The Eleven-Six Story

Inspired by a trip she took with her husband (and business partner) Nick to the Sacred Valley of the Incas in Peru, Catherine made the decision to leave her career in corporate fashion, Nick having done the same some years prior. The name Eleven Six was born from a combination of Catherine’s birth date in the European style, Eleven June, and their son Oliver’s due date (she was pregnant at the time of the trip) in customary U.S form, November Six

As a child growing up in England, Catherine learned to knit from her mother and grandmother; encouraged by her love for the art, she studied Fashion Textiles at the prestigious Central Saint Martins and then Knitwear at the University of Brighton. Since moving to New York in 2002, she has designed knits for Calvin Klein, Anne Klein and Club Monaco, where she was, most recently, Senior Director of Knitwear.

''Produced by the most experienced craftsmen and women, the majority of Eleven Six collections are crafted in two small family owned factories.''

The craft of making an Eleven-Six piece

 Eleven Six works with master artisans in Peru and Bolivia to thoughtfully craft products of uncompromised quality and beauty. They are committed to supporting women entrepreneurs and small businesses. The novelty and more eclectic items are handmade, in limited quantities, by a women’s cooperative of artisans. These women, empowered and working in an entrepreneurial environment, are dedicated to using traditional textile techniques of hand knitting, macramé, crochet, and hand weaving. The many hours that are devoted to crafting every item make each piece produced by an artisan one of a kind. It’s tag denoting the artist’s signature and an edition number, passes on some handcrafted love to its new owner.

“Eleven-Six exclusively uses yarn that is natural, sustainable, ecofriendly and ethical”

Why Alpaca?

 Alpaca is luxurious fiber. Indigenous to South America, the Peruvian Alpaca is shorn once yearly; Eleven Six exclusively uses yarn that is natural, sustainable, ecofriendly and ethical. Baby alpaca, the prime, supple fleece produced by alpacas of all ages, is the primary fiber in each Eleven Six piece. Through the process of evolution, the Alpaca has developed fleece that allows the hypoallergenic fiber to withstand the cold as well as the equatorial warmth. Very simply, that means that Eleven Six pieces will keep you warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Soft and silky to the touch, the experience of feeling baby alpaca against the skin may make you never want to take it off.