Two knitted portraits of people against contrasting orange and red backgrounds. On the left, a person with dark hair, glasses and a goatee smiles; on the right, a person wears a blue patterned bandana and dark sunglasses.

Check out Polish creative Formallina's knitted heroes calendar!

Words: Rob Alderson
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Date: 25 January 2013; Work
Illustration

Polish creative Izabela Kaczmarek-Szurek –who works under the enigmatic name Formallina – is a multi-talented woman with a portfolio which includes painting, illustration, art direction, textile design, posters and typography design. But because it’s Friday there was really only one place to start. Her Extreme Knitting calendar is a selection of 12 of her heroes rendered in mighty impressive crochet with the portraits used on some very natty products. Hulk Hogan cushion anyone? George Michael bikini? Then there’s Britney, Bowie, Beckham (Victoria, not David), Joan Collins Kate Moss, John Travolta, Sty Stallone, Princess Diana, Paris Hilton and who I think is former Polish president Lech Wałęsa. The calendar earned her third place in a competition run by GRAFFEX magazine but she’s top of our knitted calendar pops for sure. Well worth checking out the rest of her work too.

A knitted portrait of David Bowie as Aladdin Sane, rendered in bright pink, orange and blue. The image is set against a lime green knitted background with the text “January with david” at the bottom. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (David Bowie)

A person wears a lime green knit sweater featuring a portrait of David Bowie in his Aladdin Sane persona. The word “david” appears in bold black lowercase letters at the bottom of the frame. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (David Bowie)

A knitted portrait of a person with glasses and a goatee, set against a bright orange background. Text at the bottom reads “July with george”. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (George Michael)

A collage of a person wearing an orange bikini. A small cutout of a person’s face is placed over the bikini top, with the word “george” written in bold, black lowercase type below. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (George Michael)

A knitted portrait of Lech Walesa, rendered in red and white yarn. Text at the bottom reads “December with lech”. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (Lech Wałęsa)

A person holds up a crocheted blanket divided into four large colour blocks. Two of the blocks feature a portrait of Lech Walesa, one on a red background and one on a cream background. Text above the image reads “December with” and the name “lech” appears in bold letters below. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (Lech Wałęsa)

A knitted portrait of Joan Jett with dark, curly hair and red lipstick against a bright pink background. Text at the bottom reads “April with joan”. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (Joan Collins)

A magenta knit sweater featuring a portrait of Joan Jett on the front. The garment is set against a white background, framed by a pink border and a diagonal striped pattern. Text at the top reads “April with” and the name “joan” appears in bold black type at the bottom. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (Joan Collins)

A knitted illustration of a figure with a white beard and sunglasses, wearing a blue patterned bandana. They are set against a bright red knitted background. At the bottom, a yellow banner reads “March with hulk”. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (Hulk Hogan)

A collage featuring a black striped cushion with a knitted portrait of a person wearing a blue bandana and sunglasses. Below the cushion are layers of patterned fabric, and the word “hulk” appears in bold black lettering at the bottom. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (Hulk Hogan)

A knitted portrait of Britney Spears wearing a bright pink hat. The image is rendered in a textured, woven style against a green background, with the text “November with britney” at the bottom. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (Britney Spears)

A knitted portrait of a person with blonde hair and dark sunglasses against a purple background. Text at the bottom reads “February with Victoria”. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (Victoria Beckham)

A small, fluffy dog wears a green sweater featuring a portrait of Britney Spears. The image is framed like a digital layout with diagonal stripes and the word “britney” in bold, black lowercase type at the bottom. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (Britney Spears)

A pair of bright pink slippers featuring a printed image of a person wearing sunglasses. Below the slippers, bold black text reads “victoria”. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (Victoria Beckham)

A knitted portrait of a person with blonde hair and pink lipstick against a teal background. Text at the bottom reads “August with paris”. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (Paris Hilton)

A person wears a teal knitted sleeveless top featuring a pixelated portrait of a blonde figure. The image is framed by a pink and blue striped border with the word “paris” in bold black type at the bottom. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (Paris Hilton)

A knitted portrait of a person with long blonde hair, rendered in a pixelated style using shades of yellow, brown and cream. A pink banner at the bottom reads “May with kate”. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (Kate Moss)

A person stands barefoot against a white background, wearing dark, glittery cropped trousers. A portrait of a person with blonde hair is printed on the left leg. The image is framed by a pink and grey diagonal striped border with the word “kate” in bold, black lettering at the bottom. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (Kate Moss)

A knitted portrait of John Krasinski on a bright yellow background. Text at the bottom reads “September with john”. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (John Travolta)

A collage of a person wearing a black top, a yellow skirt, and blue leggings. A small image of Donald Trump’s face is placed on the skirt. Vertical text on the left reads “September with” and the word “john” appears in bold black type at the bottom. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (John Travolta)

A knitted portrait of Princess Diana set against a bright green background. Text at the bottom reads “June with diana”. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (Princess Diana)

A bright green towel hangs from a red rail, featuring a small embroidered portrait of Princess Diana. The image is framed by a border of diagonal purple and green lines, with the word “diana” written in bold black lowercase letters at the bottom. — Above
Formallina: Extreme Knitting (Princess Diana)

Further Info

www.formallina.com

About the Author

Rob Alderson

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Rob Alderson is a freelance writer, editor and strategist. He was previously editor-in-chief of It’s Nice That and WePresent, and editor of Design Week. He publishes the newsletter Undo, which tries to make sense of how AI is changing design work, the design process and the design industry.

Check out Polish creative Formallina's knitted heroes calendar!

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