Fair’s flare as designer reveals still thrill dedicated followers
Anyone with an interest in knitting, or indeed fashion, will be familiar with Fair Isle.
Whether found cascading from home knitters’ needles or gracing haute couture catwalks, the iconic and intricate pattern of repeating motifs and multiple colours has become popular worldwide.
Yet its origins lie on the tiny, remote island of the same name located in the North Sea between Shetland and Orkney.
Those who have attempted the knitting technique, passed down through generations of Fair Isle knitters, will also know that there are thousands of instructional books on the subject.
However, knitwear designer Mati Ventrillon, who has lived on Fair Isle for 13 years, believes she may be the first resident knitter to release a book about the celebrated pattern, first spun centuries ago.
“I’m not 100% sure but I think that, even though there are so many books about Fair Isle knitting, this is the first pattern book by someone who actually lives here,” said Mati, 47, of Knitting
From Fair Isle, released last week. “I’ve been trying to find out if anyone from the island before me has written a book of Fair Isle patterns and I can’t find any.
“Many knitters come here for a few weeks then go home and write a brilliant book on the subject. But for me, it’s important that I live and run my business on Fair Isle to preserve that permanent connection with the island.”
Mati, originally from Caracas in Venezuela, boldly left her architecture job in London to move with her then-partner and two-year-old son to Fair Isle in 2007, after she fell in love with the tranquil stillness of the UK’S most remote island.
After learning to knit on Fair Isle, she is now one of three local custodians of the pattern.
“There was not much I could do back then and knitting was probably the only creative enterprise here. Women from a local knitting cooperative taught me to knit Fair Isle and I loved it,” said Mati.
“It took four years to become a confident knitter and then a few more to develop my style. Although this is a tradition that has been handed down, every knitter will put their personality into their Fair Isle knitting.
“One knitter on Shetland will recognise another knitter’s garments by the pattern alone. Each of the three knitters on the Fair Isle have put our own stamp on it.”
Mati’s ultimate test came in 2013 at
the Shetland Christmas Fair when she unveiled her work to her toughest critics – women who had been knitting across the Shetland Isles for decades.
“Who knows what they first thought of a foreigner, living on Fair Isle, setting up a Fair Isle knitting stall. I had every single knitter in the isles inspect my work.
“It was intense but they finally said, ‘Fair Isle is lucky to have you.’ I nearly cried, I was so happy.”
Since then, Mati has grown her knitwear business into three successful strands. This includes a bespoke service, for which she uses a knitting machine in her island workshop to create unique garments, which can each take up to 20 hours to create and cost around £400.
She also runs an artisan ready-to-wear project, which offered internships to aspiring young knitters before the pandemic, and her MV industrial collection, manufactured off-island.
“The core idea behind my business was to bring Fair Isle to everyone,” said Mati. “I love bespoke commissions but it is a long and expensive process so
I wanted a line that was beautiful but more accessible.”
Mati’s stunning Fair Isle designs received global attention five years ago for an unusual reason. In December 2015, Mati found herself at the centre of a media storm, after she pulled up French fashion powerhouse, Chanel, for plagiarising her work. The label’s catwalk show included knitwear designs uncannily similar to Mati’s work, after Chanel staff had previously visited Mati’s island studio and purchased several of her garments for research.
“It was both shocking and flattering at the same time. It was disappointing they didn’t credit me but they apologised publicly, which was nice,” recalled Mati.
“It was that real 15 minutes of fame. So many journalists were calling me, even on Christmas Eve. The sad thing was that no one was interested in Fair Isle, or my work to preserve it, which was terrible.”
Mati hopes her new – and first – book, which includes 15 contemporary Fair Isle designs inspired by tradition that even beginners can master, will remind the public of the pattern’s true origins.
The beauty of this island fills me with such a sense of safety and belonging