NORMAN — Alexis Winslow’s roots are here in Oklahoma.
She graduated from Norman North High School in 2001 and took a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in painting and ceramics from OU in 2005.
Currently a resident of Brooklyn, New York, with her advertising executive spouse Brian Cantrell, also of Norman, Winslow is busy building a design empire. She has achieved significant recognition both as employee of an established textile design firm and independently as the CEO of Knit Darling. Winslow has used her skills not just knitting garments but also by designing patterns for those who do.
She’s included on Knitting Daily’s “10 Designers to Watch in 2011: Knitscene’s Hot List.”
They wrote about her, “A painter from Oklahoma living in Brooklyn, where a loveable hipster chic has worked its way into hand-knitting design, Alexis Winslow is definitely one for the modern knitter to watch. She has some clever accessories coming up in Knitscene.”
Just in case you aren’t hip, knitting isn’t just for grannies in rocking chairs anymore. In Norman’s coolest hangouts such as Gray Owl Coffee shop, 223 E. Gray St., you’re likely to find young women and sometimes men knitting their latest project.
Winslow has her needles in this wave, selling patterns through her own website (knitdarling.com) and the organized fiber arts community at ravelry.com.
“Ravelry is a social network for knitting, but they also helped me self-publish patterns that I wrote,” Winslow said during an interview at her in-laws Kathe and Allen Cantrell’s Norman home during the holidays. “After that, I submitted patterns to a catalogue website called KnitPicks.com. I have about 12 designs there and the business has just been building steadily.”
To date she has sold more than 1,200 individual patterns via the Internet, representing a significant revenue stream. Five of her designs have been purchased for publication in magazines this year.
Patterns for women’s gloves, sweaters and hats predominate but Winslow has designs for men and plus-sizes coming out in 2011.
“At ravelry.com my buyers post pictures of their projects and comments about them,” she said. “I enjoy that feedback which you don’t get from the catalogue purchases.”
Mentions on knitting blogs about Winslow’s website have increased sales around the world.
“For whatever reason, I sell a lot of patterns in the Netherlands,” she said. “They’re really into knitting and very vocal about it. They post comments on ravelry.com in Dutch that I copy and paste into Google for translation.”
This helps Winslow hone her pattern writing skills because many of the consumer remarks are about their project progress.
“I’ve learned to write instructions as concisely as possible,” she said.
Winslow’s full-time day job as printed textile designer is as interesting and challenging as her independent enterprises.
Employer Jay Franco and Sons Inc. has been a family-owned and operated business for over 60 years. They’re a leader in fabric bedding, bath and beach products. Six of their eight largest retail customers have stores in Norman.
Daily, Winslow goes to a corporate headquarters office of 50 employees in mid-Manhattan. Three generations of Francos work in the office. Because of the industry’s traditional population, Winslow has the added bonus of exposure that’s relatively uncommon in Oklahoma.
“I’ve learned a lot about the Jewish faith and culture,” she said. “It’s been very interesting and I’ve made great friends.”
Winslow’s projects include designing bed sheets and comforters for children, tweens and teens.
“We study market trends for each season and prepare show room presentations twice a year during market weeks,” she said. “I also produce samples for our show room.”
Getting ready for presentations to clients is a big part of her day. Because of the target demographic, designs are aimed for a maximum cute factor.
“Lots of butterflies and hearts,” she said.
Although she landed the job with no prior printed textile design experience, Winslow’s fine arts undergraduate degree has been a plus.
“I had a very good education in color at OU,” she said. “My leadership experience there co-founding the Visual Arts Student Association with Elise Derringer has been very useful as well.”
Winslow brought other Okie traits to the Big Apple that may be less tangible but possibly more valuable long term.
“Every day someone at the office says something about how hard-working we Midwesterners are,” she said. “It’s also the positive attitude that’s different.”
Undoubtedly that attitude has contributed to the many opportunities she cites as being one of New York’s most exciting aspects.
“Really all you have to do is be aware and eager,” she said. “There is a real need for creative people with a fresh perspective in the city. Being around those people in a fast-paced environment is part of the attraction too.”
Winslow and husband Brian enjoy the many things to do in New York.
“You can never get bored with all the different restaurants, concerts and fun with your friends,” she said. The couple doesn’t own or need an automobile.
“I don’t miss it,” Winslow said. “You can get everywhere you want to go on public transit.”
Her commute is a single 30-minute train ride and 10-minute walk. Franco springs for cab fare if she works late. Brian frequently rides his bicycle.
“Living in Brooklyn is great,” she said. “We’re in an old Italian neighborhood where everyone is very friendly. Our landlords live in the building and call up the stairs, ‘Alexis, Brian, you want some food’ and they’ll have a big platter of pasta and meatballs.”
