Yunan Ma’s knitwear collection is inspired by the photography of Mark Nixon, in particular his series of portraits that appear in the book, “Much Loved”, featuring teddy bears and stuffed animals that show all the signs of wear and tear as dearly beloved stuffies. Yunan’s collection aims to capture the essence of unconditional love and nostalgia, pointing to an overall sense of harmony and serenity that these worn-out toys seem to convey. For Yunan, the color choices in her collection are representative of the emotions and memories associated with the subjects in the book; bold colors, like the red and orange, represent ‘love’, whereas the midnight blue represents ‘blurred memories’. 

 

Yunan sourced her yarns mainly from Italy, using mohair, cashmere, rayon and elastic for the construction of her zero-to-no-waste garments. She demonstrates versatility through the use of single and double bed knitting machines, hand knit and crochet, as well as the Dubied and Stoll machines, experimenting with techniques and stitch, including: cable, ripple, weaving, jacquard and tuck lace. Yunan brings these elements together to create depth and dimension to each garment in her collection.