a leader and founder of the club.

The Yarn Club’s focus is to teach people to knit and crochet and to give back to the community. The club works with the Minnesota Knitter’s Guild to get supplies like yarn and knitting needles and then gives back to the community by teaching people how to knit and crochet.

Gracie, Malin, and Eve founded the club in freshman year for the Genius Hour project in English class. Eve recounts that they “all ended up doing related crafts, so they came up with the idea of a club to knit and crochet” that would be an opening opportunity for others as well. 

Overall, the leaders aspire for the club to be a place to relax and bring people together. Eve Wylde, another club founder, revealed the impact that knitting had on bringing the people in her life together: “It was eighth grade and I spent a lot of time with my grandma during Covid. She was going through a lot of stuff that she had made when she was young, and she ended up teaching me how to knit. It was a really good moment for us.”

Not only does knitting create valuable memories but it also allows members to interact with your peers and learn new skills. Kylie Asleson, a member of the club, joined the club to expand upon her skills, and describes the club as “welcoming, educational, and fun.”

The club recently started crocheting octopi and granny squares to turn into a blanket and give back to the community, inspiring members like Kylie to keep working on their skills and learn to crochet new projects, like sweaters and animal figurines like turtles and octopi. 

For club leaders Gracie and Eve, one of the most important results of the club is seeing people improve and enjoy the crocheting. Some of their most dedicated club members who started during their sophomore year have improved a lot. Eve Wylde highlighted that they “just do it as a place to interact with more people, and it feels good to teach people how to create something and have people try new things.”

The yarn club creates an open and creative environment for anyone aiming to learn how to knit or crochet and relax along the way. The founders have encouraged countless members to learn a new skill and use it to better their mental health. Club members like Kylie Asleson have described it as welcoming and fun, using the time to interact with friends, make valuable memories and work on balancing their school life and mental health. 

“It became a downtime activity for me after learning how to do it all,” said Gracie. “I want people to use it as a way to relax and also to use the skills they gained from working through a project to problem-solve later in life.”

The Yarn Club is always open to new members!

-Meet in B102 in Ms. Malmgren’s photography room
-During Laker Time on Wednesday mornings
-Club Leaders: Gracie Brown, Eve Wylde, Kaylie Schmidt, & Malin Ray
-Social media manager: Hayden Ford