Anna Tamas-Katzer, the artist behind Anna’s Tits ’N’ Tats, has created a visual language that is bold, tender, funny and unmistakably her own. Our collaboration with her began with a crocheted boobie purse – playful, irreverent and full of character – and opened into a deeper conversation about tattoos, body motifs, animals, natural fibres, humour and the strange, beautiful ways we recognise ourselves in another maker’s work.
Wearable ink
What first drew me to Anna’s work was not only the knitting and crochet. It was the tattoos, or more precisely, the way tattoos, body and knitwear seemed to become part of the same composition.
Visually, the tattoos are not background. They are part of the work. Anna’s body is like a canvas that sits in conversation with the knitwear. The garments don’t just sit on her body; they interact with the tattoos, almost extending them.
That is what attracted me most to Anna’s art in the beginning: the feeling that her stitched motifs were somehow wearable tattoos.
Some of those motifs come directly from tattoos Anna already has on her body, while others draw from Traditional Old School tattoo designs, the kind of imagery that feels instantly familiar to anyone with a little tattoo knowledge.
When I asked Anna about the smoking cats and dogs that appear in her work, she told me she once saw a man with a tattoo of a smoking cat in a beanie and loved it.
“I don’t smoke and never have,” she said. “This is my way of satisfying my ‘nicotine craving’.”
I smiled when she said that, because it made me realise there is a funny full-circle moment between us. Anna’s smoking cats and dogs satisfy a cigarette craving she never acted on. Her tattoo-like knitwear satisfies my own tattoo craving, without me ever getting one.
A therapist may have something to say about that!
Perhaps it is about finding safe, symbolic ways to live close to something we are drawn to. In other words: I am drawn to the freedom, irreverence and self-expression tattoos represent, and Anna’s work gives me a way to enjoy that feeling through yarn. Bold, personal, full of attitude, but not permanent. Something you can wear, touch, remove, and still feel transformed by.
Anna’s body is like a canvas that sits in conversation with the knitwear.
The body motif that started it all
And then there are the tits.
They are in the name, of course – Anna’s Tits ’N’ Tats – but they are also one of the most recognisable motifs in Anna’s work. Irreverent and cute, her boobie designs have appeared across T-shirts, knitwear and accessories, turning a body part that is so often censored, sexualised or hidden into something handmade, joyful and free.
This is also where our collaboration began.
The crochet boobie motif became the protagonist of our Wovenbeyond x Anna Tamas-Katzer kit: an easy beginner-friendly project, but with all the attitude of Anna’s visual world. Fun, a bit cheeky and instantly recognisable, it turned a simple crochet pattern into a small act of self-expression.
In a world where women’s chest is still restricted, reported or removed online, there is something rebellious about a pair of crocheted boobs.
When I asked Anna what she wants people to feel when they wear or make something from her designs, she said:
“I want people to feel comfortable and unique and confident. I also believe those that buy my work understand and appreciate the hard work that’s gone into making it.”
The boobie motif is an invitation to feel at ease in your own body and your own way of being seen.
“I want people to feel comfortable and unique and confident."
Animals, fibre and the perfect obsession
When I asked Anna about the relationship between herself and her brand, she told me: “My work reflects my current interests and obsessions. The brand has my name in it, and it’s one I put my heart and soul into.”
Farm animals and pets are another thread that ties Anna’s world to mine.
We both pet sit and are obsessed with farm animals, especially the ones that grow fibre: sheep, alpacas, angora rabbits, you name it. These animals are not only beautiful, but endlessly funny, expressive and emotionally irresistible.
For Anna, animals have always been part of the picture and some of the pets she looks after have become real muses.
“I’ve always loved animals, mainly dogs,” she says. “And with my recent side hustle as a dog sitter, it allowed me to form attachments with all sorts of dogs. Since I don’t have one of my own yet, I keep making them through my knits.”
When we started working together, I gave Anna the freedom to think of patterns for our collaboration. She had access to all the Wovenbeyond yarns, and what I loved is that she was naturally drawn towards the story of the fibre itself.
That is how the sheep vest kit was born.
Inspired by the Merino sheep from France behind the yarn, Anna created a sheep embroidery motif with crimped fleece on the head. It became a small celebration of sheep: for the beautiful fibre they provide for us, and for the smiles they put on our faces.
For me, this is exactly what a good collaboration should do. It should not force a concept onto the material. It should listen to the material, follow its story, and allow something joyful to emerge.
“My work reflects my current interests and obsessions. The brand has my name in it, and it’s one I put my heart and soul into.”
Anna’s next chapter: a Knitting Corner in Budapest
Anna is now preparing for a new adventure: moving back to Budapest, her hometown, where she is opening Anna’s Knitting Corner.
And somehow, it feels like the most natural next chapter.
What she is building is not just a shop, not just a café, and not just a workshop space. It is the physical expression of Anna’s world: craft, yarn, humour, comfort, animals, coffee, character and community, all under one roof.
“I wasn’t planning on moving back home,” Anna says, “but we’ve discussed with my ageing parents that it would be better if I moved back home to be near them. And my dad can actually help bring my dream shop alive in Budapest.”
Anna’s Knitting Corner will be a creative space with ongoing knitting and crochet workshops led by Anna herself. It will also be part yarn shop – stocking yarns she has worked with over the years and would personally recommend – alongside craft items, finished pieces from her own collections, and a little café where people can sit, drink, craft and enjoy the space even when there is no workshop taking place.
And because this is Anna, dogs are part of the concept too.
“I would also like to bring my pet sitting there by having dogs needing daycare on some days,” she says. “So people can not only craft but spend some time with the doggos. It would be a shared peaceful space for dogs and crafters.”
Honestly, I cannot think of a more Anna project: a corner for yarn, coffee, dogs and making.
A dream can become a room. A room can become a meeting point. A meeting point can become part of a city’s creative life.
I will miss having Anna in London. But I already know that Budapest is gaining something very special, and that Anna’s Knitting Corner will become an unmissable destination for knitters, crocheters, animal lovers and anyone who believes that craft can make life warmer, funnier and more connected.
I cannot wait to visit.
Anna is now preparing for a new adventure: moving back to Budapest, her hometown, where she is opening Anna’s Knitting Corner.
