http://www.crochetnow.co.uk | 31If I had to name my style, it'd be ‘bohemian
chic’. It's inspired by Ibiza, Spanish
flamenco dancers and gypsy culture. I've
always loved bright colours and prints.
Most of the clothes I buy are not interesting
enough for me, so I add something to
it when I get home, or mix it with other
prints! My inspiration comes from many
places. I live near the
flower fields in Lisse, and
walks through the woods
and parks are great. It's
important to maintain my
style and it makes me
happy to design a shawl
with lots of colour and
embellishments to make
an interesting design to
look at, but also to be
creative every day and
design items I want to have and wear. It's
become my signature.
The yarn always comes first when I design!
When I visit a yarn shop, I get pulled in
by colours or textures. I never have a
plan before I buy yarn. At home I have an
enormous stash, it’s marvellous. I start
with the basic shape and play around
with colours. If I know for instance I'm
working to a bohemian theme, I'll go for a
darker background because it makes the
decoration stand out. Once the base is
done, I can decorate. It is a trial-and-error
process. I make some flowers, if I don’t
like them I try something else. They grow
organically. If I am stuck I turn to Pinterest
or go to a city and go ‘window shopping’.
Sometimes I draw a design but it always
comes out differently than I thought. When
I crochet I like to write down the pattern
straight away. This avoids not knowing
what I did afterwards.Behind every design is
a story. For instance,
The Leaping Hare
Shawl I did for Loop
London – when I met
Susan (the owner) in
February, we found
a date for workshops
and I knew I wanted
to do something with
the lovely hare logo of her shop. Since
I have no shawls using yarn she sells, I
suggested designing one for her using
her yarn. Loop has a couple of exclusive
colours that are Susan’s favourites, so
she sent over a selection of yarn and I
started designing the hare first. Once
that was done I placed him on the grey
base and designed the rest. He would be
leaping over a field of flowers, and that
is how it came together. It’s a stunning
piece and since it is a delicate design and
the attention needs to go to the hare, I
decided to do a lace edge.I love Janie Crow’s designs, they’re so
colourful and versatile. Other designers
I love are Kieran Foley, Nathalie Lété and
Nancy Ricci – the list is endless! Each time
I go somewhere new people get added to
the list and I follow them, which is another
good thing the internet’s brought us.I'm designing a couple of patterns that will
be coming out next year, and my book will
be coming soon! That will be full of fun
patterns with which you can design your
own colourful items and will be available in
English and Dutch. Keep an eye out!Turn over to make Ellen’s
amazing cushions!It is very
important
to me to
maintain my
style
Designer sketchbook
Images © sungisook