BAKKA
BAKKA was launched in December 2016. It is a small Fair Isle knitwear business producing contemporary sustainable Fair Isle textiles: traditional Shetland knitwear heritage meets modern functionality. The textiles are produced in a luxurious 100% superfine merino yarn. A reversible Fair Isle technique is used to eliminate the loops on the back of the fabric, and the selvedges are perfect.
Mary Macgregor moved to Shetland 10 years ago with a view to founding a small Fair Isle business. After buying and restoring Bakka, a remote coastal croft situated in a truly spectacular location, she started looking for a purpose for her business so that there would be a great story behind the products.
Having undertaken extensive research of the garments in the archives of the National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh, the Shetland Museum and Archives and the Shetland Textile Museum, Mary realised that the old patterns and methods were in danger of dying out through lack of use, so she decided to use them exclusively as the source of inspiration for the main part of her work.
Mary very quickly earned her place as one of the top contemporary textile producers in the UK, was invited to exhibit at the leading Craft Fairs in London (MADE London and Handmade in Britain) and joined Contemporary Applied Arts when the business was a mere 6 weeks old.
She received a commission from the British Museum in October 2018 and was selected as one of only two knitwear textile designers to represent Scotland in the #ScotlandIsNow exhibition in Scottish Rugby House in Yokohama during the Rugby World Cup in 2019 (thanks to SDI and Craft Scotland for the invite).
She produces both wearable textiles and interiors textiles. Her latest collection of knitwear is for headbands and cowl
https://www.bakkaknitwear.com/collections/headbands-and-cowls
and she has added a square tablecloth to her interiors collection of throws.
https://www.bakkaknitwear.com/collections/interiors
She is a selected member of Craft Scotland, Textiles Scotland, the Crafts Council and Design Nation.
https://www.bakkaknitwear.com/collections/headbands-and-cowls
