Six year old Marie’s was the first and only hand to shoot up in the air when the teacher asked “ Does anyone know how to knit?” So already ahead of the rest of the class, as her mum taught her to knit, Marie was lucky enough to have knitting lessons at school.
With a father who paints oil landscapes and abstracts, and a mother who was a senior nurse, the blend of art and discipline was a fruitful childhood environment for Marie Wallin, currently Head Designer of Rowan.
A great believer in balance in all things, Marie has many other interests when not designing and styling for Rowan. With drawing – particularly pencil portraits, painting, gardening and cooking, Marie finds she barely has time to knit for herself or her husband. With a recent move to an old house in Leicestershire and in desperate need of renovation, there will be little time for crochet in the near future, even if it is more relaxing than knitting.
A gifted designer, Marie has had a varied and successful career. With a first class degree from Leicester Polytechnic (now DeMonfort University), her first job was with a small knitwear manufacturer in Nottingham but swiftly moved on to establishing her own design label and with met with great success. Selling in to New York exclusive designer stores such as Paul Stewart on Madison Avenue, to Japan and widely throughout the UK, Marie also later designed with other knitwear manufacturers and with fashion chains such as Burtons, Next BHS and Debenhams.
Contributing to ensuring the next generation gains the skills and the knowledge of the industry, Marie works on many other teaching projects and workshops.
Working for Rowan since 2005, Marie is Head Designer and so is responsible for the concepts of each season's Rowan magazine. From briefing designers on mood boards, to styling the designs, and art directing the photo shoots as well as designing knitting and crochet patterns, Marie also works on developing new yarns in the Rowan range.
Having an image of each garments and the whole look, in her mind, Marie goes shopping for all the clothes required in the photo shoot – who wouldn’t love that bit of the job?
"An important aspect is that the Rowan range has something to suit everyone, just as if you were to walk down the high street, there will be shops to cater for all tastes, ages and sizes, so too for knitters and crocheters". Marie is one of the few designers designing both crochet and knitting patterns.