Under Construction @ Keele 2016 Volume 1 Issue 1 | Page 41

31
!

adults, as well as stopping.6 On the other hand, life circumstances such as illness,
retirement, or redundancy can provide the knitter with a new perception of his or her
life with a new positive self-identity. Knitting in aid of charity and donating the money
to the vulnerable, could have a positive impact in terms of their contribution to the
world. Similarly, knitting products such as socks and jumpers are used to provide
warmth and comfort which symbolise personal characteristics of loving and caring for
others. Although research suggests that meaningful and positive musical
experiences should come early in life, many older adults pinpoint later stages as
pivotal in cementing their enjoyment of music.7 Many adults change direction in their
music-making later in life, for example, turning to different instruments and /or
musical traditions. The skills gained in childhood and adolescence often provide
confidence for taking up new forms of music-making, but constant growth is needed.

Process vs Product
According to Lamont (2012), the ‘knitted product’ gives the knitter a sense of
purpose and the usual tradition of gifting to someone they care for enables sharing
love.8 Therefore, the ‘product’ seems to be more important rather than the ‘process’
of knitting. In contrast, the process of music making is more important than the final
performance as individuals enjoy and look forward to the former over the latter. A
large number of studies have analysed the ‘emotions’ and ‘processes’ individuals go
through in music-making and constructing a musical performance which outlines the
significance of the ‘process’ of music-making.9 Nevertheless, Corkhill, et al. outlines
the ‘product of craft’ is not the only important feature of craft-making; the process
that leads to the final product consists of morals and emotions in shaping the
creator’s identity.10 Similarly, according to Blanche, knitting is both process and
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
6

D. B. Taylor, Biomedical foundations of music as therapy (New York: Barton Publications, 2010);
Creech et al., ‘The power of music in the lives of older adults,’ Research Studies in Music
Education 35.1 (2013): 87-102; R. Perkins and A. Williamon, ‘Learning to make music in older
adulthood: A mixed-methods exploration of impacts on wellbeing,’ Psychology of Music 42.2 (2014):
550-567.
7
J. W. Davidson, ‘The solo performer’s identity,’ in R. Raymond et al. ed. Musical identities (Oxford:
Oxford University Press, 2002) 97-113.
8
Lamont (2012).
9
P. N Juslin and J. A. Sloboda eds. Handbook of music and emotion: Theory, research, applications
(Oxford: Oxford University Press 2010); A. Lamont, ‘The beat goes on: music education, identity and
lifelong learning,’ Music Education Research 13.4 (2011): 369-388.
10
B. Corkhill et al., ‘Knitting and Well-being,’ Textile: The Journal of Cloth and Culture 12.1 (2014):
34-57.!