Initially, I visited Unravel Knitting Festival held last weekend in Farnham to report the hive of craft activity that is alive in Surrey. However, my plans shifted when I spotted a storm of Icelanders unwinding at the event - I caught up with Ragga, group leader, who told me more about wool and what it meant to her.
“A friend asked me to come over to the festival last year to see what British wool was like. I saw thousands of things at the event that I had never seen before. When I went back home to Iceland I found a group to come in 2013 - and here we are!”
Knitting and wool is a huge part of Icelandic culture. Children in Icelandic schools learn to knit from age nine (“both the boys and the girls!”) and the iconic lopayesa (Icelandic sweaters) are very popular.
“The method of Icelandic knitting is an international style” as Ragga explained. “This means that we can incorporate patterns from all over the world in our own yarns. People are always there to connect with on the internet and on Facebook to help understand the designs”.
“My grandmother could not understand any foreign languages - but she could understand by just seeing knitting patterns”.
The group were very impressed with all that British wool had to offer. They told me that after their day at the event they were going to a sheep farm to learn more about the way agriculture and farming works in this country compared to their own.
The Icelanders were very popular at the festival - you might spot them in other local press as they met the Mayor who also made an appearance at the event. But, if you missed them this year, they plan to hit Unravel next year! Some of the group assured me that they would be back with more wool, patterns and jumpers in 2014...
You can find out more about knitting tours in Iceland at www.cultureandcraft.com or www.icelandtraveller.co.uk. To read more about Unravel Knitting Festival visit www.farnhammaltings.com/festivals/unravel/
