From the Instructor:
I viewed these mittens in 2013 in the archives of the museum at the University of Tromsø, Norway. While not much is known about this particular pair of mittens, they are a fine representation of the typical red-white-and-blue patterns common for the North Sámi. The North Sámi are the largest of the nine Sámi groups and live in all three of the western countries that host the Sámi peoples: Norway, Sweden, and Finland. The North Sámi language is the most widely spoken of the Sámi languages. There is a Sámi theater group, a film industry, and the Sámi College based in Guovdageaidnu/Kautokeino, Norway, and a radio station and the Sámi Parliament of Norway in Kárášjohka/Karasjok, Norway. Students should be able to knit and purl in the round, do colorwork, and be comfortable knitting at a smaller gauge.
Materials Needed:
- Rauma Finull PT2 (previously known as Finullgarn) (100% Norwegian wool: 50 g/190 yards), one skein each of natural #401, red #418 and blue #437
- Needles, set of 5 double pointed (or other for magic loop), size 1 (2.25 mm) or size needed to obtain gauge
- Smooth waste yarn, small amount, for holding thumb sts
- Stitch markers and tapestry needle
- Finished sizes: 8 1/4 (9 1/4) in (21 [23.5] cm) hand circumference and 9 3/4 (10) in (25 [25.5] cm) long after blocking, not including the braid
- Gauge: 16 sts and 20 rnds = 2 in (5 cm) over stranded patt; 15 1/2 sts and 23 rnds = 2 in (5 cm) over St st, blocked
