I live in Maryland with my family and our deeply-suspicious-of-anything-new dog. I began designing patterns about 10 years ago and have had patterns published most recently by Interweave Knits, Knitty, and SweetGeorgia Yarns.

How did you get into knitting & designing knitwear?
It started with a pair of socks. Sock Knitters Anonymous on Ravelry held a monthly challenge to design your own sock pattern. I labored over those socks, and by the time they were finished, I had caught the designing bug.

What designers do you admire & why?
I prefer not to name names because there’s too many amazing designers! I’m sure that I would leave out crucial people. I gravitate toward designers who make projects with clean lines, interesting constructions, or a strategic use of color. I am constantly finding new patterns to admire and add to my queue.

What does your design process look like?
There are three main ways that I begin to develop a design. I’m frequently inspired by the mood boards that magazines & yarn companies send out when they are putting together a collection. I’ll see an image of something in nature or of another garment, and then I’ll dive into my stitch dictionaries to match up my ideas with actual stitches.

Other times, I want to knit with a particular yarn. You know – those special skeins that you just have to buy, but then you don’t know what you’re going to do with them?  I try to think about what stitch patterns would show off the yarn best.

The third way I come up with designs is the most spontaneous and least reliable. Occasionally, I’ll be about to fall asleep and an absolutely brilliant idea for a pattern will pop into my head. Unfortunately, what seemed amazing in the foggy middle of the night sometimes won’t turn out to be workable in the light of day.

What type of project do you like to knit/crochet most?
I keep coming back to shawls, though I like to mix things up with all different types of projects. Shawls are easy because gauge is not as important and they provide a wide-open canvas for experimentation.

What are you best known for as a designer?
I’m not sure – I’d like to be known for clear instructions and an interesting use of color and texture. Those are my goals!

What are your hobbies/interests outside of the fiber community?
When I’m not knitting, I’m taking care of my kids, working as a freelance editor, baking cookies, reading novels, and writing stories. There’s always too much to do and not enough hours in the day.

Is there anything else you’d like our knitters to know about you?
I’m so excited to be collaborating with Eat.Sleep.Knit. in the Pattern Academy! Thanks so much!

Want to see more of Emily? Check our her profile on Ravelry!