Norwegian Kniplinger



Image from: http://www.kvisten.kk.dk



Lace is one of the most delicate and time consuming fabrics to make, but the detail is fascinating. So when my grandma called me down to her house to look at old fabric that she had found in a dusty box that used to be her mothers, I was very exited. There were ten folded pieces of lace stacked on top of each other. I pulled them out one by one, admiring their beauty. I asked my grandma how they made lace. She brought me up stairs to show me these little odd looking pieces of wood. She began to show me how they worked. First, you would have to attach the string to the tips, then carefully weave them in and out, over and under each other. After long enough this begins to create the amazing designs that I had saw on the fabric earlier.

That day I had learned a lot about the art of lace-making, but what I didn't realize until now was how important these little things are to my heritage and culture. When I went home that night I went online and searched "Norwegian lace" to see the different ways that they used it. It was used for anything from table clothes to traditional dresses.

These little things such as lace effect our everyday life, changing who we are. When I go to my grandmothers house, I see lace everywhere: from the table runner to pillows. I used to be scared of spilling juice or tracking dirt inside from my busy day onto the clean white lace. To this day I hold my cup tight and wipe my shoes on my way in. Little things such as those teach you lessons that you will cary with you for the rest of your life, even if they are so small you don't notice.

-Sonja

Hardangersøm Embroidery

Hardangersom embroidery really fascinated me in my many trips to the Nordic Heritage Museum. Handangersom is weaved with either cotton or linen thread. In earlier centuries this type of needlework was named after the town in Norway in front of the Hardanger Fjord. The distinctive geographical location this embroidery came from really helped it create a unique style of its own: a more geometric inspired design. Hardangersom was first used on costumes and head coverings but soon became more common, appearing on pillows, curtains, tablecloths, napkins, and towels. This shows just how embedded Hardangersom is in the Nordic culture, through the production of this embroidery true to its original heritage and form.

My grandmother and great-grandmother are the people that make me interested in this type of embroidery and this part of my Nordic heritage. Both of them making wedding dresses, knitting, and doing beautiful needlepoint work has shown me that this is very important as well as beautiful to look at. Each culture/heritage has its own style. While they may be similar, they provide a sort of identity. That is why Hardangersom embroidery in the Nordic Heritage Museum interested me.

-Amanda