If you haven't seen her books or taken one of her workshops, you are missing out. Here's a teaser about her work from her website:
Designer, author and teacher Ann McCauley brings a lifetime of artistic influences to her knitwear designs. Ann learned to knit from her mother as a child. Her interest in knitting escalated when she toured Europe as a professional dancer and observed people knitting everywhere she went. Ann began designing her own sweaters in 1980, focusing on solid colors, smooth fibers, and heavy textures that combine classic and contemporary elements.
As the second interview in this series, I've asked Ann to tell us about her work as a designer, with a special emphasis on the unique topics that make her books so special. Enjoy.
Donna: What's your favorite thing to knit?
Ann: Undeniably, it has to be women's sweaters because they're also my favorite thing to wear. I love a nice long row!
Donna: What led you to become a knitting designer and author?
Ann: I was designing my own sweaters for years. Every time I would wear one, people I didn't even know would approach me and ask where I got the beautiful sweater. I sold a few hand knits to those who initially asked before realizing that it would be simpler for me to write the patterns and let them make their own or find a knitter to make it for them. I felt that writing a book would allow me to keep my life simpler than going into production would.
Donna: How did you find a publisher?
Ann: Basically, I think it was a miracle. I was researching knitting publishers online and saw that Martingale & Company was at that time actively seeking new manuscripts. I sent them a submissions proposal which they accepted. I refer to it as a miracle because I'd never written a book, have no formal design training in this field and submitted to one publisher.
Donna: What is your design process like?
Ann: It always involves knowing what yarn I want to work with, swatching and stitch exploration. Visualization is a large part. I find that if I can be very quiet, still and contemplative often a design comes to me in a flash. It is hard to describe. In one moment, there may be no idea and somehow in the next moment, there's insight, direction, and some sort of knowing which may be more abstract than concrete. Unlike most designers, I do not design on the computer. I design on the needles. I almost always start with the back of a sweater because at that point, even if I think I already know, I do not have to commit to whether the sweater is a cardigan or a pullover. I like to let the knitting inform me of what it wants to become, what direction the stitches I've put in motion want to unfold. This is why I always encourage knitters to look at their work. Not only does it enable us to spot an error before we're way past it, it helps us to see the possibilities in a way that I don't find possible with a sketch. This is why I always do all of my own knitting. I find details that I feel I couldn't find otherwise, plus the actual act of knitting is one of my very favorite parts. I enjoy the process as much as the product. My view is that one has to be incredibly detail oriented in the design process.
Donna: What inspires you?
Ann: Color, texture, usually smooth yarns, and elegance.
Donna: Why do you focus on movement relative to knitting?
Ann: I focus on movement in a sweater design. The movement of lines and shapes, content and form, as well as flow, fluidity and the rhythm of a stitch or design. I focus on movement relative to our bodies so I/we can be free to knit (okay, obsessively if we want) with comfort, ease and efficiency. This involves a mindful approach to using our bodies in optimal alignment and allowing the movement of energy in our bodies to circulate freely while we knit. I view optimal alignment as a pass through place rather than a place that we find and inhabit from that point on. It's a place we can learn about and approach with our desired frequency. I draw on the experience of years of movement and dance training that supported a long performance career in modern dance, and great familiarity with principles from various healing arts and physical healing modalities.
Ann: This question illustrates the reason that I encourage all knitters to keep a knitting journal. When I was designing many of these sweaters, it was before I had any awareness that there would one day be a knitting book and if I hadn't kept a knitting journal, there might not have been. We've all heard the phrase that designers design for themselves. Inevitably, a component of that has to be true as we are the lens or the filter for the design. After all, I wouldn't enjoy designing something that I didn't like. It's even challenging for me to knit with a color that isn't a color I would wear. I agree with you that my designs have a timeless or classic component, but I also try to update those elements in some way.
Donna: I've noticed that you wear all of the garments in your books and even though your first book came out several years ago, all of your sweaters still look brand new. Do you have any tips for knitters on choosing yarns with staying power and taking care of hand knits?
Ann: I choose yarns that are natural fibers. I look for yarns that 'behave' well, that don't pill or looked worn or fuzzy after wearing. The ultimate choice in yarn selection for me is that not only does the yarn behave well when worn, but it is also a good value for the consumer and is made in this country. This is why you see a lot of Brown Sheep yarn in my new book. I prefer the cottons that are spun as a cable weave instead of a loose twist. I wear my designs quite a bit to test them before publishing them.
For example, I love the dark brown alpaca skirt in Together or Separate: Knitting the New Twinset and I wore it multiple times sitting in it through dinner parties and theatre evenings to make certain there was no bagging that was going to occur in the seat and detract from its loveliness. When I find a yarn that meets my criteria, I often fixate on it for awhile and use it in several designs.
Currently, I'm delighted that the once discontinued Cascade Lana d'Oro (half alpaca/half wool) has been returned to the Cascade offerings.
Ann: Hmmm... simply my love of knitwear, perhaps? Honestly, it just seemed obvious to me that the twinset didn't need to be limited to one category. I like the concept of being open to all possibilities and expanding upon limitations.
Donna: I love that both of your books have tips for knitters to take care of their hands and bodies. Sometimes we tend to forget that we are physical beings. Over the past few years there have been several books promoting the spiritual aspects of knitting. Do you see any overlap between the spiritual and the physical? How can we explore this through our knitting?
Ann: Oh my goodness, I don't think we should even view these things as separate during our time here. Body, mind, spirit is a trinity. The body is the temple of the spirit. These are high maintenance vehicles we're walking around in. Sadly, we must face that some people take better care of their car than their body. Knitting is orderly repetitive activity much like meditation. I don't know that research has documented this, but I've always had the awareness that knitting elevated my coping skills and many knitters language this as knitting elevates one's serotonin level. Being a self-confessed sweaterholic and being a designer who designs on the needles rather than the computer because of the different, more informed result that it produces means that I want to keep my hands, shoulders, body open to be able to knit obsessively with comfort and ease. I very much believe that we are at a critical time when people must realize that we have the ability to take responsibility for our own health and well-being. There are many simple tools available for us do just that from alignment imagery to breath to knowing what pressure points to go to when something becomes blocked. This is why I love teaching Movement for Knitters. For many knitters this kind of information is revelatory.
Donna: Can we look forward to more books from you in the future?
Ann: Inevitably. I can't imagine not knitting/designing. When I finished the new book, I initially thought that I needed a break. Almost immediately I unexpectedly found myself with three designs to do for Louet. At first, I thought do I have another design in me without a break. With great relief I found these designs came to me very quickly and easily. I often find the design process to be a variable experience. Some designs come to me in a flash, then there have been those that have required a swatch the length of a scarf to bring them to the manifest level.
In preparing to teach a class on exploring design and creativity for Stitches, I came across a quote from Maya Angelou that really made me smile. She said, "You can't use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have."
The next book and designs are germinating and in the process of revealing themselves to me. I love the twinset concept so much I would be happy to go down that road again.
I greatly appreciate the encouragement I receive from knitters who like what I do.
Donna: Thanks Ann! Here's to future successes and creativity!
Posted by donna at 19:29:19. Filed under: Interviews
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