2023
The Norwegian Selbu knitting adventure started when Marit Emstad (Guldseth) and her sisters showed up for church on a winter’s Sunday in 1857 wearing their Rose mittens. This caught the villagers’ attention and rumors of the two-thread knitting method spread from farm to farm in the Selbu area. Many avid knitters started developing their own versions of the Rose mittens, giving names to their own patterns after persons and farms.
Knitting became an important part of the wedding celebrations in Selbu. Towards the end of the 19th century knitting became a trade, and the sale of knitwear increased significantly in the years around WW1. It was effected through trade organizations.
As the years went by knitting became more industrialized, strongly increasing the risk of lower quality and less diversity. This motivated the author of this book, Anne Bårdsgård, to initiate a project aimed at registering and documenting varieties of the traditional patterns from Selbu. Soon she and her dedicated knitters had reproduced more than 500 different pairs of mittens!
Selbuvotter presents the complete history of the mittens from the Norwegian village Selbu. The special knitting techniques and yarn preferences are thoroughly described and illustrated in this one-of-a-kind book. Hundreds of charts with pattern varieties make it possible to create endless combinations. The book also includes 40 complete traditional mitten and glove patterns for adults and children.
Anne Bårdsgård
Photo credit: Oddvar Brønstad
