La Maison Rililie
knitwear designer
Teacher
Italy
Hello there! My name is Rililie and I am now working for about 10 years as a knitting designer under the label La Maison Rililie Designs. The name was actually an inside joke, since I was living in France at the time and found it funny to go over the top and give my tiny company a grand haute-couture flair. But it stuck and I am still designing women’s garments and accessories full time and loving every minute of it.
My background is in Fine Arts, so my knowledge regarding human anatomy or the flattering use of colours and shapes helps me immensely when designing for various body types.
I like working alone because it allows me to move around and travel a lot. I am rarely staying at one place for long periods and have lived in different countries over the years. This allowed me to get accustomed with different cultures, which is hugely inspiring when it comes to design and creativity. Changing one's surroundings is often enough to get out of the rut and find new ways to keep work fresh and interesting.
I love participating at international workshops, where I mostly teach a subject that is very dear to me: The endless possibilities to adapt any pattern to one’s own body or preferences and how to detect where to individually modify. Together with each participant we discuss what to look out for and how to proceed in different garment constructions.
I try to give as much valuable information as possible regarding knitting techniques or different takes on existing methods. When I play around with my yarn and discover something that could be done differently in knitting, I like to share this info with the community and make photo tutorials or videos and put the things I came up with on my site or on social media - or teach it in my workshops, when I am lucky enough to meet fellow knitters face to face.
My background is in Fine Arts, so my knowledge regarding human anatomy or the flattering use of colours and shapes helps me immensely when designing for various body types.
I like working alone because it allows me to move around and travel a lot. I am rarely staying at one place for long periods and have lived in different countries over the years. This allowed me to get accustomed with different cultures, which is hugely inspiring when it comes to design and creativity. Changing one's surroundings is often enough to get out of the rut and find new ways to keep work fresh and interesting.
I love participating at international workshops, where I mostly teach a subject that is very dear to me: The endless possibilities to adapt any pattern to one’s own body or preferences and how to detect where to individually modify. Together with each participant we discuss what to look out for and how to proceed in different garment constructions.
I try to give as much valuable information as possible regarding knitting techniques or different takes on existing methods. When I play around with my yarn and discover something that could be done differently in knitting, I like to share this info with the community and make photo tutorials or videos and put the things I came up with on my site or on social media - or teach it in my workshops, when I am lucky enough to meet fellow knitters face to face.
7 sense-ible questions for Rililie
1) What are your favourite views, sights or reads such as books, movies or others?I've always enjoyed reading a lot, but lately I am mostly listening to audio books while I'm knitting. I've never mastered reading books when knitting and I admire people who can do such a thing. It's also nice to watch films while knitting, but only if they are not too demanding, otherwise I make far too many mistakes.
2) What are your favourite feels/things to touch?
As a tactile person, it's always a pleasure to consciously touch/feel and prioritize this less-noticed sense. I can't even single out one particular surface - they are all quite exciting to touch.
3) What puts your life in balance?
Whenever I'm not thinking straight and I'm stressed, I try to clean my desk of all unnecessary clutter and only have the bare essentials around me. This usually helps me to be able to concentrate again and focus on what is at task.
4) Favourite odours/smells/perfumes?
Along with touch, smell is one of my favourite senses. It is said that it is the best at evoking memories and it is precisely these smells that fascinate me the most, the ones that can bring childhood memories to life in unexpected moments.
5) Favourite tastes/flavours/food?
In my opinion, "real", traditional cuisine is always the best, regardless of the culture. It is no coincidence that these dishes were able to stand the test of time and even today they can still tell a story about the area.
6) Favourite sounds such as music or others?
I listen to all sorts of music depending on my mood. Mostly maybe jazz - least probably hip-hop.
7) Favourite quote
Oscar Wilde has pretty much the largest selection of genius quotes. One of my favorites of his is this: "Be yourself; everyone else is already taken."
To know more
- Ravelry: la-maison-rililie
- Instagram: @rililie
- Web: Website
- Youtube: @rililie