It makes sense, not only is it extremely cathartic to jab at fabric with a needle a couple thousand times when angry or frustrated, but embroidery also allowed people to step away from their phones and create something that they did have control over. “Stitching fills the need that we all seem to have these days to be on our devices,” Downey says. “When you are stitching, you are using your hands in the same way that you might use your mobile devices. You’ll hardly notice that you put down your device.” Ahead of another election, and in the midst of the quarantine, it’s really no wonder that we’re picking up a needle and thread — or, as needleworkers call it, floss — once again.