Sandra Backlund is a Swedish fashion designer specializing in sculptural knitwear. Graduating from Beckmans College of Design in Stockholm in 2004, Backlund set up her own eponymous label that same year. Since then she has won many awards and accolades, In 2007 Backlund was the Grand Prix Winner of the Festival International de Monde & Photographie In Hyeres, France. In 2010 she won the Swedish Elle Award and in 2009 won NewGen sponsorship from The British Fashion Council. Backlund also won the admiration of the international fashion community, collaborating with Louis Vuitton (A/W 2007) and Emilio Pucci (A/W 2009) on several knitwear pieces for their collections in addition to being selected as a protege by Italian Vogue's Franca Sozzani on the Protege Project in 2008 and again in 2009 for the Cittadelarte Fashion B.E.S.T. project. In 2010 Backlund launched her first solo collection, her Spring/Summer 2011 collection marks the third collection that has went into production.

Backlund's design aesthetic is sculptural, architectural and dynamic. Striving to exaggerate and accentuate the female form, Backlund fluctuates proportions, producing designs that are simultaneously sci-fi and warm, as she works with heavy wool, paper and more recently hair. By fusing futuristic design with tactile and familiar materials Backlund has manged to transform the very meaning of knitwear into a piece of sculpture, a piece of moving art. Backlund approaches her work in a manner akin to an artisan. Instead of creating her garments by using traditional patterns, she designs whilst knitting, producing a more organic and streamlined result. Keen to immerse herself in her work, Backlund knits for unprecedented hours in her Stockholm studio, but has accepted that she can not produce an entire collection by herself and now incorporates machine techniques in addition to looking into focusing on accessories or collaborating with an Italian knitwear specialist to ensure her clothes become more commercially available.

This article is part of the Nordic Design: Now & Then series.