Is gathering & rolling clothing fabric while sitting visiting normal behavior for 87 year old woman?

You might want to discuss with her MD find a medication to quell her anxiety a bit and find a daily repetitive activity for her.

Remeron is a solid old school RX with low side effects that can get the edge off anxiety. Daily basket or two of socks and kitchen towels or other smaller items can keep her busy, fill her ocd need and feel useful. If she remembers how & still can knit, embroider, maybe get her doing those hobbies again. 

I’d also suggest if she’s still kinda ok on her ADLs to get her into a 2 day a week senior program (even if she carps about it), otherwise she’s gonna be beyond working your nerves and your gonna run out of nice due to her snideness.

Thank you, I'll check in with her doctor. Unfortunately she never has knit or crocheted and flatly refuses to join any senior group or any activity we suggest. She cancels most appointments a couple of times before being forced to go out. Says she is "so sick" she can't leave her chair. She is already on a anxiety med but swears she is not anxious, its just "muscle spasms". Maybe a different med will work.

There is a young woman with Alzheimer's at my mom's nursing home who does this, usually when she is bored or anxious or has a need she can't express but sometimes for no reason that I can see, I think that sometimes these repetitive movements are just soothing little tics. I wonder if your mom would like to have some type of fidget apron, blanket or pet to fiddle with? Try googling "fidget gadgets for alzheimer's" to see some examples.

edit  Sorry, I assumed your mom has some form of dementia , I'll leave my answer though in case someone else finds it useful

I know people that a perfected fine that do things like that ever since they were kids. It's not that different from people that constantly twist their hair with their hands.

You say Mom has "age related problems". Think there is more going on here. It looks like Dementia is setting in. My Mom (and have seen other Dementia patients do it) always was pulling up her pant legs. She also took off her shoes and picked at her clothes. She also folded stuff all the time. Maybe Mom needs to be evaluated.

Thank you all. I have a call in to her MD this morning. There are other issues such as made up memories and heightened anxiety over world news commentary (she's completely addicted, would watch 24/7 if possible). She believes every word as if it were actual news even though we have had many conversations about it being "opinions". Neither of my sibs will visit for more than an hour because every conversation becomes political. This is all new in the last few years and getting more heated with each visit.

Wish we could post pictures. My daughter crocheted a twiddle muff for my Mom. She attached buttons and holes. Zippers. Anything that could be twiddle. It was liked so much by the activities director that she ordered four. Forgot Moms when she passed. Hopefully it's being used. You can do a search but my daughter's was so much better.

Oh, Joann, I love that idea!