STRIKKS | FASHIONCLASH Festival 2017

Meet Maartje Boer and Suzanne Vaessen, the designers behind STRIKKS. Their studio is based in Maastricht, the Netherlands. Maartje graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Maastricht (NL), and afterwards, in cooperation with her co-designer Suzanne, she opened her design studio. Their main focus is knitting, co-creation with other designers and companies, as well as research of all possibilities in the field of clothing production. STRIKKS has showcased at several design weeks in cities like Eindhoven, Milan or Brussels. Their designs are published in various magazines and newspapers. During the 9th edition of the FASHIONCLASH Festival STRIKKS will showcase a research project regarding the way people respond to a knitwear collection that can be personalized. The project will be interactive and the prize might be a personalized garment from STRIKKS, so don't miss it! Find out more about the program and tickets here.

What are your biggest struggles as a young designer/artist?
Time, I would love to have more time! Time to spend on the knitting machine to invent new knitting structures, samples and yarn trials.

Does fashion makes sense to you? 
Fashion is our second skin, let’s make it worthy. As designers we should cherish our skin and make a beautiful and both functional layer for it. Life is too short for dressing down.

Do you think that fashion can contribute to a better world / better well-being, and what do you do to make a difference?
I find it important that people are aware of their clothes and production. That’s why I am investigating a new way of making fashion: a sustainable collection in which personalization has the lead.

What does a fashion collection look like, when model, color and knitting structure can be customized? 
With an interactive method I aim to engage the customer in the design process and give her more freedom of choice and better fit. This engagement is key for creating emotional value for clothing, and it leads to longer wear.

What senses are engaged in your creation process? 
My collection and our knitted designs are all about touch and sight! Touching fabrics and experiencing the feeling of a knitted fabric, the way the stitches are formed, it’s a very tangible thing.

How does technology change your creation process? 
In our studio technology is used both in the creation and in the production of our designs. More and more we use automated knitting machines to take over the job. But designing is also about zooming out, taking a step back and analyzing results. Craft and manual work will always be part of the process.

What is your bad habit? 
When I’m stressed, I start biting my nails, very nervously. It makes me think faster although it doesn't beautify my nails.

Are you a people's person or a loner?
Both, actually. I am a team player but I enjoy working on my own. Mostly on a quiet location without any music or people around me. In such situations I can deliver best.

Your favorite quote?
“You should not sacrifice your dreams to make other people happy”

Your favorite hashtags #?
#knitistheshit

Your favorite social media app?
Insta! And I think www.instagram.com/strikks is a very inspiring account :)

Maartje and Suzanne have a website where you can check out their collections and other projects that STRIKKS was involved in. If you are interested, click here.