I graduated from the Fashion School in 2016 with my design work focused on knitwear and sustainability and am currently a Sweater Designer for the Ralph Lauren Collection brand. I chose to specialize in knitwear largely due to my learning to knit as a child and having an emotional attachment to it. 

When designing knitwear, you automatically design the fabric while also designing a finished garment, offering a unique, engineered 360-degree design approach. The result tends to be a more thoughtful, considered product. Kent State currently offers an up-close look at knit creation for its students, with hands-on machinery experience and programming training that is not often offered elsewhere. Knitwear is typically overlooked as an area of study, so having a robust offering at Kent State is a rare opportunity, especially in the US. There is almost always a high demand for knowledgeable knitwear designers due to the niche, technical nature of the medium, and the lack of properly trained talent. Brands tend to want to offer the knitwear category due to its high salability, but are not well versed in the specialization, making the need for strong, technically skilled designers even more relevant. 

Abby Steger
Sweater Designer, Ralph Lauren Collection