My creative eye is constantly hungry for inspiration

Happiest when igniting a passion for colour and sharing creativity with others, Brandon can’t sit still, doesn’t follow patterns ,and if he wasn’t a knitwear designer would be director of a most magical circus performance.

design style

eclectic, playful, colourful and bold

I don’t like to put my style in a nutshell

but I knit to put colours together using basic stockinette or intarsia, which is so easy to knit once you master the technique of working with manageable lengths of yarn. Shapes, fancy shapes, aren’t important to me when I design. The body is the easel to carry a canvas of pattern and colour. I want to see a design walking down the street or across the room that makes me intrigued and want to smile.

inspired by

everything

I’m constantly intrigued by the play of pattern and colour

Every design I create is arrived at by the design process and is not a direct interpretation of the inspiration around me. My design icon is Christian Lacroix for pattern and colour play, and of course Kaffe Fassett, and for shape and form I’m always intrigued by Shirin Guild and Issey Miyake, to name a few.

My design process starts with a pencil sketch

then I knit a swatch to balance out the scale of the pattern and yarn being used. The very last part is deciding on the shape.

A successful design is always in a dialogue with the knitter

I’d like to think that all my designs have the potential to be played with in lots of different ways, and that I’m planting a seed for people to take my idea and interpret it in their own way. That’s success for me.

I am happiest at the end of a workshop

when I have all the participants work pinned up on the wall and we can all talk about it together. I’m an encourager first and foremost, not a teacher/designer/artist. I’m playing with colour in any medium I can and sharing recipes to ignite other people’s own creative fire to have a go. That’s when I’m most happy.

The best advice I’ve ever been given is don’t get weighed down

by the IDEA of the end result. Enjoy the process and learn from it too. You might end up in a different place from where you started. I thought this was excellent advice.

yarn stash

I’m not going to compare sizes

it’s embarrassing

There will always be someone saying mine is bigger than yours. Game on! The discontinued Rowan yarns I wish I could bring back are Donegal Tweed and Silk Stone. My favourite Rowan yarn from the current collection has to be Felted Tweed in Kaffe Fassett colours. Hands down!

my knitting

The best fibre is 100% natural wool

or Rowan Felted Tweed

My favourite stitch is the one that goes around the needle. My go-to knitting resource is the Vogue Knitting Ultimate Knitting Book, you can’t fail.

on my needles now

and for quite some time,

is a random striped stole using up leftover yarns

There might be three hundred and fifty odd stitches wide of fingering-weight yarn. It’s a great ongoing project to knit whilst a radio play is on. Visitors will often ask, “What’s it for, what’s it going to be...., ” but don’t rush me, I haven’t decided yet. It’s about five feet (one and a half metres) long so maybe I’ll make it into a boob tube (if you’re going to ask!)

about me

When I’m not knitting,

I’m painting designs for fabric collections

Plus, I’m running the Kaffe Fassett Studio, which is all about multi-tasking. I love cooking, too, and I collect wigs.

If I wasn’t a knitwear designer, I would be Creative Director

of a most magical and colourful circus or theatre performance, surrounded by an enchanting creative team to work with who all believed in the same vision. Creating costumes, scenery, music, make up, hair—presenting the most memorable experience to inspire and delight.

I am very bad at sitting still for long

If I have an idea, I need to deal with it immediately otherwise I’ve moved on. I’m not a person to follow patterns and regulations. So, maybe this is why I haven’t incorporated fancy stitches and complicated patterns into my designs.

Those who work with their hands

find something deeper inside. They give time back to themselves, too.

Brandon Mably