Jamie's Crochet Contribution to Mandalas for Marinke

Here is the next of the beautiful, inspiring, special contributions coming in to the #MandalasForMarinke remembrance project. I am grateful for each and every amazing contribution. You are invited to join; learn more here.

Beautiful Crochet Mandala

This is Jamie’s first-ever crocheted mandala. She shared:

“It is a 12-round Wink mandala in Lily Sugar ‘n Cream, both solid and variegated, made in hopes that it brings comfort to Wink’s community, helps spread the word about mental health issues, and serves as a reminder of love, art, light and life. I am grateful for Wink’s art and generous spirit and for this memorial to her.”

Meet the Maker

Jamie of Mommy Hungry shares:

“I had never made a crocheted mandala. I had never heard of Wink. I didn’t know there was a tight-knit online crochet community – I crocheted on my own and gave away my blankets locally, partially as service and partially as meditation during chronic physical illness.

A month or so ago, friends recommended I take a look at Lucy at Attic24, who does a lot of bright and rainbow arts and crafts project, since I love color. So I followed her on FB. And she soon posted about the loss of Wink. I went looking for Wink’s blog and found her little sister’s touching post. And all of her beautiful crocheted mandalas! So colorful, so intricate. I then found the interview of Wink for Crochet Saved My Life. I was sad for Wink and her struggles, for her family and friends and their grief, and for the crochet community and their loss. I was touched by the beauty of Wink’s art.

And so I started my first crocheted mandala as a way to honor Wink and acknowledge the grief of her community. I made a few – both from Wink’s basic 12-round mandala and from other basic patterns, trying to get the hang of it. I usually crochet prayer afghans, mainly rectangles, and so was new to Magic Rings, her way of tying off rounds, even blocking. It’s been a learning curve, but it has also been such a gift to me.”

Words by Wink

In February 2012, Wink shared her Granny Stripe Blanket, made using the pattern and yarn pack from Lucy of Attic24 (mentioned by Jamie above). Wink shared:

“I started this blanket way back, exactly one year ago. I had just gotten my order of Stylecraft Special DK from the UK and I couldn’t wait to get started. However, I wasn’t the avid hooker I am today, so after 6 rows I quickly got bored and also overwhelmed! I just couldn’t believe there were actually women out there that crochet entire blankets!?!?!

So I hibernated the project for a long time, until last month, when I decided that it should be time to finish it! And this time, it was a breeze 🙂 Row after row after row of delicious hooky, the stitches just flew off my hook and before I knew it I had the entire thing finished! Then it only took me another two hours to get the border on and it was officially DONE.”

About Depression

One purpose of this project is to raise awareness about depression so each post will end with some facts, thoughts or quotes about depression, suicide and/or mental health.

The Atlantic had a good article by Jenny Chen called Why Depression Needs a New Definition that discusses the history of how depression has been defined by the field of psychiatry. A small excerpt of that history:

“In the 1920s, the German psychiatrist Kurt Schneider argued that depression could be divided into two separate conditions, each requiring a different form of treatment: depression that resulted from changes in mood, which he called “endogenous depression,” and depression resulting from reactions to outside events, or “reactive depression.” His theory was challenged in 1926, when the British psychologist Edward Mapother argued in the British Medical Journal that there was no evidence for two distinct types of depression, and that the apparent differences between depression patients were just differences in the severity of the condition.”

The article goes on to discuss how difficult it is to define depression today, which impacts our ability to really treat it.

“Bruce Cuthbert, the director of adult translational research and treatment development at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), thinks that part of the problem is that researchers have largely focused their attention on finding a one-size-fits-all treatment that doesn’t exist. “When you do a clinical trial, you’re getting a bunch of people who are ‘depressed,’ but they’re actually very different,” he said. “It’s like comparing apples, pears, and tangerines. You’re not going to see a significant effect. You’re not going to be able to say, ‘This treatment works for fruits.’” Trying to create a singular treatment for depression, Cuthbert said, is like trying to create one for cancer: too unspecific to actually be helpful.”

It’s a good article with a lot of information. It doesn’t have specific answers but it provides a lot of food for though.

All contributions to Mandalas for Marinke are welcome and will help raise awareness about depression while honoring her work in the same way that this great contribution has done today. Details to join here.