Familiens Strikkebok Photoshoot: Conic Coat

Posted on June 11, 2014 by Linda Marveng

The triangles and blocks stitch pattern by Lynne Barr, creates shadows and a dense texture perfect for a long a-line coat with a soft and generous shawl collar, a seeded rib pattern, and a clever tuck. I have achieved my goal of designing a coat with architectonic elements you want to knit and wear. At least I do hope so. The Conic Coat first planned for Brooklyn Tweed has been knitted in Embla – Hifa 3, in a stunning purple beige color using 4 mm/US 6 and will be published in Norwegian in the separate magazine Familiens Strikkebok out in late August. Here is the coat finished, not that many hours before the photoshoot at Aker Brygge actually. My chosen photographer is Kim Müller, model is beautiful dancer Francesca Golfetto and make up & hair stylist is Line Sekkingstad, they all made my knitting projects look so gorgeous! This is how dreams come true.

The coat is worked flat in pieces and then sewn together. Stitches are picked up for the collar and a tuck is worked before you begin with the Seeded Rib pattern. The shawl part of the collar is worked with short rows and ends with an I-cord bind off. The a-line decreases are worked in stocking stitch, while you discontinue the Folded Triangles pattern when you shape neck, armhole and sleevecap.

Initially I imagined it in a blue tweed, but since my design did not make it into the Brooklyn Tweed selected few, and I spotted Monica Stålvang’s stunning brown shoes, I knew that the coat had to match those. Hence I wanted a photo of Francesca sitting showing off the shoes too!

I have made the coat in sizes S to 2XL, with a finished bust measurement excluding collar of 92 cm to 126 cm/36.25 to 49.5″. Francesca is a size XS, Norwegian clothes size 34/UK 6/US 2 but wearing size S. I will show you photos of me wearing it too since I am a size S, Norwegian clothes size 36-38/UK 8-10/US 4-6 but they will not be as marvelous, obviously. I plan a test knit of the English pattern in my Ravelry group in August.

New Design: Zest Shawl and Cowls

Posted on June 7, 2014 by Linda Marveng

Dark lime is the name of this attractive shade of Rowan Softknit Cotton, a deliciously soft cotton ideal for a summery shawl to be worn over a dress in the cooler evenings. An easy lace pattern shows off the cable structure of this lovely yarn with garter stitch edges all around. The shawl is rectangular and I added 8 beautiful two toned colored mother of pearl buttons from Perlehuset, 4 on each end on opposite sides and used the holes in the pattern to make it into a shrug. A large cowl was essential and why not add a small one too? All parts are knitted back and forth in rows using 4.5 mm/US 7, the samples by test knitter Airin Hansen, aka Teodor on Ravelry. The Norwegian pattern will be published in late August in Familiens Strikkebok, a separate issue, while the English pattern will come on Ravelry. I am delighted that it has been professionally photographed on dancer Francesca Golfetto by Kim Müller and I will show you the photos shortly.

New Design: Shawl Sleeves

Posted on June 4, 2014 by Linda Marveng

A sleeve that ends in a shawl, worked in reversible cables with two very different sides and lined by checks, made to drape and pin together as you wish. The cables are worked half in rib, half in reverse stockinette stitch, and provides a soft contrast to the curvy checks. Knit in the round to the armhole, then flat on the shawl to the end; a hem. Conceptual accessories with a modern shape. This was my idea for a design submission that I presented to the American yarn company Brooklyn Tweed, but it was not among the chosen ones, probably because it did not fit into their magazine collection.

Anyway, it has been beautifully knitted by my test knitter Airin Hansen, aka Teodor on Ravelry, and will be published in Norwegian in Familiens Strikkebok, their special issue magazine in August, and the English pattern in my Ravelry Store. The Brooklyn Tweed yarns are not available in Norway so I made my own tweed with the added lustre from Ask-Hifa 2 made by Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk knitted together with Rowan Fine Tweed on a 4 mm/US 6 to make the cables pop. The finished result is more abstract than I had in mind, but still fun to drape around your body or just use one as a generous scarf. I did wonder whether to build in shoulder shaping in form of short row shaping and thought how marvelous it would be in lace weight and with a super long shawl part but since I had to be practical I went for maximum texture and shorter shawl length.

The shawl sleeves have already been professionally photographed on Francesca Golfetto, and they look stunning on her. I look forward to showing those photos to you.

Behind the Scenes: Photo Shoot

Posted on May 31, 2014 by Linda Marveng

I had a marvelous photo shoot on Thursday with photographer Kim Müller, dancer Francesca Golfetto, stylist Line Sekkingstad and my husband as photo assistant. The shoot was organized before I started knitting due to the tight deadline for delivery to the Norwegian magazine Familien and their special issue Strikkeboka/Knitting book due out in late August. I was fortunate to find one test knitter, Airin Hansen, and my neighbor Karin Placht to assist me in knitting samples in time for the photo shoot. There is no way I would have managed on my own otherwise. Knitting two coats (Carla and Conic) and a scarf (Scarftex) in addition to finishing another jacket (for a different magazine), as well as designing another 5 items, was more work than I ever could have imagined in a month and a half. So I had to start knitting long into the night as well, since I was working 7 days a week already. Seeing the garments stunningly worn by Francesca, with the magic touch on hair & make up by Line, fabulous shoes and boots by Monica Stålvang and beautifully captured by Kim, made it all worthwhile! Not to forget that my husband found a several remarkable spots at Tjuvholmen, the end tip of Aker Brygge/Wharf in Oslo. It was a beautiful day with strong sunshine so we had to look for backgrounds in the shadow and found numerous next to the Astrup Fearnly Museum. We broke up for a decent lunch at Olivia (read: Bølgen & Moi was closed sadly) before we continued dressing and directing Francesca around in a very different manner than she is used to as a dancer. I felt so fortunate and cannot wait to see Kim’s selection of photos! Next week I am taking part in another photo shoot, what a treat!

Ravelry Group Anniversary Draw

Posted on May 28, 2014 by Linda Marveng

My Ravelry group is 1 year already! I feared that only a few with join, but were utterly wrong; there are now 660 members, and I am so pleased to have attracted so many knitters! It has been a thrilling year with many test knits of my English patterns, showing off of finished garments, discussions of different knitting techniques, chatting and bi-monthly free pattern draws just to mention a few of the topics in this lovely group. I am delighted to have met new knitters. So it is time to celebrate that one year has passed. How can I best do this? By organizing a draw in my group with exciting prizes like yarn kits, a copy of my printed book with additional English patterns sent by e-mail, and free pdf patterns from my Ravelry store. All you have to do is join my group if you have not already done so, and answer my question (dead easy: what is your favorite knitting magazine?) in my Ravelry group. I will use Random org to pick winners based on the number matching the response/posting on Saturday 7th. June. Here is a list of the prizes, and a good reason to join, see ravelry.com/groups/linda-marveng, in my opinion:

Hifa Perle 4-ply/fingering (100% mercerized cotton, 200 g, 335m/366 yds) 5 cones in a color of your choice – 62 stunning shades to choose from, see ull together with the pdf pattern of my Regal Purple Jacket in English. The yarn has been generously sponsored by Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk.
Hifa Pelsull DK (100% pelt wool, 100 g, 260 m/284 yds) 8 skeins in a color of your choice – 20 beautiful shades to choose from, see ull – together with the pdf pattern of my Arcade Vest in English. The yarn has been generously sponsored by Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk.
Thomas Kvist, Amoretto 5-ply/DK (45% alpaca, 50% cotton, 5% polyamide, 100 g, 250 m/273 yds), now unfortunately discontinued, 9 skeins in soft pink 3161 from my stash together with the pdf pattern of my Japanese Lace Jacket in English.
A copy of my printed book in Norwegian with English patterns sent by e-mail.
A pdf pattern of your choice from my Ravelry Store, see ravelry.com/stores/linda-marveng.
A pdf pattern of your choice from my Ravelry Store.
A pdf pattern of your choice from my Ravelry Store

A Swan Lake by Alexander Ekman

Posted on May 24, 2014 by Linda Marveng

Photo: Erik Berg

Wild, wet and beautiful was the review headline in the national newspaper Aftenposten after the premiere of A Swan Lake by internationally acclaimed young Swedish choreographer Alexander Ekman. Yes, it was a blast! Wet how, you ask, and the answer is a pool on stage; 16 x 16 m/17.5 x 17.5 yds with a water depth of 3-4 cm/1.1 -1.4″ filled with 5 000 litres/1320 gallons of water. The dancers were sliding gracefully – I did not know this was even possible – even using the water for sound effects by taping it, jumping and playfully dancing in the pool. The first splashes in Act 2 felt like an attack on the senses, and very surreal. Accompanied by a opera singer Elisabeth Teige, in the role as The Diva, my mind seemed to have lift off. This, you might realize was not a new version of the mythical Swan Lake with music by Tchaikovsky, but inspired by it with an additional large portion of humor and madness according to Ekman himself. How about adding a 1000 plastic ducks? Tick. Each one had its hole glued to avoid bacteria spreading. How do swans actually move in the water? A demanding task given to the dancers, who needed special ballet shoes made of rubber with a leather inside, knee pads to avoid cuts, wetsuits to keep warm, and bicycle helmets after numerous concussions when rehearsing the production, see a video here: Rehearsing.

Photo: Erik Berg

Swan costumes by Danish designer Henrik Vibskov, made in neoprene used for wetsuits. Apparently the material made such a smell that it has been hanging outside since October. Does neoprene breathe, and how well does it wash? The head seamstress made her own gym outfit to test on the treadmill to make sure it would work. Suits made of especially printed fabrics had falling plastic ducks on them, and I do wish I had brought some opera binoculars. Take a look at the making of the neoprene outfits here: Costumes.

The music was by Swedish composer Mikael Karlsson performed by the orchestra together with sound effects which made my heart miss a few beats here and there. For a long time the performance was called naturally enough water; a water ballet. In the introduction before the ballet we saw Ekman’s introduction made on a New York roof terrace. I hope you will enjoy this short video presentation, as much as I did: Water Research.

The performance is sold out, but Norwegian state television, NRK, has filmed the performance so I do hope to see it again, for more details see: Operaen.

Strikk og Drikk/Knit and Drink in Stavanger

Posted on May 21, 2014 by Linda Marveng

This is a large group of knitters that have a monthly knit night at a pub in Stavanger. It started with a knitter wanting some company and suggested meeting at a pub, and it did not take long before the room was packet. I have met a few of the knitters online on both Facebook and Ravelry, and has been invited to hold two workshops in September and a weekend one in November; when they are organizing their knitting weekend. The dates and information for the knit nights are on their group on Facebook, while the Knitting Weekend has its own website: StrikkehelgStavanger. A knit party, knit night, shop stands, knit exercises especially for knitters – made by Bettany Shaw; a personal trainer – and workshops, are all part of this exciting program for the weekend. The term Strikketrim/Knitting exercises needs a bit of clarification: “Encompasses a ‘sports specific’ workout to make you the strongest, most dynamic knitter you can be. All important areas include mobility and function of the shoulders, a strong core and of course movement of the major muscle groups to prevent back pain and kick start that metabolism!”, according to Shaw herself. That sounds ever so essential to me, but I am holding a 2 day workshop in Knitting Design in Norwegian, more details in this blogpost: knitting-design-workshop.

I am very excited to visit this busy group of knitters, and wonder whether the workshop will fill as quickly as Montering/Finishing on Saturday 27. September did. In my opinion there is a lot of pleasure in finishing a garment to its uttermost perfection. There are still a few places left on Japanske Mønstre/Japanese Patterns on Sunday 28. September; where I will teach how to read patterns in schematic form and how to work complicated charts from my Japanese Book library. I cannot wait to meet my test knitters and friends I only know digitally, in real life.

Design in Progress: Carla Coat

Posted on May 17, 2014 by Linda Marveng

My Carla Shoes in Wine by Monica Stålvang needed a coat to accompany them on an evening out, I decided. For awhile the design was a dress, but a coat is easier to wear and combine with other outfits. However, it did take me awhile to find a color and texture I loved, since I felt the shoes need quite a bit of drama to make the coat as stunning as the shoes. Norsk Pelsull/Pelt wool by Hifa in burgundy – ruby really – with its lustre was my first choice, but more volume and texture was necessary. So I tried to knit it double, which was closer to what I had in mind but still not perfect. I needed to go yarn hunting, and knew I did not have any contestants in my stash so no need for a stash dive.

The revelation dawned on me when I saw Rowan Lima yarn in La Paz, a subtle darker plum semi-solid shade, and knew it would add the essential volume and texture to the Pelsull. Next, what needle size do I choose; I wanted it dense and tested 5 mm/US 8 which was hard to knit with, I tried 6 mm/US 10 (read: mega size for me who likes to be on a size 3 mm/US 2.5) which made the fabric too loose; finally the winner: 5.5 mm/US 9 and the recommended needle size for Rowan Lima.

The sleeve has a braid framed by reverse stocking stitch and double seed/moss stitch, then stocking stitch under the arm. I have worked the sleeves in the round but will make the A-line body flat, possibly with 3 braids on the back. The fronts on the other hand have not agreed on their pattern yet, but will very soon since the pattern will be available late August in Familiens Strikkebok in Norwegian, then in English on Ravelry. The photo shoot is currently being planned. To be continued.

Stokke Bygdetun/Museum

Posted on May 14, 2014 by Linda Marveng

I spent last weekend at this amazing small museum consisting of historic buildings moved to this location during the last decades. Stokke Bygdetun was established in 1978 and consists of 5 buildings with the 6th currently being built. The Museum is in a beautiful forest with paths leading through it. All the buildings are currently in use, and I was fortunate enough to hold a workshop in Professional Finishing and Fairisle organized by Stokke Husflidslag/Handicraft Association in a small timber house called the Brewery House built in 1852 in Horten, rebuilt in 2003-2004. Stokke Husflidslag uses the building for their meetings, workshops, knit cafés and as a weaving studio (there is a small adjacent room with looms), while the basement has a large baker’s oven as well as a meeting room and is used by the local women’s institute. Here is the schedule for Stokke Husflidslag.

There were only 3 people signed on, but the workshop went ahead, so we all had an enjoyable weekend with plenty of knitting. I was fortunate to stay with Solveig Nodland, the study leader and herself a weaving teacher, on her mobile phone in the background. At her home, Solveig has a weaving studio approximately the size of our former London flat, with 3 giant looms, but no wonder since she and her husband runs Vevstol. The weather was beautiful and sunny on Saturday so we had our lunch on the benches outside, together with a group of visitors. The museum barn, the red building on the right below, was rented for a confirmation on Sunday, so we had the chance of studying a range of local national costumes worn by the guests. Unfortunately, for the guests it was raining on Sunday, but it was perfect for knitting. I would be very happy to come back here to hold more workshops.

I am thrilled to take part in two knitting festivals this autumn: Strik Bornholm in Denmark 4th to 7th September and Strikkehelg in Stavanger 15th and 16th November. More details and a complete list of workshop will come later.

As it Rises Forward. Nation, Tradition, Fusion.

Posted on May 10, 2014 by Linda Marveng

Jewelry designer and photographer Siri Berrefjord is currently showing at Bærum Kunsthåndverk, see bkh, in Sandvika, on the outskirts of Oslo. The title of the exhibition is taken from our National Anthem, and the painting shown at the bottom of the poster is from our Constitution, celebrating its 200th anniversary this year. I have not had time to visit yet, and going away this weekend holding a workshop in Stokke, but hope to have time next week. Here is Siri’s introduction to the exhibition: “I am impressed and excited by Norway’s rich cultural inheritance. I am inspired by the many treasures made here. For a long time, I have used the farming culture with its rich decorations as a basis for my own expression. In this exhibition I wanted to take a closer look on a few selected items; their cultural expressions and interpret these in my own way. I have been inspired by distinctive folk artists and color palettes. I have also used old handicrafts recalled from bottom of chests, and a forgotten past.

In addition I wanted to express something about time. We live in a time where time itself has become scarce. When studying earlier periods, where I find my inspiration, our relation to time becomes a paradox. Two hundred years ago man worked a lot more, they used more time on daily tasks such as house work and cooking. Life was cumbersome. Yet ordinary people used an awful lot of time on decoration and handicraft.

I wanted to do something similar in this exhibition. Both the clothes and the jewelry I make, take a long time to process. I want to make this time visible, in other words the time used on the presentation of these objects. What is really time in such a context? For me, it is also an expression of care, of lasting attention and of love to the thing itself. By using time to make items, you also give them a soul. When things are properly worked and have had time to evolve slowly, but surely, becoming visible, first then can they reach their potential.

Few expensive and exclusive materials have been used in these works, a conscious decision on my part. But they are carefully chosen; right materials – which suits the nature of the things themselves. And then it is time, the duration of the presentation which gives the things their exclusivity – where they finally rises forward.”

I am thrilled that Siri is making buttons for one of my knitted jackets, and look forward to seeing the result – I will show and tell when I can. It is one of the many special orders she receives throughout the year, in addition to her collection available from Designerkollektivet at Glasmagasinet in Oslo and online from sirisskattkammer.

Linda Marveng

Knit wear designer and author

Author Archives: Linda Marveng