For Linnea Lund, Mlle Sophie reflects on her deep connection to fashion, materials, and colors, sharing her heartfelt passion for knitting. For her, it’s not only a source of joy and creativity but also a way to pass on knowledge and nurture well-being.
Knitting as a Legacy
With just two needles, Sophie Thimonnier, also known as Mlle Sophie, creates wonders. She was introduced to yarn at a very young age, and knitting runs in her veins. This cherished craft was passed down to her by her grandmother and mother, who taught her early on the art of garter stitch (her favorite). Though she once turned her back on this heritage as a form of rebellion, she joyfully returned to it in her twenties. This return to her roots felt like a natural choice and led her to a bold adventure: a journey to New York.
Knitting is Trendy!
It was in New York that Mlle Sophie embarked on her entrepreneurial journey, turning her passion into a calling and a means of sharing by teaching knitting classes to local students. This was in the early 2000s, a time when knitting was already fashionable and a well-established hobby among the city-dwelling women of Soho and the Upper East Side, who would even bring their personal shoppers to yarn stores to select the perfect yarns. As usual, New York was a decade ahead of its time and its trends. So when Mlle Sophie returned to Paris, she too was ahead of the trend, gradually becoming the face of knitting’s revival. She helped transform it into something cool, modern, playful, fun, and colorful—anything but boring.
A dose of well-being
Twenty years and six books later, Mlle Sophie is still as passionate, inspired, and inspiring as ever. Her colorful world is filled with tenderness and expressions of love. Sophie is the kind of person who would knit you a heart-shaped bookmark. She’s sentimental, but also a fighter. When illness touched her life, she found solace in the comforting texture of yarn, embracing its softness and calming power. She knitted over and over, healing herself through the repetitive motion. Even before this challenge, she understood the soothing effect knitting has on both body and mind. For her, knitting is like a shot of well-being and self-confidence, a remedy for stress and gloom, held in your hands, nurtured through the rhythm of practiced, repeated movements that become almost hypnotic. And most of all, it brings joy, happiness, and the deep satisfaction of wearing something you have created yourself.
Mlle Sophie in Linnea Lund
Sophie’s fair skin and her coppery-red hair allow her to look great in everything from Linnea Lund’s collection. But the first time she stepped into our boutique at Place Furstemberg, she fell in love with our Charlot cashmere cardigan in Grigio. It's a flattering shade—soft, beautiful, subtle, and very elegant—just like Mlle Sophie herself.
For My Linnea Lund, the queen of cool knitting welcomed us into her apartment in Paris, sharing a few thoughts on her favorite looks, colors, and her latest book, “Mes châles à tricoter”, published by Marabout.
