Kate Jenkins founded her company ‘Cardigan’ in 2003. A Brighton graduate of fashion and business studies, Kate worked for the likes of Donna Karan and Missoni, before deciding to specialise in knitwear. Taking inspiration from the things that amuse her on a day to day basis, Kate has created a quirky, fun and very successful company. Cardigan offers both fashion and art, all within the realm of wool!
Cardigan is home to many wonderful knitted fashion items, such as gorgeous knitted scarfs adorned with crocheted flowers, stunning multicoloured ponchos and daywear that is classic but with an edge. On the art side of things, one may wonder how art is created from wool. In this case, most of Kate’s pieces are crocheted, and are truly spectacular. I found Cardigan’s studio tucked away around the corner from my workplace, and it is a wonderful and magical grotto of woollen creations! If you are in the area, I recommend you pay this enchanting place a visit.
Most of the fashion and accessories are machine 
knitted, but all of the crocheted art is created by hand. One of my personal favourites is the woollen seagull, which epitomizes Brighton perfectly. Kate tells me that this was created initially for a Brighton themed pop up shop window display in 2009. Also among the crocheted art is the likes of the large ‘Fish and Chips’, which took 3 weeks to make! There are also ‘Soft Smokes’ and ‘Kate’s Cafe’ collections, humorous reinventions of British products. You really have to see these wonderful creations to appreciate the detail and care that goes into them.
You can browse through examples of Kate’s fashion and art on www.cardigan.ltd.uk or visit her studio shop in Kemptown. Cardigan also take commissions if you are after something extra special or unusual, as well as producing greeting cards, featuring crocheted art pieces which are available from Paperchase, WHSmith and hundreds of stationers over the UK.
Any Brightonians who are interested in Cardigan can take a closer look at the ‘Artists Open House’ trail as part of the Brighton Festival in May, where Kate will be creating lots of knitted goodies for the theme of ‘Love’. There is also a solo show planned at the Rebecca Hossack Gallery entitled ‘Come Dine With Kate’ which starts 1st July- 24th July.
by Hannah Bradbury
