Meet Jeanette Sloan
With her love of vibrant colour and texture, and her keen eye for contemporary, stylish fashion, Jeanette is an inspirational knitwear designer
has been influencing and inspiring knitters for years, through her many knitwear designs and books, her teaching, and her magazine articles. This vibrant, friendly designer loves to work with colour and texture, and we’re delighted to have a new pattern from her in this issue – especially as she came close to giving up designing altogether.
“I had been ill last year, after I was found to have two brain tumours, and had been thinking that perhaps I should stop designing,” Jeanette tells us. “Then I met Erika Knight at Unravel – she’s just the loveliest person – and she asked me to create some patterns for her using her yarn. It made me realise that actually I was still interested in knitwear design. And I managed to finish the sweater for this issue of The Knitter, which had been commissioned a long time ago, but I hadn’t been able to complete.
“I’m pleased to say that things are now very positive - my treatment has finished, and I’m definitely looking to the future!”
Textiles and print
Art and design has always been important to Jeanette, although she originally set out to become a print designer. “I took an HND in Textile Design, which involved both print and knitting design,” she says. “I enjoyed all the drawing involved with print design, but I found myself feeling frustrated that I could take the process so far and then no further – I didn’t get to actually produce a finished product.
“As part of my course, I got to try machine knitting, and I found it very satisfying. I enjoyed its creative, tactile nature, working with yarns to actually make a finished fabric. I still machine-knit today, using the same machine my parents bought me all those years ago while I was doing my course. I’ve been busy lately making bags and purses for the Artists Open Houses event here in Brighton and Hove.”
After finishing her HND, Jeanette stayed on at the college, working as a technician on the course she’d just completed. She ended up teaching there for nine years. During that time, she also did freelance design work, producing knitwear designs which were sold through agencies to a range of fashion companies including French Connection and Donna Karan.
“I moved to Scotland in 1998 to take a masters degree, and while I was there I began working as a design consultant for Rowan, so naturally I become more involved in handknitting,” says Jeanette. She created patterns for bags and accessories for Rowan’s magazines, including ‘Alfie’ in All Seasons Cotton, and a bag and cushion in Cotton Glacé. She was also approached by publisher Search Press to produce a couple of knitting books, and she designed patterns for yarn company Artesano.
“Illness played a part in my next career move,” Jeanette recalls. “My friend ran a yarn shop, and when she died I took over the running of the shop. I ended up working there for a couple of years, and the job was lovely - inspiring and exhausting in equal measure. It was a great shop, beautifully laid out and filled with gorgeous yarns, and we ran workshops. But I found it very tiring, especially as I was just recovering from cancer myself. I take my hat off to everyone who runs local yarn shops - they’re all heroes!”
A focus on fashion
Jeanette’s knitwear design is heavily influenced by fashion and interiors. “I love strong colour, and am fascinated by clashing colours and textures at the moment,” she says. “I’m always inspired by the fashions of Kenzo and the Italian brand Etro; I particularly love making bags, so often look to the styles of Mulberry.”
Jeanette still has a strong interest in print design: “I’m loving the prints of Charley Harper right now. I discovered the work of this American modernist printmaker and illustrator
when I went to a Georgia O’Keeffe exhibition – I was looking for a calendar in the gallery shop, and came across his work. His prints are beautiful and uplifting, and his use of pattern repeats will appeal to people who love textiles.”
What about handknit design? “I admire the beautiful, pared-back, wearable style of Erika Knight. I also love the designs of Bristol Ivy, and her ‘Svalbard’ jumper has been on my knitting queue for a long time. I just haven’t found the right yarn and colour for it yet!”
Like most designers, Jeanette doesn’t get the chance to knit much for herself. “I always feel I shouldn’t be spending my time making things for me, I should be working instead!” she laughs. “I always have a lot of swatching going on - I like to combine knitting with different materials, with varying degrees of success… I did manage to make my husband a hat for Christmas, though, and some handwarmers for my nephew.”
Softness is the key factor when choosing yarns to work with. “I love anything ultra-soft, particularly cashmere, alpaca and silk blends,” she says. “I do enjoy Erika Knight’s Studio Linen yarn – it has a beautiful bounce to it, and is so soft it doesn’t feel like linen. And when it’s been steamed, it has such a fantastic drape.”
Jamieson & Smith’s 2ply Jumperweight, meanwhile, is something of an old favourite: “It’s great to work with, and of course there’s such a wonderful choice of colours. It works well on knitting machines, too. For my knitted and felted bag projects, I like to use Hampshire Chunky from The Little Grey Sheep. The yarn I’ve probably been using for the longest, though, is Rowan Denim – I’ve always loved it.”
So what’s next for Jeanette? As well as her summery jumper in Rowan’s Original Denim in this supplement, she is busy with a new line of readymade accessories, called SLOANmade. “I used to run a small ready-to-wear label in Edinburgh, and while I was recovering from my surgery last year I decided that I really wanted to get back to making and selling accessories again, mixing techniques such as crochet, hand knit, machine knitting and sewing. Some of my first products are seersucker clutch bags, knitted by myself on a semi-industrial 10-gauge machine from wool which is then felted and interfaced, lined, machine sewn and hand finished.”