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Janet Dennard can still hear the hum of her sewing machine. Late at night, the memory of it lulls her back to sleep. Ms. Dennard, 56, who loves to sew and crochet and has battled bipolar disorder for the better part of her life, does not miss the low points. But she does miss the high ones. When she channeled her elevated moods into her work, she produced scarves and hats by the armful.

“With manic-depressive illness, you’re really up or you’re drop-dead bottom,” she said recently. “When I got depressed, no one could change the thoughts I was dwelling on.”

A native of Ohio, Ms. Dennard moved to New York more than 30 years ago, with her daughter, Dannela, now 36. Ms. Dennard ran a small business from her apartment in Crown Heights, Brooklyn: from costuming dance companies to upholstering large pieces of furniture. After school, her daughter would help out, sewing buttons and ironing. For years, it was mother and daughter against the world. One day, that changed... continue