With a rhythm like the waves and the heart beating,
I knit one stitch after the other and one row after the other
at the same time I collect my thoughts and feelings
without the woolen threads, I get lost
but if I can knit one more row and one more, I can find my way home again
through the magic of the threads I take my way through the days and the nights
I live on Gotland, the island of the roses and the fairytales in the Baltic Sea
together with my husband and our children and Watson the cat
Kammebornia is our art project as well as our own kingdom
Kammebornia is about our wish that everyone could live in their own fairytale kingdom in this place we call reality
and it is about our wish that everyone could be the king or the queen in their own life
In the Kammebornia podcast we want to invite you to our world
that is full of thoughts, feelings and discussions
caused through the scent of the coffee and the soft peaceful rhythm of the knitting
Kammebornia podcast is about life in general and knitting in particular
Welcome to the Kammebornia podcast episode 7 2017
also welcome to Gotland that is so fantastic in the autumn
Today, you will finally meet our knitting friends Nina and Rasmus and listen to us talking about Iceland and knitting
We will also give you some poetry and you will have a report from #mybrownautumn
Dennis and I are having coffee and talking about love and how we met
I am so glad that we finally get to do this!
It is so nice to be here!
You are both knitting Icelandic sweters at the moment
Nina, can you tell us what you are knitting?
It is a sweater called Gamaldags
The pattern is made by Hélèn Magnússon
Oh, it is so beautiful! And you use almost the same colours as I do right now!
I think it is exactly the same grey and red! And we did not know that!
Have you knitted the body?
No, I started with the sleeves, it is what the pattern recommend and it felt good so I am working on the sleeves
It is a good thing to start with the sleeves, so you can check your gauge on them before you knit the body
Yes, and the boring thing is done first
You have knitted other Icelandic sweaters before havn't you?
I have knitted two before, I knitted the first one when we lived on Iceland 2011
It is knitted in the thicker yarn, not Lettlopi, so it is extremly warm
Then I made this one, it is called Öld
That is so beautiful!
I use this one very much!
Is it also knitted in Lettlopi?
Yes it is
I really like it
Why do you knit Icelandic sweaters?
It feels like I get closer to Iceland
and Iceland is always close to our hearts
so I like to have a reason to think of Iceland
Then they are very practical
they protect against wind
and drizzling rain like today
the rain does not go inside the sweater
it is so fascinating with this good material that wool is
and different wool work in different ways but it is always protecting from wind, cold and water
the Icelandic wool is unique in protecting against rain and wind
Yes, really!
It is perfect on Gotland
I think it depends on how the fiber is built up
and the lanoline
the natural wool grease
it is often the same kind of weather on Iceland and on Gotland
Yes, like today and the latest weeks, it has been Icelandic weather here
Are there more parallels?
Yes, absolutely, in addition to the wind, there is the language
The lambs, the wool
the island
they are both islands
some parts of Gotland have a barren landscape
but we have woods here
I have heard so much about Iceland since we moved to Gotland
I have also met many people here, connected to Iceland
I guess if you like one island maybe you also like the others
I think so
Many islands have a lot of sheep and wool
Yes, really
And therefore also a knitting tradition
and their own special sweaters
It is interesting. Rasmus, what are you knitting?
I am knitting a Riddari, that means knight, i Lettlopi
It will be a cardigan
It is the first garment I knit
I thought that if I wanted to learn how to knit I had to have a project that I really wanted to wear
I wanted it to be something to look forward to get ready and use
You started to knit this last winter, didn't you?
Dennis and I started exactly at the same time
Yes, and then we had not yet met each other
Nina and I met when you had just started to knit
And now we can meet all four of us and knit, it is so much fun
Dennis is also knitting a Riddari and he is using almost the same colours
Yes, here it is!
It is a bit darker than yours
You will look good together!
Yes, we will match each other
It is so nice to see
It is so nice to see that you, as well as Dennis, already knit sweaters!
And your knitting looks so good and even!
Thank you!
We are going to be like a wool leauge, a wool gang in Visby
walking around in our Icelandic sweaters
I have also knitted a Riddari for Dennis, that he has used a lot
it is really a great pattern
Rasmus, can you tell me why you went to Iceland?
I have always been so fascinated be Iceland
We went there to learn the Icelandic language
We started to study Icelandic at the University of Uppsala
The first time we went there was just when we had met, but later on we went there to study the language
I had wanted to go there for a long time
Ok, so the first trip there was like a vacation?
Yes, only for a couple of days
Yes, we decided to go on a Tuesday and went two days later, the following Thursday
Very spontaneous!
We were not even a couple on the first trip
And then you got together and you studied the language in Uppsala and you wanted to go there again?
Yes, we studied Nordic languages and chose Icelandic
So we wanted to really learn Icelandic and we wanted to live there
It must be easier to learn a language where it is being spoken
For how long did you live there?
At first one term together and
and then I went there for two more terms later on
So, do you understand when other people speak Icelandic?
Yes, it is no problem and we always speak Icelandic with Icelanders.
we go there pretty often, at least once a year, and it is dissappointing if someone from Iceland
do not talk to us in their language, then I feel a bit hurt
I mean if I speak to them in Icelandic and they answer in English, that hurts
You do not often get a chance to talk Icelandic outside Iceland, so of course we want to do it when we are there
But we met an artist, in the art museum here in Visby, that we could speak Icelandic with
Yes, he was happily surprised that someone on Gotland could talk in his language, I heard that he was from Iceland
And the priest at your wedding, he was also speaking Icelandic
Yes, he had studied there, it was such an amazing coincidence!
He read some of the texts both in Icelandic and in Swedish in the church
And we had the national hymn of Iceland as we walked into the church
Yes, it was so nice, and that really makes you understand that Iceland means a lot to you
We had another Icelandic song as well in church
I have heard that there are more people knitting in Iceland than here in Sweden, is that true?
I think so, you can see more people wearing knitted garments
I think almost everyone own at least one Icelandic sweater
and you do not see so many fleece sweaters?
If you see someone in a fleece it is a tourist
but the Icelanders are at the same time very casual in their way of dressing
they do not wear rainwear as often as we do here in Sweden even though it rains a lot there
I guess they do not care much since it drizzles almost all the time
Either you knit yourself or you have a mother or a friend, a father or a brother that knits for you
I think it is the same in Norway
Yes, it feels like it is more common to knit there than it is here in Sweden
We meet so many people that knit so sometimes it feels like everyone knits in Sweden too but that is not the case actually
We find each other
Do you think there is a difference here on Gotland?
I think there are more knitters on Gotland than it is in Sörmland where we used to live before
I think so because I meet many people here in other contexts than knitting and I still meet knitters there
I did not do that on the mainland at the same extent
I have read that it is more common to knit on Iceland now than it was a couple of years ago
I also read that there are more people going to the cobbler to get their shoes mended
This can be a sign of economical awareness
and also a more conscious consumption
to mend and to create instead of buying new clothes all the time
I have also read that the words for money and for sheep are almost the same in Icelandic - is that right?
Yes, it is the same word, fá
Or cattle and money
it sounds like the Swedish word fä, an old word for cattle
this must mean that the sheep are very important for your supply
the sheep and the wool are important for your income
Yes, that is right
That is interesting
There are equivalents to that in other languages too
it is very interesting that it up to this date means the same, money and cattle
The largest woolmill on Iceland, Istex, that makes the Lettlopi yarn for example
they have a deal with the farmers that they buy all the wool
this means that if the farmers want to sell their wool, Istex will always buy it
This feels like such a good thing, we are used to the opposite here
Most of the wool from sheep in Sweden are destroyed because nobody wants it or can take care of it
The wool is measured highly on Iceland
The wool is also important for the tourists
Most tourists want to buy a sweater or yarn
You can buy handknitted sweaters in the town at Handknitting association of Iceland
You can also get the name of the knitter that has knitted your sweater in a shop outside Reykjavik
That is where I bought this one, I like it and wear it very much
You like cardigans do you not?
Yes, it works like a jacket, and this is in the thicker yarn
Now I am knitting my Riddari in Lettlopi to have another cardigan, not so warm as this one
But you have such a tight gauge, like I have, because I taught you how to knit, so it will be thick anyway
It will stand against rain
Have you decided on the buttons yet?
I have bought metal buttons
They are Norwegian
Like in my Marius sweater that you made for me
It also turned into a cardigan
We often think it is so traditional with the Icelandic yokes and sweaters but they are not as old as we might think
No, that is right, I think it is since the 50's or 60's
yes it is easy to think it is traditionel since very long ago, with the yoke in different colours and so on
On the other hand, knitting has a very long history on Iceland, longer than the Icelandic yoked sweaters
As long as Iceland was a part of Denmark they were only allowed to trade with Denmark
they were not allowed to trade with any other countries
and then knitted garments were sold to Denmark
all these traditional patterns are related to each other depending on the trade routes
In the beginning of the 20th century most of the Icelandic knitting was made of unspun yarn
You can still knit with this Plötulopi yarn that is not spun
I think Plötu means teasel or something like that - is that right?
Plata means flat, so it could be...
it is flat and not spun
the Icelanders could, in the early 20th century, leave their wool to the wool mill
and get it prepared for the spinning that they did in their homes
this is how it looked when they got it to take home and spin
to save time they begun to knit with it without spinning it first
usually you use two or four threads, this "yarn" is so airy and fragile, you have to be careful not to tear it apart
You can knit up a sweater in four threads very quickly
I am sure that is a good garment for being out on a boat fishing
I have not tried knitting with it, but I understand you have to be very easy on your hand as it is so fragile
I guess it is not so easy for me with my tight knitting
The Lettlopi yarn is stronger so it is easier to use
But isn't it interesting that they started to use this unspun yarn to save time by not spinning it
Imagine to get yarn and then not be able to knit something before you have spun it!
I could not wait either, I always want to start knitting directly
And I do not dare to try spinning because then I can probably not stop and then I will not have as much time to knit as I need...
I think it would be the same for me
that is why I keep away from spinning wheels
but I am sure it is very fun and relaxing
How were you affected by living on Iceland Rasmus?
What do you mean?
You did not knit when you lived there? You were there to study the language.
I do not know how I got affected but I learned a lot of Icelandic
I think it is always a good thing to get perspectives and to feel how it is to be new somewhere
to be a stranger in another country
I think that is what I learned most, except from the Icelandic
to live in a country where you are an alien
even if I knew the language and I was there of my own free will
but I got a feeling of how it is to be a stranger
I guess that is very educational and interesting and memorable
How was it for you Nina, you were already a knitter when you moved there right? How was your knitting affected?
Yes, even if I have been knitting since childhood,
my first advanced knitting piece was an Icelandic sweater
that I knitted when we lived there in 2011
Yes, I bought the yarn there and knitted it while we lived there
You were knitting and I was running
I tried to find a knittingcafé but could not find it, but now I know they exist
So you did not meet any knitters?
No, not at that time, but now I have a friend there who knits
But I knitted my first sweater there
earlier I had only been knitting mittens and hats and so on
so I learned a lot during that time
and maybe Icelandic sweaters mean a lot to me because of that
Why did you want to learn Icelandic? How did it all start?
Rasmus, you knew it before you went to the University
It was through music and film at first
I found it interesting that there are diphthongs in both Icelandic and in the accent on Gotland
That attracted me
I wanted to find out the similarities of the languages on Iceland and on Gotland
I have always been interested in languages
and in Nordic languages
I studied language history
and learned how well preserved the Icelandic language is
it is very similar to the old Swedish language that is no longer spoken
So the Icelandic language has not changed so much as for example the Swedish language?
That is right! So we can learn much from that.
Why is this?
There are many theories about that...
It is probably because of the isolation, Iceland is far away
If we look at other accents that have been preserved in Sweden
they are also spoken in isolated areas
if you have a lot of contact with other languages it is more likely that your own language change
It seems logic
You mentioned diphthongs as something in common
Can you explain what a diphthong is?
I will do it in Gutamål (an old language on Gotland)
A stone is called stain
ai (pronounced like I in English) is a vowel made from two tones, a gliding vowel
that is a diphthong
in Icelandic stone is called steinn
the word for sun is also almost the same in gutamål and Icelandic
you can easily hear the similarities
when I was young I loved to read the old Icelandic stories
I was fascinated both by the stories and by all the words and names
the language sounds a bit barren, just like the landscape
Yes, it sounds a bit hard with the distinct r:s for example, like my name Rasmus
But it is not a common name there, I think there are 4 people named Rasmus on Iceland
Maybe because Ras means something...
Yes, butt... maybe that is why they do not use the name so much
It is mostly people from Denmark that are called Rasmus
If you want to go to Iceland - what should you do or think about?
I think that you should take time to visit and explore Reykjavik, it is a fantastic town
You do not have to be out in the wilderness all the time
You can walk around in Reykjavik and look att all the small nicely coloured houses
Yes, and you still have contact with the nature, because you can see the ocean and the mountains from Reykjavik
and then the Westfjords are very beautiful
high mountains and deep fjords, and Akureyri in the north is also very nice
Oh, now I want to go there!
Imagine to go on a knitting trip there!
Rasmus, you know a lot about islands and languages and you are born and raised here on Gotland
you have lived on Iceland, you have travelled to Faroe islands and other islands
What do you think about the connection between the islands concerning knitting and languages?
I have been thinking about that
the landscapes on the islands are often barren
therefor it is a good place to raise sheep
then you have the wool
the wool is a very good protection from the weather
on islands the old languages are well preserved
the fact that it is islands promotes... willful languages
and knitting
when you met, you had the interest in languages in common but now you also have the knitting
maybe that was unavoidable
it only took seven years, but now you are hooked
Nina, the whole summer you have really tried to teach me to pronounce the name of the sweater I have been knitting, the Afmaeli
I have tried many different ways to pronounce it, it is just a word but it has been hard for me
I think you are getting closer
It is written Afmaeli
but that is not how you pronounce it, and in this podcast, in earlier episodes I have thought that I knew it but no...
I think it is like this....
A short A
Exactly!
Is it right now?
(Rasmus says Good job, in Icelandic)
Thank you!
Afmaeli! And it means birthday?
Yes, that is right and that is why you can see birthday parties if you use the hashtag #afmaeli on Instagram
Ok! Maybe with or without sweaters then...
It is happy colours, like a birthday celebration!
Thank you! I finally nailed it!
Let us keep on knitting!
Afmaeli!
We have had many questions about when we met
and this is not only easy to talk about but now we have been together for eight years
we got together in 2009 and it was meant to be
we just wanted to be together all nights and all days
but I lived in a house with my three children and Dennis lived in another house with his two children
Dennis looked me deep into my eyes, all the way into my soul, and said that
We need all or nothing from each other and we can not live with nothing so it has to be all
so we moved together and our children complained about us laughing to much
after living in the same house for a week Dennis had a myocardial infarct
a year later we got married
then I got pregnant and we had a son who died and I got ill
we rebuilt our lives to be together as much as possible
and to be able to do the things we like and have to do and are good at doing
we constructed our own kingdom to inspire others to be kings and queens in their own lives
we wish for a world that is more warm, more playful and more kind
a world that is more about happiness and together than about strip lights and profit margins
our economical margins disappeared after all the misfortunes and diseases
but we got so much instead, we had no choice and we followed our hearts
it is not easy to live on a dream but as the alternative did not work for us, we had no choice
We live day by day and we find so much happiness and strength in the things considered small but
actually are the greatest things, like the birds singing, the moments together with a cup of coffee
the sun shining through the windows and the sound of the ocean
we work together in different art projects, like the one we call In Between
In Between is about young people living together in a gap in between now and then, in between worlds,
there is a threat from the outside but a strength from the inside
it is in between imagination and the real world, in between ages and
we were thinking about now and then and later on
we were thinking about children and adults and the time in between
we were thinking about a gap and we created a peep-hole into another world that we call In Between
We also made a short film called In Between and then we started the Woodlands project
Woodlands is about our family for real, at least almost for real
What is reality and what is fairytale?
We also created a book together, called Picknick and it is about outings all year aound
it contains thoughtful texts, my pictures and Dennis drawings, some recipes and a lot of inspiration
for now it is only available in Swedish but we hope it will be translated
Now we are mostly working on the podcast and on my patterns
but also on some other projects
We have become both strong and fragile through all of our diseases and sorrows
But we can be together and we try to focus on the good things and we are so happy to be able to inspire others
Life is a precious gift and love is true grace
Coffee and talking
I like thinking of the beginning of our relationship, but it is also hard because of many tough things
But I mostly think of the romantic shimmer
I could neither eat or sleep and I was thinking of you all the time, 24 seven.
now I can be with you all the time instead
It is so much better!
It is a beautiful thing to grow together in love
But you think it is hard to talk about?
Yes
Or maybe not, but then I want to talk about everything
I find it hard only to talk about the beautiful things
In that case I also want to talk about the hard things and the darkness
but I have difficulties to express myself
I find it easier to express myself in my drawings
but you are the most romantic man I know of in your expressions for me
it is fantastic to hear so many nice things from you
I like writing poems
but I am worried to talk to much about it
many things are better without words
if I make a drawing of you for example, it is a way of saving the moment and I can not touch it then because
I do not want to destroy the moment, do you see what I mean?
But it brings back happy memories to look at the pictures from our wedding and so on
But we know so much more behind the scenes from the pictures
There are so many feelings and we have been bound together by all things that has happened
As you said you can wake up other memories when you see pictures. Memories connected to when the pictures were taken
then you start to think of things that happened at the same time
it can almost be a overload of feelings and things to relate to
for me it is almost always difficult to think of things that have been, it is like a heavy backpack
I want every day to be a new day which is hard to focus on if you have a heavy load to carry
These things on our old pictures are so beautiful and nice things but maybe it is hard for me to express what I mean
You are so talented in your way of expressing yourself
You are being so honest and it always comes from inside you
Thank you, but I am not always able to do that
Then you knit a sweater for me instead
and if you are tired of me you can still continue knitting and then you can give me the sweater
It is a fine thing, to knit in all the thoughts, feelings and love in a garment
Yes, that is how you do it. I do not think about that when I knit.
On the other hand, I have mostly been knitting for myself. But I made you a cowl - that felt different!
I felt that was so romantic - to get a cowl that you had knitted for me
But I think many people don't think that way - they just knit
Maybe it depends on what you are knitting and for whom?
But I guess you don't knit for someone you hate? Like: This asshole is going to get this sweater...?
You can knit evil thoughts in it - like voo doo...
Yes, like voo doo!
It sounds scary!
Are you drinking tea?
Yes, how about you?
Coffee!
Well, I find it hard to talk about feelings but I guess many can relate to that
But I know many people who tell me that they think you are so good at talking about feelings
Yes, but then I have to be able to talk about ALL feelings.
And I do not think that people here want to hear exactly everything
At the same time, it is a good thing to be able to share difficult and hard things
Yes, you can help to carry each other
It feels good to know you are not alone
Now it is time for us to have more of the fun stuff in life and less misery
Yes! Now we wish for more good things to happen.
That would be nice!
You often talk about togetherness
I experience that many people find it wrong to be dependent on each other
I often say that I want to talk to my wife and then they ask me if I can not decide for myself
Of course I CAN, but I WANT to talk to my wife, am I allowed to do that?
What is the point of having a wife if I can not talk to her and ask things?
Maybe this sounds strange, but for me it is important what you think and what you want
I mean, we are together, we live together, I do not want to be alone and be my own person when we are two persons.
Is it hard to get your different roles to adjust to each other?
I feel no need to. I can do things alone and without you but it is not fun.
It is much more fun to be with my family
Then you text me that you miss me
Both I and Ella were gone the other day
It was such a strange feeling, I am almost never alone
At first I thought like Wow! I am all alone, I can do whatever I want to do!
Oh, I am going to do everything!
Then I wondered what all that was?
I knitted for a while, went for a walk, baked a cake
cleaned the house, all those things I do when you are at home too
the fine thing was to long for you, which I did pretty soon
I think it is a good thing to long for each other sometimes
Yes, I think so too, that was not what I meant
I meant that it feels like the society today is so focused on the individuals and it is so egocentric
you have to be alone and lonesome is strong and that bullshit
I think we are here to help each other
I guess what you want to say is that society is so individualistic today and you are supposed to be
egoistic and selfish to be sort of approved
it would be nicer if we could help each other more and think of the people around us as well as ourselves
we do live together on this earth and we are in a context with each other
not everyone has the grace of living together with a beloved person but we can still have people close to us
We people are very dependent on each other, it is so stupid to live as we we are not
There is a very common Swedish expression "Alone is strong" - it is so strange and not true
We are much stronger together!
But now it is like we shall be independent individuals and it is not ok to ask for help, why is that?
It is a fine and nice thing to do, to help someone or being able to ask for help
it is so strange because walking around just thinking you are the best and the only one - that is nothing to bring along through life
the only thing that really counts are the things you can give and take in relations to other people
to help each other
not only in love relations but in all kind of relations
it is like we grow in the context of relations, in between each other
When you are going to die, I do not think that you wish you had been more egoistic and done more things alone
oh, what a great thing that I earned so much money for myself
I think that you think of your relations
there are studies that show that dying people talk about that they wish they had been more together with beloved ones
they do not wish they had worked more or earned more money or bought a bigger boat
time together with the ones you love is the most important thing
I think it is important to think about earlier than when you are going to die
while you still have the time
Everyone has to find their own way of course but I think it is important things to consider
it should be more normal to help each other and live for each other
Sometimes when I do things without you, it feels empty because I want to do it together with you.
I want to share my experiences with you
it is more fun to have those memories together
Do you think people who are alone get sad when we talk like this?
If you do not have someone to share your days with
I think there are many lonely people
It is a big difference in being alone and being lonely
it depends if you have chosen it or if you do not want to be alone and feel lonely
Many people like to be alone. I liked it the other day, for a couple of hours at least
But of course it can be a problem if you have been left alone or if you in some way do not want to be alone.
It is easier to be with yourself if you are a nice person
Otherwise it is very boring to be with yourself
I am so boring to be with for myself
But I think you are a nice person to be with
I become a person through other people
We all do! it is called socialization
We get developed through our experiences and meetings
You can feel very lonely even if you are together with someone - if the relation is not good
You can even feel more lonely in a bad relation than if you are all alone
Yes, I guess so, that is creepy!
If you do not feel a connection and maybe you feel exposed, then you are very lonely even though someone is there
if you are all alone you only have to take care of yourself and not cope with a bad relation and get irritated
You are so wise
Do you think so?
I just reflect on different kinds of loneliness
there is a word for loneliness that you choose, (a newly invented Swedish word)
when you spend time with yourself in a nice way
sometimes you can explain things better with a new word
I am very happy to be with you and to be able to long for you when we are not together
That is nice because I feel the same for you
Thank you! Thank you!
There are days when the echo of the dropped plate
is accompanied by the pling of the tears falling on the shards
spread on the gravel
one eyelid has fallen down, soaked by tears that never seem to stop falling
that is when stitch by stitch knitted on my needles
can be the only thing that anchors me in what calls reality
like the yarn binds, beds and warms
it also hides what is called me
in between wool and needle
Queen of Kammebornia knits
I have had a problem with the fact that beautiful knits do not go well together
That is why I last spring started to plan for my brown autumn
I have had brown as a base in my knitting
I will soon be finished with my brown cardigan
I am also knitting my Longing for Gotland socks in brown and white
My next cardigan will be a Wiola cardigan that also goes with brown
I have knitted Lucky me socks in brown and knee high Longing for Gotland in maroon
The Wisby mittens are knitted in rust brown and light grey
Ihave a brown hat that I like and Imight knit another brown hat, maybe a beret
My Brush creek shawl is pink and brown
and the white shawls go well with everything
so I am satisfied with my brown project and I have created a new hashtag #mybrownautumn
We are so happy to be able to share our yarn happiness, Gotland love and coffee moments with you!
Thank you for being with us!
We also have the best sponsors and we want to say thank you to them as well
At jarbo.se you can find yarns and free patterns and much more (mostly in Swedish)
At Opalicious you can find Opal yarn and much more
At Ullcentrum you can find fine Swedish wool yarn
In Uppsala you can find the cosy yarn shop YlloTyll and they are also available at yllotyll.com
You can follow us at facebook if you search for Kammebornia
On Instagram you can find @kammebornia and @kingofkammebornia
You can also find me and my patterns on ravelry.com
Pia blogs in Swedish on kammebornia.se
you can also subscribe at our Youtube channel Kammebornia
Thank you so much and welcome back!
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét