Knitting
Alice Burnhope
Please tell us a bit about yourself.
Hi, my name is Alice Hoyle, I am from Yorkshire in England and I am a knitwear designer and maker. I studied Fashion Knitwear at university then moved to London to pursue an internship in the knitwear industry. This turned into 4 fun years of designing and styling knitwear for Wool and the Gang. After this, I moved to Amsterdam, where I am currently based, and started to develop my own knitwear platform ROWS. Launching October 2021, we offer knit and crochet patterns as well as made-to-order hand-knitted pieces.
What was your early motivation to express your creativity through knitting?
My mum and grandma taught me some basic knitting as a child but it wasn’t until I started an art foundation at college, that I found knit was a medium I could use to really express my creativity and ideas. I chose to specialise in fashion and textiles, and at this point, it was about being as experimental as possible to make ideas come to life. I naturally swayed towards the familiarity of knitting to realise my ideas, discovering that creating and controlling the fabric as well as the garment shape was where my interests lay.
Can you take us through your process? Do you have a favourite part of the creation process?
I am constantly researching, and collecting images from exhibitions, vintage, nature, books, woven textiles, travel, and day-to-day life. Each project begins with looking at how I can translate my research and sources into textures, colour palettes, and yarns, creating a mood and initial ideas in my mind. I then start to develop these ideas into stitches, going through my collection of second-hand stitch books and files to find and try out new techniques. My designs tend to be stitch led, looking at the weight and drape of a stitch and how that can best translate into a shape.
Once I have decided on an initial design, things start to get more technical and I develop a measurement spec, often based around a vintage piece or a staple I have in my own wardrobe. Then I start to knit the piece and write the pattern as I go. My favourite part of the creation process is definitely the very start of the project when anything is possible and technical issues have not come into play! I always love trying out stitches and watching how the use of colour and yarn can transform even the most basic technique, imagining what the stitches could later become.
How do you feel about working with your hands? Can you tell us more about the impact that it has on your happiness and well-being?
There is something incredibly exciting and freeing in the ability to create anything you want with just your hands, needles, and yarn. I love that working with my hands really connects me to each piece I make, the slow build-up of each stitch and row is something I have come to appreciate. It keeps me present, guiding my mind away from other things, almost like a meditation. I must admit this is not always the case, having a small business is certainly a lifestyle! It can be hard to switch off sometimes, as I knit most evenings. But I try to take time to knit on my own terms for my own well-being. Saturday mornings seem to be the time I put aside to have a slow start to the day, a good cup of coffee and knit something I'm really excited about.
We were delighted to see that part of your profits go to an organisation that supports anyone struggling to cope through messaging services. Can you please share your thoughts on how important it is to you to support this cause?
I lost my dad to suicide when I was 17, back then (13 years ago) mental health awareness and conversations were in a very different place, it was and still is incredibly hard to talk about. My superhero mum is one of the many volunteers who work for the charity Shout. Shout 85258 is a free, confidential, 24/7 text-messaging support service for anyone in crisis. I´ve seen first hand how a service like this can support so many people every day. I made a decision pretty early on in my business development to give 5% of ROWS profits to Shout. Everyone has something that has affected them in life, and for me, I have the ability to support this cause through what I do.
We know that you use secondhand and deadstock yarns for your pieces. What made you take this decision?
I’m really passionate about secondhand everything! What you can find in charity shops and on eBay is incredible. It’s frightening how much stuff is already out there so it makes sense to look second-hand before buying anything new. I have also, like many knitters, developed an impressive collection of yarn from past projects and 11 years experience of studying and working in knitwear. This is always a great resource for my ready-made designs, using up any odds and ends I already have. For the pattern side of my business, I often end up buying new materials so people can easily replicate our designs, but I stick to biodegradable natural fibres to limit the material impact.
Do you believe that crafts can lead to social change, particularly concerning sustainability and ecological behaviours?
Pre-covid the craft space looked very different to how it does today. During the many lockdowns, the rise of the craft community was incredible to watch. Whilst the rise of cheap, throwaway fast-fashion continues, the community I have found through ROWS has made me believe that more and more people are making a conscious choice to find alternatives. Instead of taking the easy route and buying a jumper for a tenner online, many people are making the choice to thrift some yarn and spend the time learning to knit it themselves. Taking pleasure from the slow connecting process and eventually wearing and keeping the item with pride and sentiment. I think this choice in itself can be seen as an often quiet protest and an uprising you can see all over social media.
What upcoming projects make you excited right now?
I am just starting to think about what I want to create for Spring Summer, so I'm getting really excited about starting something fresh! I'm taking a lot of inspiration from some time spent in Italy last summer in the marble towns of Tuscany, interpreting the heat soaked textures into stitches and colour palettes.
Where and how can people engage more with your work?
You can find me on Instagram (@rows_knitwear) and more recently at the same handle on TikTok and Youtube. I’ve been really enjoying spending a bit more time creating video content, making the techniques I use in my designs more accessible. Al picture belong to Alice.
