Susan models the Annemor Cardigan from her new knitting book, Evolution

Hi Susan, how are you today? What are you working on this week?
It’s a particularly exciting week as I took delivery of the Evolution books which now have to be packed up and sent all over the world. In addition to creating the designs in the collection I also publish and distribute the books myself so the entire process other than the physical printing takes place ‘in-house’.

Congratulations on Evolution! What inspired you to write it?
I had been carrying some of the design concepts in my head for some considerable time and finally at the beginning of the year I realised that I had the time to commence working on the ideas. Indeed, the idea of revisiting some of the design details from vintage knitting patterns I had previously recreated was something I had long wanted to explore but hadn’t been free to do so before.

As well as being a book of gorgeous knitting patterns, it includes a very personal story about yourself. What made you want to unite these subjects?
After my diagnosis with stage three breast cancer in 2016 I had to have a double mastectomy and due to the treatments that followed I was not able to have immediate reconstruction. It has transpired since that it is harder to access delayed reconstruction of the sort my post-surgery body is suitable for, than I was aware of, and I found myself throughout 2018 and 2019 having to fight to get reconstructive surgery. By January of this year when I began the project I was anticipating forthcoming surgery and yet at the same time had begun to become more accepting of the person I had become. I also felt disappointed by the lack of visibility of women who have un-reconstructed bodies. It impacts greatly on the clothes you can or choose to wear and as soon as I began to design the pieces for the collection I realised I wanted them to be things I would and could wear and that in order to demonstrate this, I needed to be the model for the collection.

“It became an exploration both of the evolution of design concepts and also the evolution of my body”

Gradually it became an exploration both of the evolution of design concepts and also the evolution of my body of the months that followed. Soon after the first lockdown was announced in the UK in March of this year, I was notified that my pending operation had been cancelled and that it could be up to two years before any operation would be likely. This news affected me deeply but working on Evolution as helped me so much, and now in November, I find myself accepting who I am now in a very different way to the beginning of the year.

All of the photos for Evolution were shot at Susan's farm, including the beautiful Rosa jumper shown here

What has the reaction been like to the book so far?
The response has been quite phenomenal on the whole, with people both embracing the designs but also being incredibly supportive of me, my journey, and what the book represents. Sadly, I have received a small amount of unpleasantness from very isolated sources, unhappy with my use of the word Evolution, suggesting I am attempting to deliver an anti-creationist message by using it as the title of the book. It has been quite upsetting but I was determined not to let this affect me or to influence my naming of the book as Evolution is the only word that truly represents what the book is about.

How do you feel that knitting can help anyone who is going through personal struggles?

I find knitting almost meditative in some respects. It certainly holds my focus and enables my brain to quieten down. And it is also my creative outlet. It speaks for me in ways I would struggle to vocalise. Knitting enables every one of us to be creative, productive, useful and provides us with a sense of fulfilment and control. In a world that feels even more out of control than it ever has, being able to centre our conscious and unconscious thoughts on making can be hugely calming. I think I have used knitting in this way for most of my life without even realising it and only when the opportunity to knit is taken away from me does it dawn on me how positive it has been for me.

“I find knitting almost meditative”

The book is influenced by The Vintage Shetland Project, could you tell us a little more about this?
Whilst working on The Vintage Shetland Project for over 10 years I was constantly being inspired by a stitch pattern, a motif, a colour palette, a garment shape, but due to the demands of the Project I was unable to explore the ideas that were forming. As a designer first and foremost, it was very difficult not to act on these ideas, and contain my instinct to create something new and focus on the task in hand.
Therefore, the idea of a collection of original designs inspired by these same design details was never far from my mind, so as soon as the opportunity presented itself I began to design using sometimes minute details from an archive garment as the starting point for a design. For example Steek and Tavis are both inspired by the steek chart I had plotted for a cardigan which featured in The Vintage Shetland Project.

Evolution by Susan Crawford is available now

What is your favourite pattern inside and why is this?

That’s a very tough question as I have a number of favourites for different reasons, and every one of the designs are special to me, but I think Steek and Tavis both for their originality and for the wonderful surface design that results are particular favourites; Umbel for the unusual use of traditional Shetland lace stitch patterns, Rosa and Floribunda as they use my most favourite of motifs – the asymmetric rose and Annemor as I went all-out to create the perfect jacket without making any concessions to making it easier to write the pattern! But to be honest I love each and every one of the designs.

Do you have any exciting plans for 2021 or projects on your to-knit list you'd like to share?

One of the most significant plans is building the yarn side of my business further – I have many new yarn ranges planned for the coming year. Coupled with this I have been hand-dyeing an exciting range of colours for my new ‘A Room of My Own’ brand, all of which I hand-dye here on the farm. More books are planned, maybe even an Evolution 2; a new yarn/design club for 2021 and much more.

I’m afraid I don’t make new year’s resolutions although I’m constantly making new decisions! I think the only one of those which could truly be classed as a resolution is to succeed in getting all the many kilos of fleece I have collected turned into beautiful knitting yarn!

Discover more about Susan at www.susancrawfordvintage.com