“If you’ve been in a meeting with me, you’ve probably seen me knitting.

I’m a pretty anxious person, and I find it very calming. It also helps me fight the urge to look at my phone or check my email. Knitting helps keep my mind in the room I’m in. I’m actually a lot more present.

When I was 12, my mom joined a knitting group in our neighborhood, and I badly wanted to learn as well. My mom was busy, so she outsourced the teaching and took me to a class at Joann’s. However, my mom had learned English style and I learned Continental style, so we knitted from opposite directions. Because of this, she couldn’t really help me on projects, so I would just knit rows and rows and rows of things—mostly scarves of varying sizes.

A few years ago, I started watching crocheting videos on TikTok, and that changed everything. I started making little things like stuffed animals or play food. Once I got good at that, I decided to try knitting again. I started with socks and from there I moved to mittens and hats. I’ve bought all the yarn to make a sweater, but I haven’t conquered it yet.

Last year, I went to Tokyo Disney and wore a pair of Mickey Mouse ears I crocheted. I also made a Disney dress out of vintage sheets for the trip. The ears are one of my favorite things I’ve made and they were a huge hit in the park.

Now, I have a bit of a doll hospital going in my house. I’ve been repairing my fiancée’s nieces’ American Girl dolls—replacing eyes, fixing hair and making some outfits. One of them wants an Elphaba doll, which can cost up to $1,000 on the secondary market. So, I purchased an old doll from eBay and dyed her green. Now she just needs a few witchy outfits.

I’m always trying a lot of things at once.”

—Matilyn Mortensen, communications specialist with University Marketing and Communications