Textile travels: Latvia

This was my  second time in Latvia and again it was work-related. But this time my schedule was much more relaxed and I managed to see a little bit more of the city and of course do some yarn shopping! But seeing as though knitting and other textile-related crafts are so prominent there I thought it would be the time to write another blog post specifically about those traditions, similar to those that I wrote about Peru and Iceland.

The best reference book that I have come accross and which is commonly referred to as "the bible of Latvian mittens" is the book "Mittens of Latvia" by Maruta Grasmane. However, I have to admit that I don't own the book myself. I have been very tempted because it is very beautiful and  gives a good introduction to the techniques and also the patterns. But I figured that it is just not practical because it is quite heavy and for me, as a travelling knitter, it would just be useful for reference and if I wanted to actually knit a pattern, I'd have to copy it anyways to carry it around with me. And secondly, there is such a vast array of beautiful patterns on the internet which are very easy to copy (you only need the repeat chart and the colours because the shape of the mitten always stays the same). Finally, as I mentioned in previous posts my hands are very small and the normal suggested stitch count is too big for me so I usually end up modifying the pattern somehow anyways.

Bref, this book can be a good start but the best way to get inspired is of course to see the mittens in all their beauty and colour! I think I partly love them so much simply because of their colourfulness and the many ways you can combine them, a bit like with the Icelandic lopipeysur. I wrote more about the techniques in my blogpost on the workshop on Latvian mittens but here's a short summary of the main characteristics and possible style elements used in Latvian mittens.

• Use of minimum 2 different colours
• Stranded knitting on double-pointed needles (DPNs)
• Geometrical or nature-inspired patterns that are repeated over a certain stitch count 
• Cuff knit in contrasting colour
• Latvian braids
• Fringed hem

That being said, it is also important to differentiate between the different regional styles. The main cultural regions that Latvia is composed of are Kurzeme, Latgale, Vidzeme, and Zemgale.

Source: By Roalds - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6723815 

 The knitting styles differ between those regions, mainly in the use of colours and in the style of patterns (i.e. more geometrical or more "organic" and nature-inspired). They are all beautiful and it is insteresting that even in a small country like Latvia, the traditions can change so significantly from one region to another. Each has clearly its own identity. 

Source: http://habetrot.typepad.com/habetrot/2006/12/a_treasure_trov.html

The yarn used for those mittens is usually a lightweight (fingering) 2-ply wool yarn, dyed in all colours of the rainbow. They are usually sold in 100 g hanks or balls that are already wound and very affordable. There are  two main brands that I bought yarn from: Limbazu Tine is a small spinnery who sell their products amongst others in the "Kumode" shops found in most big shopping centres in Riga (e.g. Spice, Alfa, Origo...), where I saw a big basket full of different colours you could pick from. The other one is Tines who sell their yarn in a shop called "Tines Boutique"  in the Old Town  in Riga (Vagnera iela 5) - I don't know if it is coincidence that the names of those two brands are so similar or if it just means something like "wool" in Latvian but I first kept on confusing them. I can now tell them apart mainly because Limbazu Tine is sold in those loose hanks and Tines sells them in balls. Both are exactly the same quality and very similar in price though, according to my experience. Tines also has an online shop which is very handy. Another comparable yarn brand for Latvian knitting is Teksrena, although this company is actually Lithuanian. This is not my favourite though as the yarn can feel a bit "plasticky"
 

Mixture of different brands of yarn both hand dyed and commercially dyed

Yes, I think "yarn addict" is the technically correct term...

Latest addition to my stash after the trip to Latvia

I could only scratch on the surface of this very interesting and long subject of Latvian knitting. But for those who are more interested I definitely recommend the "Mittens bible" mentioned above or the book by Aija Jansone, whose workshop I attended. I have looked for good websites on this topic but so far I wasn't succesful. I'll add some links later (or maybe I should see this as a gap in the market and start my own website :-). Feel free to e-mail me if you have further questions, as you can see I'm a big fan of Latvian mittens and Latvia in general!