Behind the Scenes: Designing the Our Maker Life x We Are Knitters Winter 2022 Collection

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to create a full collection in collaboration with an established brand? Today, two of our team members (Jewell Washington & Nathan Bryant - who designed the pieces for the OML x WAK Winter 2022 Collection) are sharing their experiences and processes.

The Inspiration

Our source of inspiration was pulled from our desire to create cozy and modern aesthetic knits centered around our community theme which is ‘for makers by makers’.

When creating our moodboard, we focused on ways to create pieces that visually say ‘find joy in warmth’, which is so needed in wintertime. It is also a joy that makers look for, particularly while knitting and crocheting, during the colder months.

How do we as makers find joy in warmth, and how can that truly inspire us to create happiness in a kit? That was what we sought to answer while designing each piece.

“How do we as makers find joy in warmth, and how can that truly inspire us to create happiness in a kit? That was what we sought to answer while designing each piece.”

We were inspired by the colors found in nature (gray, brown, pumpkin, white, and forest green), as well as nature itself. The early gray sky, the brown soft dirt along an autumn trail, the coziness inside of a wooded cabin with a nearby fire, snow in winter, and a forest’s solemn stillness, all of this and more, truly inspired us.

We also designed pieces that we could see makers at our events excited to knit, crochet, and wear. Knitting and crocheting statement pieces collaboratively is a big part of OML, and we sourced and drew inspiration from our attendees who have supported us throughout the years.

The Process

The work process was exciting, challenging, and fun!

There is a cool interconnectivity between tradition and modern that knitwear has a beautiful way of showcasing, and we tapped into that to inspire our work process. For example, we sketched our designs on paper, but also on our iPads. Jewell designed in her notebook and on her laptop. Nathan brainstormed and visualized his designs during meetings, but also in Milanote, an online mood board program.

We researched patterns that were popular in the 1900s, as well as today's knit trends. We were able to feed off of that bridge between tradition and modern, old-school media and new school tech, classic and trendy knitwear, to really push our design process. We also used our productivity tools to keep us on track and meet deadlines, which is always a challenge that we embrace. We worked ambitiously and with a focused aggressiveness on early creative concepts, then design concepts, then design development, then materials and color palettes, then early written pattern construct, then finalized patterns and photos.

The WAK team gave us great direction so that we could lean into our design, stitches, and pieces, while knowing exactly where we were going throughout the work process, and how to get to the finish line. It was so much fun and we are so thankful for this opportunity!

The Values

This collection is what we truly believe is a bold and beautiful statement for the maker life, encompassed into a knitwear collection. We designed pieces that we hope all makers will feel confident and excited to knit, crochet, and wear!

For Jewell, she designed pieces that makers could be thrilled to wear and make and talk about at OML. Her Roadtrip Sweater is inspired by roadtrips to the global Our Maker Life meetups and invites knitters on a journey of meditative stitches, colorwork, and making a sweater bottom up. Her Moxtree scarf is inspired by a quirky meetup bar and a nod to Portland, Oregon’s forest, and the OML Portland event that was so much fun in the Pacific Northwest.

The Moxtree invites crocheters to choose adventure and have fun with crochet through double stitches and marled colorwork to make a scarf fit for the winter season. Her Keynote Blanket is a shout out to Our Maker Life keynote speakers, and is all about modern aesthetic. Makers will get to indulge in easy stitches with chunky yarn that makes for a quick colorblock-esque blanket. It is perfect for cold nights by the fireside, or as a beautiful blanket throw.

For Nathan, he aimed to make modern aesthetic pieces that all makers would love to knit. So Warm Memories is a cabled hat knit bottom up in the round. The Ladder Cowl is a funnel cowl design. It is wide at the bottom and narrow at the top. This allows it to be worn as a cowl, scarf, snood, or even shawl-like. The stitches are knits, purls, sl2 wyif, and yarn overs. There are decreases to shape the cowl.

Tartan 300 is a rectangular super scarf design. It is knit from the bottom up, but both ends are symmetrical. The stitches used are knits and purls, creating small grids.For the collection, we are excited that makers will get to indulge in baby alpaca, petite wool, meriwool, and the wool yarns which have amazing colorways and create beautiful stitches. We’re really looking forward to seeing the colors makers choose and how they style and cozy up with each piece!

“We believe that makers have global reach with talent and stories to share, and we seek to offer a for makers by makers platform that stands on the joy and fun of creating work by hand. ”

The Mission

We launched OML in 2016 with a vision to connect makers, and that is what we like most about being makers: our community in this wonderful industry. Whether it is showcasing keynote OML speakers, connecting with attendees, featuring designers on social media, knitting WAK kits at our events, or designing a WAK collection, we love to indulge in knitwear with the community at the center.

How can we create community and provide more of it in a way that makers ideally want and need from us? How can we be leaders in diversity and make knitters, crocheters and brands feel welcome and included? Continuing to ask and answer that is the OML mission, and we love it. It is what truly inspires us and drives our passion in everything that we do. It is where and why we always want to be transparent, challenged, and grow.

We believe that makers have global reach with talent and stories to share, and we seek to offer a for makers by makers platform that stands on the joy and fun of creating work by hand. And that is our vision for the future, one that encompasses our past and present: to make, empower, and advance fiber creativity for a better world — and maker life.