For the last few decades there’s been a revolution in the knitting world, and we go behind the scenes to gain insight into what inspired and motivated the knitting superstars who were part of this exciting time. Join us every two weeks on Vogue Knitting Knitterviews as we interview the influencers who contributed to making the knitosphere what it is today. Brought to you by Penguin Random House Audio: “Listen while you knit.” Shira Blumenthal is the Brand Ambassador for Lion Brand Yarns, and a fifth generation member of the brand-founding family. Shira travels the country to spread her anti-bullying campaign, #HatNotHate, and stars in the YouTube series Tea with Shira.
Taiu Landra, along with mother Maie and daughter Kersti, is the owner and creative voice of Koigu Wool Designs. For decades, Koigu has supplied top-quality handpainted merino yarn and exquisite knitting designs to consumers across North America. Its unique, rich palette, as glorious as a painter's has ignited a passion for color and quality in the knitting world.
Norther Ireland-born Maggie Jackson has been in the knitting business for over forty years with MaggiKnits, specializing in designer knitting kits and mainly natural yarns designed with her own signature look.
Debbie Bliss has spent over 30 years building an international yarn and design brand. She is recognised for her classic and contemporary designs and use of bold and beautiful colour palettes. Her yarn is adored by a loving community of knitters. Debbie cares deeply about creating pattern collections that complement the qualities of each yarn she works with and designs which flatter all body types. She is also the most published knitwear designer, with over 35 books, 20 booklets and her own magazine and was recently awarded with an MBE in the Queen’s 2015 Birthday Honours List for her services to hand knitting and the craft industry.
Laura Zander is the co-owner of leading online yarn and fabric retailer Jimmy Beans Wool. Laura and her husband Doug quit their dot-com jobs in San Francisco and founded the company in Lake Tahoe, and it has been named one of the 5,000 fastest-growing private companies in the US. She has been invited to the White House for a forum addressing the American Jobs Act, where Jimmy Beans Wool was recognized as a notable Nevada business.
Sandy Black is a professor of fashion and textile design and technology at the London College of Fashion. She curated the touring exhibition The New Knitting and is the author of numerous publications including Knitwear in Fashion, Fashioning Fabrics, and Eco-Chic: The Fashion Paradox. She is the founder and coeditor of the journal Fashion Practice: The Journal of Design, Creative Process & the Fashion Industry.
Nicky Epstein is a prolific designer who goes from high fashion to whimsical fun with great ease and an innovative thinker that embellishes traditional knitting techniques and creates new, revolutionary ones. She has authored numerous bestselling and award-winning books, in both fashion and resource genres, that are “must haves” in knitters’ libraries. You can find her kits and samples for sale at www.nickyepstein.etsy.com.
Margaret Stove is a leading expert of hand knitted superfine lace. Examples of her work are found in many galleries and private collections throughout the world. A passion for knitting and later designing lace led Stove to explore techniques for spinning lace yarns. Stove teaches lace knitting and spinning internationally, and her line of New Zealand Merino lace yarn and patterns are distributed in the United States and throughout the world.
Julie Weisenberger is an internationally renowned knitwear designer and teacher known for her elegant, modern fashion sense and her unique commonsense method to knitting tailored, seamless sweaters that are as enjoyable to make as they are comfortable and flattering to wear.
Scandinavians Arne Nerjordet and Carlos Zachrison are highly regarded designers, textile artists, and authors. They are best known for their original, colorful, and visually striking designs as well as their craft books. Their work is highly influenced by their Scandinavian background and their everyday life in rural Norway.
Alice Starmore is a Scottish artist, designer and internationally renowned author. She was born on the Hebridean Isle of Lewis into a family of Gaelic-speaking crofter-fishermen, and this culture and the natural landscape of her home have greatly influenced her work.
Brandi is a self-taught knitwear designer specializing in natural handmade goods for all genders. She is all about intricate construction, shaping techniques, and creating classic, wearable pieces with pops of color. She sells original, ready-made knitwear, detailed how-to knitting pattern books, and shares her journey as a small business owner through curriculum development and teaching. She also works full-time as a coordinator at the Park Slope Food Coop. She is a one-woman show, always on a learning curve and in a happy hustle.
Mary Jane Mucklestone is a hand-knitting designer known for inventive colorwork design. She has a passion for folk knitting and has traveled the world to study traditional techniques and to learn about the history of the craft. Her first three books, 200 Fair Isle Motifs, 150 Scandinavian Motifs, and Fair Isle Style, were instant classics, and her latest, Geo Knits: 10 Lessons and Projects for Knitting Stripes, Chevrons, Triangles, Polka Dots and More is set to become one as well. Mary Jane loves to teach, specializing in lively, fun, and informative classes. Mary Jane’s inventive hand-knitting designs are featured in many books and magazines as well as on her website, MaryJaneMucklestone.com.
Hamilton’s artistic career began when she started selling her creations in her mid-teens. A true multi-crafter, she is proficient at embroidery, macramé and crochet but finally settled on handknitting at the age of 22. After a design and hand knit career in New York, she moved to Sweden, eventually opening a yarn store. To date Cornelia has written 15 pattern books for knitting and written numerous articles on the history of knitting in Sweden. She now divides her time between Sweden and America, giving workshops and lectures at trade shows and retreats and marketing her yarn line, Heaven's Hand.
Cecelia Campochiaro started knitting at age twelve as a hobby. She has a doctorate in physical chemistry and has lived and worked in Silicon Valley for more than twenty years, developing different kinds of microscopes for finding problems with computer chips. Cecelia began experimenting with new ways to create fabric when flying on business trips. These ideas grew, and eventually the book Sequence Knitting was born. Textiles, photography, and the arts have been lifelong passions, and she loves thinking about how these different creative areas intersect with math and science.
Andrea Mowry focuses on designing knits to fit the modern wardrobe that are fun to knit and easy to wear, with clear directions for every level of knitter. She believes in enjoying every stitch and wearing at least one hand knit every day! Andrea has a great love for indulging in new techniques and skills and then sharing them with other knitters through her patterns and workshops. Her goal is to leave knitters feeling empowered and inspired, and wrapped up in their own beautiful knits!
Norah Gaughan has served as design director for Berroco Yarns, Reynolds Yarns, and Adrienne Vittadini Yarns, and has published patterns in leading knitting and textile magazines such as Vogue Knitting, Interweave Knits, and Woman's World magazines. She has authored several knitting books including Knitting Nature, Comfort Knitting & Crochet: Afghans, Comfort Knitting & Crochet: Babies & Toddlers, Norah Gaughan's Knitted Cable Sourcebook, and Norah Gaughan: 40 Timeless Knits.
Joji has been actively knitting for 14 years (and counting), self-published her first design in 2008, and continues to do so on Ravelry. She has also written five Interpretations books with her friend Veera Välimäki
Nancy Marchant is the Queen of Brioche. For more than 30 years, Nancy has studied the nuances of this European stitch, developing new and exciting stitches and techniques for achieving beautiful results. She is the author of Knitting Brioche, Knitting Fresh Brioche, Leafy Brioche, and Tuck Stitches. She is working on her current knitting passion of developing brioche lace stitches. Nancy is a retired graphic designer who lives in Amsterdam and travels the world, giving lessons and spreading the brioche love around.
For more than 25 years, Deborah Newton has designed for all the major craft and knitting magazines, for yarn companies, and for Seventh Avenue, as well as being a regular columnist for Vogue Knitting. She is the author of numerous books, including Designing Knitwear, which has been in continuous print for more than 20 years, and Finishing School: A Master Class for Knitters. Deborah's latest book, Good Measure: Knit a Perfect Fit Every Time, was chosen by Amazon as one of their 15 Top Craft Inspiration Books of Fall 2015. She lives and works in Providence, Rhode Island.
Kaffe Fassett is a leading textiles designer and practitioner of contemporary crafts, dedicating the last 50 years of his life to the world of knitting, needlepoint and patchwork, promoting these crafts through his own work and encouraging others to find their own creativity. He has produced over 40 publications from ‘how to books’ to color in design, and also tours internationally giving workshops, lectures and museum exhibitions. He has a loyal following of patchworkers, knitters and embroiderers all over the world.
Stephen West’s shawl designs and innovative colorwork have helped him become a widely recognized and respected designer around the world. Under the name Westknits, he produces pattern books and hosts several online knit-alongs each year. His simple, clean, architectural designs have now been knitted by thousands of knitters all around the world. He also co-owns Stephen & Penelope, a yarn boutique in Amsterdam.
For our introductory episode, Trisha Malcolm talks to Meg Swansen of Schoolhouse Press on her love for circular needles and unspun wool, the never-ending journey of knitting innovation, and carrying on the legacy of her mother, Elizabeth Zimmerman.
Join us for Vogue Knitting Knitterviews, the interview podcast where we get up close and personal with the influencers who have made knitting what it is today. Listen to this exclusive sneak peek of what you can expect in episodes to come. Brought to you by Penguin Random House Audio: “Listen while you knit."