Behind All The Knots with Michelle Bjerke & Bjerke Design

Written by Rebecca Calvar

It’s a bustling scene backstage at the fashion show in London. Chaos emerges as stage managers begin to gather up all the models in their respective order. The beauty artists cram in to get the finishing touches of their painted model’s looks done before they walk the runway. Here stands a team of student designers as they do their final tailoring and stitching on the knitwear pieces of ACIEN, London-based fashion brand’s, latest Freckle collection. One designer in particular, an emerging knitwear designer herself, makes all the last minute tailoring. For Michelle Bjerke, this is just another knitwear piece to add to her growing knit and crochet portfolio, Bjerke Design (@bjerke.design on Instagram). 

Michelle Bjerke (she/her) is a Connecticut-based knitwear and crochet designer. Currently studying Graphic Design at The University of Connecticut’s School of Fine Arts, Bjerke wrapped up a semester abroad working in London, one of the biggest fashion capitals in the world, for ACIEN where she learned the ropes (literally) of sustainability and knitwear. Bjerke spent her semester creating knitwear pieces for runway and editorial shoots, as well as gaining the inspiration to create and experiment with new knitwear of her own for Bjerke Design. Bjerke Design was first launched on March 18th of 2024, when it was mostly an amalgamation of custom crochet tops and experimental crochet bikinis that were all sold on Bjerke’s Depop. Bjerke’s initial idea behind her portfolio was to showcase the knitting and crocheting skills she has developed and learned since the third grade:“ I immediately became obsessed with working with my hands. After I realized I could make some sort of fabric with crochet, I began to figure out ways [to]manipulate it.” Bjerke began to translate those old-time skills into the personality and style she has developed as an artist and continues to discover in the present time:“ I wanted to push my boundaries on what I could create, and started by working with different materials, stitches and embroidery.” 

Since returning from her time in London, Bjerke has continued her passion for crochet and knitwear, doing good for her peers and the creative community whilst also creating more pieces for her brand. Earlier this year Bjerke participated in a fundraising event to raise funds for the UConn Fine Art Senior Showcase for Graphic Design, a two-day workshop teaching the basics and fun of crochet:“​​ Collaborating with other creatives was immensely valuable. Having such a positive reception from the people I work and collaborate with motivates me to improve and stay accountable for the best possible outcome.” Also very recently, Bjerke was commissioned by TikTok influencer, Noah Miller, to create a custom pair of knitwear shorts for his first weekend at Coachella. 

I was lucky enough to sit down with Michelle and discuss her growing work and the future for Bjerke Design. 

Becca: Hi! Introduce yourself and your work! 

MB: I’m a junior at UConn and I study Graphic Design at the Uconn School of Fine Arts, but I also just recently finished a knitwear design with a knitwear designer in London! I acquired the internship when I was studying abroad in London, and I came across it when I was scrolling through Central St. Martins’ Instagram, the school I went to [over there]! 

Becca: Oh my god – tell more about it! How was the internship and working side-by-side with a designer? 

MB: It was awesome! Silvia Acien focuses a lot on regenerative materials, sourced by hemp and merino wool, which is also ethically sourced. I’m so grateful that I got that opportunity. She is a young designer too and I was working with a small team of designers in a studio in London, on top of tackling classes, so being of a similar age and demographic made the experience so gratifying and awesome. I just had a really good time. 

I did some graphic design as well with her – I did two editorial lookbooks for her collections that were featured in Vogue India. 

(Silvia Acien is a Spanish fashion designer, hailing from Andalusia, Spain. Acien had graduated with a B.A. in Knitwear from Central St. Martins in 2023, which is coincidentally, the same school Bjerke had ended up taking her study abroad courses at. Much of ACIEN’s brand focuses a lot on using regenerative material in homage to her rural upbringing and her moral honor to nature she calls home.) 

Becca: That is so insane! I love hearing about how fulfilling and inspiring it all was! What sparked you into getting into crocheting and knitwear? Has it always been a passion of yours?

MB: It began in third grade! I immediately became obsessed with working with my hands. After I realized I could make some sort of fabric with crochet, I began to figure out ways on how I could manipulate it. Which ultimately fueled my passion for textile design. 

Becca: Where did the initial idea behind Bjerke Design come from? What inspired you to create the brand that it is now?

MB: I've always been crocheting and during college, I have slowly incorporated crochet into my studio projects at Uconn.Last year, I wanted to push the boundaries on what I could create which started with working with different materials, stitches and embroidery. I do want to source more sustainable materials in the future!

Becca: Who would you say are your inspirations when it comes to your knitwear/crochet design or your general inspirations as a creative? 

MB: For my work, Andrea Almeida, which is a deparel based in Amsterdam. For textile philosophies, it would be artist Sheila Hicks. I recently just saw this exhibit from the Whitney Museum and it was featuring a bunch of textile artists and one of them [was] Sheila Hicks. She’s reinforced textile design into these massive artworks – women reinforce this as an artwork and make it powerful. 

When you think about textile design, weaving and crocheting… there’s been, like, these associations that [they’re] just these understated and not really emphasized pieces of art done by women. [But]  producing what I produce and to be a woman in that same realm making an art piece is a statement. Women are the backbones of this art. 

Collaborating with other creatives was also immensely valuable. Having such a positive reception from the people I work and collaborate with motivates me to improve. It also creates a space for constructive feedback, allowing me to grow both personally and professionally. Working together not only enhances the final result but also fosters a sense of community and shared purpose.

Becca: What is your favorite piece you’ve made and launched so far?

MB: My favorite pieces would be my dresses. I absolutely love my dresses. There’s this purple dress that so many people absolutely love. I also really do love my Rejectamenta neck ruff as well. It was inspired by earlier Vivienne Westwood collections and I wanted to emphasize costume design in this design as well, like the eyelids and the metal pieces. I also used yarn from my internship in London. It’s very avant-garde. 

Becca: The Rejectamenta project might be my favorite, too! Where do you see yourself/Bjerke Design going in the next year or even five!?

MB: I am so interested in any field that involves creativity in some way, I know that’s vague but I'm grateful for what I make on my own already [and] I am confident that as years go on, that passion will hold with whatever job I have. Ideally I would love to own my own knitwear studio where I can produce sustainable collections while also hosting knit and crochet classes. Inspiring ideas and being able to communicate my skills to my students is quite a fulfilling element of the job because I know they can ignite the ideas I had when I was younger.

Becca: Please tell us if you are working on anything new! I’m so excited to see what is next!

MB: I’ve just recently submitted a grant for research called the Uconn Idea Grant, which is all about designing responsibly. Kind of going back into the Middle Ages using a Flax break which is like a spinning wheel and making fabrics and materials from scratch with flax. I’ll basically be sourcing invasive species around Connecticut. Using that same process, breaking them up, separating the fibers and making that into fabric, and seeing if that is durable.

I’m so excited to make some type of final dress garment that emphasizes materials made from scratch and made from invasive materials. Invasive plants are pretty stubborn but could make for really durable material. 

I have also recently worked on a commission piece for influencer Noah Miller to wear to Coachella. And, I am working on sourcing out sustainable elastic material for my bikini line this summer, sourcing materials that are more sustainable!