I find when I’m searching for inspiration for patterns or textiles I often start by looking at objects rather than the actual patterns on things. I love to find a collection of objects with a similar purpose or hand that I can group together to discover a new shape or texture. Here’s one of my recent inspirational collections:

Knitted Illustrations:

This is a great group, all from the NYPL digital gallery which is a great resource for research. These knit accessories speak so much of the shape of the body they make me feel very focussed on designing for a real person as opposed to just thinking about pattern in a 2 dimensional way, as on paper or a fabric ground. Of course, they also make me want to peel away the winter layers and get ready for spring.

Coverage by Kimberly Hall