EILEEN BRAYBROOK
HOLEHole’s ’90s classic Live Through This was one of the best albums of the decade, for sure. I was so inspired by
Courtney Love when I discovered it in my early teens. It was angry, melodic, riot grrl rock, with riffy grunge
guitars and unguarded vocals. I’ve always admired people who can be really vulnerable, yet still vocal and
expressive at the same time – anger can be so empowering. Hole had awesome vintage merch with a great
girly, Barbie-inspired band logo. I would have killed for it when I was 14! (Or like, now.) ‘Live through this’ is
a really strong phrase that has multiple meanings. In my design, I’ve treated it as a message inwards, rather
than a plea to someone or something else. It’s meant as an encouraging, hopeful statement in the way I’ve
presented it, which is a bit different to how it’s used in the song lyrics. I’ve used an old double bed knitting
machine to knit the phrase into the main panel. For the past few months, I’ve been playing around in my
studio trying to knit words, so it was good to have a reason to get it right! I’m really happy you can see the
letters – it did take a bit of trial and error; a few goes and some late nights. The wild, shaggy pile was done by
hand afterwards using a latch hook tool for some added amethyst magic. I read that Courtney Love wrote the
song “Violet” about an old boyfriend who she’d put a hex on, so it was fitting, I think. Overall, the t-shirt came
together in quite a pain-free way – I think choosing an album that meant a lot to me growing up made it easier.
hands on