Colors, traditional patterns, and techniques—the secrets behind creating captivating knitted items.

This is the second installment of our interview series with knitwear designer Kazekobo.Last time, I talked about my journey from childhood to becoming a designer and my thoughts on knitting.We've discussed various topics, but this time, we'll be asking about your creative process. We'll hear about how you create works that captivate people, and also about your preferred color schemes and patterns.

The charm of colors makes knitting fun.

Kazekobo says she cultivated her sense of color through "planar composition," a technique she learned in college that involves dividing a surface and applying color to it. She is drawn to paintings with beautiful use of color, and such images stick in her memory and come up when she designs. She finds all the colors created by nature beautiful and cherishes every single one, but her favorites are cool colors, and she often finds herself choosing blue tones.

Designing patterns that take into account yarn transfer and ease of knitting.

She often chooses patterns from traditional designs, and she takes particular care to ensure that the yarn on the back of the knitted fabric doesn't carry too far, especially with two-color knitted patterns. She says that many of the traditional patterns that have survived have this in mind, making them easier to knit. She combines patterns to create something that is more her own, and does many test knits to develop her own unique style.

I love knitting, so I enjoy every technique.

Kazekobou creates a wide range of works using knitting needles, crochet hooks, and lace knitting. For example, even with the same crochet technique, the pattern can look different depending on the material used, such as cotton yarn or wool yarn. She chooses patterns and colors to match the yarn she is using, and says that she finds all of these techniques very enjoyable.

The happiest moments are when I'm knitting and when it's finished.

We asked her about the most difficult and most enjoyable parts of creating her works. She said the most difficult part is finding the right knit pattern for the yarn. The most enjoyable part is knitting the fabric. And the most enjoyable part is when the finished product turns out exactly as she imagined.

Self-proclaimed athletic designer

Actually, Kazekobo loves to be active. Whenever she has free time, she walks or swims, and she calls herself an athletic designer. She says that her creative inspiration comes from visiting cities other than Tokyo, where her workplace is located, and walking around. We caught a glimpse of her active side, which is a little different from the image of her work.
The nextIn the final episode, we'll talk about the new kit in collaboration with Kazekobo.the best izakaya that match the scene

The collaboration kit with Kazekobo isSpecial pagePlease check it out.