Teen design sensation, Phoenix Bess, has been called the "new darling of the knitting world" by Vogue Knitting magazine. Only fifteen, she's poised to make her mark on the knitting world with fresh fashions that certainly aren't the standard teen knitting fare. Her body conscious designs are the faves of hip young professionals looking for knits that keep pace with the best couture trends, but with an ease of construction that makes them quick-to-knit.

Phoenix is an actress, model, and dancer with performing experience spanning five years. Her credits include numerous regional-level musical theatre and ballet productions as well as television and film. In May of 2007, she starred as Pocahontas for a crowd of over 35,000 in the live theatre finale of Jamestown 2007's Anniversary Weekend, which was later televised nationwide. She is an engaging public speaker, utilizing her training and experience as a performer to good effect. Her striking looks, height, and natural poise lend her fashion and trunk shows a special cache’ that is evident in customers’ enthusiasm for her garments. Even when she is not modeling her designs, women requesting information about where she purchased her garments frequently stop her on the street, and they are always shocked to find she designed them herself.

At the age of eleven Phoenix apprenticed with Eastern Virginia handwork artisan, Rosalie Brown, tending her llamas, goats, and sheep, and learning the expert’s crafts, including knitting. Phoenix continued her association with Ms. Brown for numerous years, providing assistance at her mentor’s yearly art show, studio tour, and open house.

When she turned thirteen, Phoenix launched her knitwear design business. Her line of hand knitted luxury accessories sold in upscale boutiques and gift shops throughout Richmond and Hampton Roads, Virginia. Her trunk shows and holiday store appearances further branded the designer’s work as the ultimate in luxury. She modeled her wool shrugs, alpaca pants, and evening wear, taking custom orders from women in attendance and generally blowing their minds when they discovered her age.

Through her previous website she sold not only her ready-to-wear garments, but also her patterns for knitters. In November of 2005, Phoenix entered several submissions in the Bayschool Wearable Art Show, an annual Mathews County, Virginia art show drawing entries from professional fiber artists across the country. As hers were the only underage entries, her submissions competed in the adult category. Her Rainbow Back Pack, which she designed, knitted, and felted, won honorable mention in the accessories category, and she captured the attention of the fiber arts community as well as the media when her winning entry was mentioned in Pleasant Living magazine’s feature article about the River Country fiber arts community.

Knitwear designer, Cindy Taylor, whose work is featured in Melanie Falick’s Holiday Handknits and Weekend Knitting and numerous issues of Interweave Knits heard of Ms. Bess and offered to mentor her, providing advice, support, and guidance to the young designer. Upon Ms. Taylor’s recommendation, Phoenix changed the name of her company to Phoenix Bess, permanently intertwining her garment line and knitwear patterns with her own personal cache’ and youthful élan.

Phoenix’s patterns retail through yarn stores, catalogues, and online retailers. Her designs have appeared in Knitscene, Knit Simple, Creative Knitting, Girls' Life, Stitch 'N Bitch 2008 Calendar, and Knit On Down! (forthcoming). And numerous publications have featured articles about her including: Vogue Knitting, Knit Simple, Girls' Life, and American Girl.

Phoenix enjoys working with the finest yarns provided by industry leaders such as Classic Elite, Plymouth, Muench, Knitting Fever International, Cascade, Louet, Tilli Tomas, Tahki Stacy Charles, Lorna's Laces, and Elann. Her patterns not only utilize lovely yarns, but techniques that make them particularly easy for beginners. Most of her patterns feature circular knitting, speeding the execution of pants, robes, dresses, and other long garments typically made in flat panels of stockinette stitch. Less seaming, better fit, and faster knitting are the hallmarks of her designs.

Online retailer, Dream Weaver Yarns, commissions her to create exclusive patterns for advertisements and to promote specific yarn lines. One of her most popular patterns, Queen Anne's Lace, was such a pattern, and they premiered the new design at the Stitches East '06 Fashion Show. In 2007 they asked her to create a special garment for their Silver Palette ad to run in the Silver Anniversary edition of Vogue Knitting magazine. Phoenix created Glamour Girl, an elegant pattern featuring a 3-piece ensemble of beaded strapless top, fabric belt, and felted cocktail hat.

In late 2006, Phoenix, Tilli Tomas, and Dream Weaver Yarns collaborated to help a young girl suffering from Marie Charcott Tooth Muscular Dystrophy to get a new wheelchair. The team's limited edition project featured a design donated by Phoenix, and 100% of the sales of Kyann's Midnight Cherry Blossom Rucksack Kit went the purchase of the 14-year-old's much-needed new chair. Wildly popular, the kit's sales more than met the target donation amount, and Kyann got her lovely new midnight blue wheelchair as a result.

Fall of 2007 has seen many exciting additions to Phoenix's repertoire. Phoenix introduced six new patterns to her line featuring giant cowls, tunics, more leggings, and exciting felted accessories. She also introduced felted one-of-a-kind cocktail hats and fascinators to her line of hand made luxury accessories. Each is unique, with only the finest millinery materials such as French Veiling, Swarovski Crystals, feathers, and silk flowers, all nestled on hand knitted/hand felted hat bases.

Phoenix has also been working on her first book of knitting patterns with Potter Craft, and the new book will be available in October of '08. It will feature more than 30 new Phoenix Bess designs, with plenty of fun fashionable details easy enough for even beginner knitters to accomplish.