Eco Fashion World

SANDRA BACKLUND

March 21st is the official beginning of Spring in the northern hemisphere! But just as designers are presenting their Fall/Winter 09 collections all over the world, maybe it’s time to start preparing your own wardrobe for next winter. In the first installment of our “Crisis Creativity: DIY” series we take you through the funky world of knitting.

DAVID COLE

If the recession really gives you headaches, we suggest you join the knit revolution. If it's not just for the meditative qualities of knitting, it can be nourishing to know that it's a natural expression of going back to a simple way of living. Knitting is a current international epidemic with hipsters, children and celebrities all taking up the needles. But it's not just a trend, it's also a cheap hobby which is good when trying to save. You can use all kinds of recycled materials in your knit works and as soon as you're addicted, you'll be sure it will keep you from going out to shop.

The funkiest video on how to knit we found at Threadbanger, a network for people who love to DIY, recreate, refashion and craft. Threadbanger's Corinne explains in an easy fashion how to pick up your needles to start creating super cool knitted items. You could start with these bright legwarmers that were created using knitPro, a tool that allows you to translate digital images into knit, crochet, needlepoint and cross-stitch patterns. You can simply upload jpeg images and knitPro will generate the image pattern on a grid sizable for any fiber project. To get inspired, view knitPro's art show, in which our regular contributor Abigail Doan shows you how to create knit-art. Being an environmental artist who works a lot with textiles, Abigail is currently collaborating with sculptor Dave Cole in his knitting machine project. If you've never seen two cranes knitting the American flag, then watch the video of Dave's work. Keep an eye on Abigail's blog to be the first to know about their joint show this summer in Finland.

THE BIG KNIT

From high art to guerilla art with the Knitta crew that conquers cities around the world with their unfinished knitworks. Their colorful additions to city landscapes are almost a way of campaigning that will hopefully excite you as it inspired us. If you want to stick to knitting by the fireplace, Knit Knit offers a great starting point. The book by artist Sabrina Gschwandtner gives you a wonderful overview of profiles and projects of knitting's new wave. Other knitting books include The Natural Knitter and Alt Fiber that focus on knitting with natural and alternative fibers.

There are numerous eco fashion brands that can provide you with inspiration for your own creations. We'd like to highlight the elegant accessories of I love Lowie, sweaters by Makepiece and cardigans with a South-American twist by Lutz and Patmos . Okay, so it might take you some time to acquire the level of skill of Swedish designer Sandra Backlund, but it really goes to show that you really can do anything with the mighty thread!

BARBIE LEGWARMERS

Now, time to stop surfing and start knitting with these colorful needles! If you really feel challenged by the knitting community, try to break the world record for extreme knitting currently held by Julia Hopson. Or if you feel that knitting is not your thing in the end, but you still want to cover your head in style, design your own hat and choose your own knitting granny to knit it for you.

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