Leanne Prouse (Ella Rae) began her design career over 10 years ago. After studying Fashion Design then spending many years travelling the world, she returned to live in the beautiful South-west coastal region of Australia where she had grown up to raise her own family. As luck would have it the same town was home to International designer Jo Sharp, so looking for another challenge to embark on whilst raising a young family she approached Jo with some design ideas. “ That was a very happy and exciting time, the moment I walked into that design studio I felt like I belonged there. Being surrounded by all the yarn and amazing colours really ignited the passion for knitwear design as a career option not just a hobby. “ In the following years she went on to become a head designer at Jo Sharp. After going out on her own in 2004, she has gone on to develop the "Ella Rae" label in association with KFI. Ella Rae continues to grow and showcases the love of design that keeps on evolving and changing with the seasons.
Hello from Downunder
posted February 13, 2008
Work for me is such a joy, my love of fibre, texture and colour is something that is always with me...I'm often told “ you need to take time out and have a break from work”, but "time out" for me means looking for ideas, swatching and sourcing for the next collection! Designing and knitting is my passion and it never leaves me - fortunately my family has learned to accept this (or learnt to live with it and all the yarn that comes with it!). When my kids were younger, if asked what does your Mum do? they would reply “she just knits”...I'm sure most people think I sit home knitting all day...not such a bad thought, but unfortunately not true. For the coming season I have put together 2 new books. The first (book 10) is a collection of gorgeous bright summer yarns with designs for Mum and children. It introduces 2 new yarns to the Ella Rae range, Baby Cotton with a lovely soft feel and palette and Bamboo Silk, a mix of silky texture and rich jewely colours. Both these new yarns complement "Silkience" another beautiful summer yarn with a luscious array of colours. Book 11 is the second felted Bag book I have done. After the success of the first one, it was great fun doing another and I have included lots of projects for all skill levels. I hope knitters get as much enjoyment out of them as I have. Keep on knitting... Leanne