Local resident publishes book on Japanese design-inspired knit-wear

By Diane Welch

Fiber artist and designer Tanya Alpert, author of Photo/Diane Welch

The simple eloquence of haiku poetry ignited an idea within fiber artist and designer Tanya Alpert that has since turned into a book on Japanese design-inspired knit-wear.
“The concept of the book is that less is more, that was the goal. I was initially attracted to the simplicity of the kimono and combined that idea with elegant design, and haiku describes that best,” said Alpert in a recent interview. The book, titled Haiku Knits, was released in October through Watson-Guptill, which is now a part of the Random House group of publications. British knitting designer Erika Knight wrote the book's foreword.
The book is made up of five chapters, each has a different theme based on the seasons and nature. There is evening wear, casual wear, and accessories inspired by the ocean, wind and snow. And for each chapter there is a haiku poem that augments that theme.
Haiku poems are made up of three lines; the first line has five syllables, the second has seven, and the third, five. It’s a balanced, delicate form of creative expression that supports the concept of simplicity in design, Alpert explained. The 25 designs that Alpert created for the book each display a simple elegance. And each design includes the level of difficulty to knit or crochet, the schematic pattern, and how-to step-by-step instructions. There is also information on suppliers for the materials used.
It was the Japanese yarn that Alpert, a local resident, carries in her Solana Beach-based knitting store that first led her to this type of design work. Habu Textiles is the company that manufactures the yarns which sparked Alpert into action to compile her book. “These yarns are very distinctive. They have exciting textures that come from combining unusual fibers like silk with a stainless steel core, paper-linen, and mohair. And what attracted me to these yarns is that they create a very unique look.”
When Alpert studied the Japanese system of knitting with these specialty yarns the process was cumbersome and hard to follow. “Their designs are very austere, not so feminine, and it is hard to interpret their numeric system. It is not easy for American knitters.” So the idea to write her own book came to mind and after a proposal submission to the David Black Agency in New York, Alpert soon landed a book deal. “Very quickly I got two interviews and within a week I had an offer from Watson-Guptill.”
While Alpert’s current focus is on designer knits, her professional background started in the graphic arts. A native of Kiev, in the Ukraine, she attended university there, obtaining her degree in 1982 from the Kiev Institute of Art and Design before emigrating to the USA in 1988. Her major was in product design but she also studied the fine arts.
“I joke about my degree, because in Russia it was useless. There are hardly any products and who cares how they look!” she said. Growing up in Kiev, Alpert’s father was an architect, and her mother, a civil engineer. Together with her mother and aunts, Alpert would use knitting as a creative outlet and as a social mechanism. She learned to knit when she was 6 years old. “And it stuck with me forever. I always knew that I wanted to open a studio. To have something of my own,” she said. And so she opened Knitting by the Beach, in 2005, a studio where patrons may learn the basics or the finer techniques of knitting, and crochet, an endeavor recently enjoying a revival.
Art is prevalent in Alpert's immediate family. Her husband, Leon, plays bass in a local jazz trio. A Chicago native, he moved to California when he was 12 and has been playing jazz music for most of his adult life. Prior gigs have included Humphreys by the Bay and venues in Los Angeles. The Alperts have a daughter, Naomi, 16, who is a fine artist and a student at Canyon Crest Academy.
And while Alpert's creativity is multi-faceted it is her Solana Beach knitting studio that is her deepest passion. “Knitting is a way for women to connect,” said Alpert. It is a form of therapy especially when women group together in knitting circles, she said. Like painting or drawing, working with yarn can transport aficionados to a zone of relaxation. It is also the creative outlet for Alpert’s design skills. “The women I meet in my store, they are very stylish and elegant, so I tried to design for them. I really want the women to make their pieces and to enjoy wearing them.”
The next book in the works is based on the concept of a knitting sommelier, a term trademarked by Alpert. “There are so many similarities between fine wines and chic knitwear that the idea came to me to combine the two words.” Alpert has started a blog of the same name and welcomes posts by others. A member of the Knitting Guild of America, and the Craft Yarn Council of America, Alpert is already inspiring other knitwear designers; some of their completed designs may be viewed on her blog.
Tanya Alpert’s studio, Knitting by the Beach, is located at 616 Stevens Ave. Ste B, in Solana Beach. Signed copies of her book are available online at www.knittingbythebeach.com or by calling (858) 509 9276, and in bookstores everywhere. Also visit www.theknittingsommelier.com.