trading stories
Shobhana of My Life In Stitches recently sat down with me to discuss her second book, Yarnplay at Home. Her unerring eye and design sense has evolved into a volume of home knitted items to inspire you throughout the year. Listen in:
RC: As the daughter of an interior designer, I grew up
with an appreciation of well-edited design, so I was especially happy to see
your collection of knitted items for the home. For objects so often maligned,
you designed some beautiful and functional items. Why handknits for the home
in the 21st century?
Shobhana: I think that people are beginning
to tire of all the cookie cutter, designer home accessories. The new trend is
about unique, handmade pieces.
RC: Do you find that people are
receptive to handknits for the home; either investing the time themselves or
willing to gift such items?
Shobhana: Knitters are definitely very
interested in knitting for the home. There are only so many sweaters and
scarves and pairs of socks that one can own! As far gifting goes, it's much easier to give a knitted gift
for the home. I don't know anyone who couldn't use a beautiful cushion cover or
afghan. We all know that not everyone appreciates a hand knit sweater. Sad, but
true.
RC: I agree, but on the other hand, I
cringe when I think of the abuse that hand knit home items might suffer - pet
destruction, food spillage. Have you received feedback are what knitters are
most willing to tackle? Is it the big items like afghans or something like the
napkin skirt Flirt?
Shobhana: Every knitter wants an afghan. The problem with
afghans is that we tend to knit them for someone else and never for ourselves.
I never knitted one until I had to knit one for my first book.
RC: See, that's the thing. I most covet
an afghan, but I'm of the "ooh, shiny" knitter's school and know I
would punk out before it was finished. What motivation can you offer knitters
willing to take the plunge and knit an afghan for themselves?
Shobhana: Choose yarn that you love and spend so much money
on it that it would make you physically ill to abandon it to the UFO pile. An
afghan takes a long time to knit and you're going to spend countless hours
looking at it after it's completed, so it should be really, really lovely.
RC: Ah, I see. The threat of having to
eat boxed mac and cheese for three months for no apparent reason and nothing on
the bed to show for it. Threats work, I readily admit. Doesn’t mean I'm still
not going to be seeing some cute little hat on the side.
Shobhana: Well, I didn't say you couldn't be
promiscuous.
RC: I love the modernist slant to the
book. Chicken or the egg: some of your designs are named after design movements
like Barcelona and Bauhaus. Did you consciously design items influenced by
those styles or did the items remind you of a certain style?
Shobhana: The items reminded me of those styles. Attempting a
literal translation would be more difficult to pull off. I think, for me, a
design almost never ends up the way that I had initially envisioned it.
RC: All good design evolves and I think
you accomplished that. Who are some your influences in home design? Is there
anyone's style that you feel particularly inspired by?
Shobhana: Tony Duquette. I tend to go for really over the top design that mixes a lot of different eras and styles. I love his imaginative and completely outrageous style! Talk about pushing the envelope! It's obscene. For me, a little bawdy doesn't really work. You have to go full frontal and Tony Duquette definitely succeeded at that!
RC: I know you've mentioned
wanting/having Philippe Starck pieces in your home. Do you see anything he's
done as being translatable to knitting?
Shobhana: Yeah, i have a Philippe Starck
ghost chair that I love! All of my handmade dolls are displayed there. As far
as translating something of his into a knitted piece... I’m not sure that I can
do it, but I would love to see him create some amazing, knitted object!
RC: Oh, absolutely. He's someone who I
think has an impeccable eye for design. I think he could do it. Whoever thought
Jonathan Adler could pull off needlepoint designs, but he did it. Which brings
to mind, cross-medium design. When the medium is woven fabric, home design and
fashion clearly influence one another. Do you see that with knitted home items?
Shobhana: I do see a bit of crossover
there. However, I think that most of the pieces that I design for the home are
more of a blend of craft and art rather than craft and fashion.
RC: Many of your designs have a
distinctly modernist twist. How is that best conveyed with hand knits - color
choice, texture, placement of the item in the home?
Shobhana: Texture, probably. With texture I tend to take a
less is more approach, although my attitude toward color is that more is more.
RC: I actually think one of the most
striking designs in the book is Bauhaus. It's striking in its simplicity with
the garter stitch, which I think actually conveys the modernist feel almost
more than the color, like you said.
Shobhana: I'm really glad that people get
it. In my opnion, Bauhaus is one of the strongest designs in the book. One
thing that sometimes annoys me about people that have been knitting for a long
time is that if a design isn't super complicated, they don't get it.
RC: Exactly, it's exhausting the
technique one upmanship that goes on in knitting. The end result is what's
important and sometimes garter conveys the feeling better than any complex
traveling vine pattern. When it comes to home items, which knit camp do you
fall into - creating an heirloom for future generations or quicker
gratification and a resulting item that fits your design sense of the moment?
Shobhana: I view hand knits for the home in the same way that
I view a painting or sculpture. I see them as works of art, so I guess that
puts me in the heirloom camp.
RC: Which brings me back to gifting of
these items. Do you think the giving of a knitted home item is as fraught with
intention as knitwear? Is there a home equivalent of the boyfriend sweater? You
know, somewhat akin to "don't knit him a cashmere cabled throw"
before your name is on the mortgage?
Shobhana: While I love to work with really
luxurious fibers, in the end I suppose it's less about the quality of the
materials and more about the construction and finishing. I'll be just as
pleased with a beautifully constructed cushion cover that I knit from leftover
scraps as I will be with something knit from cashmere or alpaca. Sometimes
taste and style are more about color, design and great execution than fiber content.
Well, I wouldn't knit anyone a cashmere cabled throw! I would say that an
afghan is a big deal, though certainly not as fraught with intention as the
dreaded boyfriend sweater!
RC: In closing (and in the end it all
really comes down to a cocktail)...Wine bottle sweater: insanely chic home
accessory or savvy way to disguise cheap dinner wine?
Shobhana: Hah! I'd have to go with the latter. I think it's a
really hilarious project. I would die laughing if someone showed up at my place
with a wine bottle wearing a sweater. Knitting can be so deadly serious. I try
to have a sense of humor about it.
RC: When I first saw it, I immediately
envisioned different versions: a Missoni sweater, a Nordic sweater, a Fair
Isle...
Shobhana: I love it! Now those are wine
bottle sweaters that I would love to see. Sounds like a really great art
project.
RC: As always, sweetie, you rock. A beautiful, inspirational book full of eye candy that can become reality. Definitely a find for knitters looking to satisfy the nesting urge.
Shobhana: It's been a pleasure. I'm always happy to nudge you out of semi-blog retirement.
Shobhana's Yarnplay Blog Tour continues tomorrow at Purls Just Wanna Have Fun. Be sure to check out the Yarnplay at Home Knit-Along.
