dontcallmebecky

Icelandic Knitting

I went on a bit of an Icelandic colorwork knitting kick last year. I am now a huge fan of fair isle colorwork because it combines the ease of the knit stitch with the excitement of watching a pattern emerge every row.

 

I made these two cardigans before we left for Iceland so that we would have them along for photo ops, of course!

(ah, the joy of steeking!)

 

Jon's cardigan is pretty much my most favorite knit project ever. He picked out the yarn and pattern when we were in Toronto last spring for our anniversary. I love the chunky yoke pattern and the extra detail of the cables on the arms and body. Jon wears this cardigan all the time, so it warms my heart to see my knitting project getting lots of use. It has also insured that I will make him lots more knit sweaters because he is so appreciative! (ravelry link: craftr's Stapi)

 

I really like the yarn and pattern I chose for my cardigan...but I am so mad at myself for putting a white zipper in instead of a black zipper. Hopefully, one day, I will get up the nerve to rip out the white zipper and sew in a black one. (ravelry link: craftr's Hela cardigan)

 

I made these two sweaters with the yarn that I bought while we were in Iceland.

 

This vest more than makes up with my disappointment with the Hela cardigan. I wear this all the time now. Because it is short-sleeved, I never overheat while wearing it. And, I bought a brown turtleneck to wear with it to reduce the neck itchiness (Lopi is so itchy for wool to skin contact). (ravelry link: craftr's Vormorgun Vest)

 

Jon picked out the yarn for this pullover and it's another sweater that he wears frequently. (I guess wool really helps now that we've been turning down the heat this winter to save money). I'm so glad that Jon likes wearing sweaters that are interesting to knit and is somewhat brave with his color choices and patterns, too. Lopi patterns are so easy and enjoyable to knit! (ravelry link: craftr's Riddari)

The Lopi Haul

Harriet and I went nuts in the Alafoss outlet store! We were literally running around adding balls of yarn to our baskets by the minute. All of the yarn we bought was around $2 a ball/wheel, so we bought as much yarn as we could fit into our luggage. It's a great thing yarn is so squishy!

Here's what I bought:

Wheels of Plötulopi to make a shortsleeved/vest version of this sweater for me (Lopi 120 pattern seen on this page).

 

3 balls of Álafoss Lopi to make an earflap hat for Jon.

3 balls of Létt Lopi to make mittens and/or a hat with earflaps for me.

13 balls of Létt Lopi to make a long-sleeved Riddari for Jon (he's been asking for a green sweater ever since I started knitting).

10 balls of Létt Lopi to make a Spring Morning vest for me.

 

And, finally, 3 balls of Loðband Einband laceweight and this pattern book to make the scarves or handwarmers (patterns here on ravelry).

 

Knitting Iceland just published an informative article on knitting with Lopi. Check it out here. 

Iceland: Part 2

Here's part two of my Iceland recap. If you missed part 1, check it out here. 

Day 4: Vatnajökull National Park and Glacier Lagoon

We stayed at a hotel at the bast of Skaftafell at Vatnajökull National Park and woke up to gorgeous blue skies. Our first stop of the day was the Svínafellsjökull Glacier. 

 

We took a walking tour on the glacier and were outfitted with metal crampons for better traction on the ice. (I'm always slipping whenever I try any type of hiking and I finally realized that hiking boots really do make a big difference compared to tennis shoes. I didn't have any falls on this trip and I was much more steady on my feet due to the grippy soles).

Iceland: Part 1

Jon and I spent the first ten days of September on an epic road trip around Iceland with our friends, Harriet and Steve. To say that it was an amazing trip would be an understatement! I have never seen so many varied types of gorgeous scenery in such close proximity. Visiting Iceland is like visiting all of the national parks in the USA at once. We saw glaciers, volcanoes, lagoons, canyons, fjords, mountains, craters, waterfalls, and so many other intense geological formations. We're already talking about returning to do more camping, hiking and exploring.

The first thing that most people asked us after we told them that we were going to Iceland was, "Why Iceland?" We first learned about the gorgeous scenery in Iceland from the music videos of Sigur Rós, one of our favorite bands, who hail from Iceland (along with Björk). Here's a video with a good example of the scenery. We were influenced by Helen's gorgeous photos and Tania's amazing trip reports. 

 

Earlier this year, I stumbled across a self-drive tour company and asked my friend, Harriet, if she'd be interested in coming along with us. She agreed, and then we held off for a few months before finally committing to the trip.

 

Once we booked the trip, I started frantically knitting our authentic lopi souvenir sweaters. Now you know the reason for me torturing myself by knitting bulky wool sweaters all summer long...

 

So here (after the jump) is our trip in a (not so small) nutshell...The tour company we used set us up with a rental car, booked all of our hotels for the stay, gave us a cell phone to use for emergencies and outlined a suggested itinerary for sightseeing. From what I read online, going with a self drive tour company is a bit more expensive than booking everything yourself, but the extra hassle is definitely worth the surcharge. Other than a few museums being closed for the winter and not noted in our itinerary, the tour was perfect for us.