National heritage of the peoples of the North - Scandinavian patterns

2024 Author: Sierra Becker | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-26 03:46

"Scandinavian patterns", this phrase has become a household name. So you can title an article about the fjords of Norway, about the Suomi people in Finland, about a trip to Sweden, Denmark, Iceland. This is legitimate and recognizable - as a visiting card of the states of northern Europe.

Fashion comes and goes

Centuries later, rich oil reserves were discovered in Norway, and for many centuries the countries located on the Scandinavian Peninsula were agricultural. Hunters, shepherds, farmers - they all needed warm clothes. Women (the traditional image is a warm jacket and an apron with ornaments, two braids on the chest) took care of the warm clothes of their husbands and sons-producers, of maintaining cleanliness and comfort in the house. This is a clear established image, originating from the "Kalevala" and animated films like "The Snow Queen" in 1957. Then, perhaps, thanks to this cartoon, “Scandinavian patterns” were popular in Russia. In the photos you can see sweaters with a round yoke, knitted from the neck, with traditional deer, Christmas trees and snowflakes. It's been a fewdecades, and the fashion for products with a characteristic northern ornament has reached such heights that in the winter collections of 2011-2012 there was no one who would bypass this topic. Even shoes are covered with a characteristic pattern.

Favorite Christmas theme

Maybe what is fashionable is also beautiful (a stereotype embedded in the subconscious), but "Scandinavian patterns" are really very good. Of course, they are incredibly modern, but still somehow reminiscent of childhood. Because their traditional theme is inextricably linked with the New Year. There is no person in the northern hemisphere who would not love this holiday in the classical sense of the name - Christmas trees, deer, snowflakes, Santa Claus will appear now. Especially since he comes from these places.

The origins of northern ornaments

In Soviet times, fashion for certain things was also present. For example, for some reason, the performance "Mistress Niskavuori" was very popular. It was staged by almost all theaters in the country, including the Maly. And when the Finnish feature film of the same name was released, the country was stirred up. Everything became fashionable - from the hairstyle of the main character to the interest in hand knitting, for which threads were bought in kilograms in the film. The main character was wearing amazing sweaters - so the "Scandinavian patterns" are familiar firsthand.

Specific patterns

Domestic needlewomen sat down to work, and masterpieces were obtained from modest improvised means. Not everyone knew that tight knitting, due to the complex interweaving of threads, which came fromweaving art, called "jacquard", but grandmother's methods achieved both a clean inside and a clear execution of motives. "Scandinavian patterns" are characterized by the fact that when a large pattern is made on the reverse side of the work, the thread sags, and if it is not fixed, this will create difficulties when putting on clothes. Northern ornaments are good because they can be varied. A large traditional snowflake on the back or chest of the sweater, surrounded by geometric motifs, is also a Scandinavian pattern. In the classic version, it looks like this - a round yoke to the middle of the forearm and the bottom of the sweater are trimmed with large drawings of national themes, usually on both sides of the ornament they are limited by "teeth". The entire field of the product is covered with contrasting dots or small "stars" arranged in a strict geometric order. It is this "jacquard" that makes the product warm.

National motives of ornaments

The drawings of the peoples of northern Europe cover all types of clothing - hats, shoes, gloves. Patterns are woven, transferred to clothes using modern photography techniques, knitted on typewriters. But manual work has always been highly valued. The cost of a product from high-quality, environmentally friendly, synthetic-free raw materials, made using products of the same dignity, rolls over.

There are so many professional magazines now available offering Scandinavian knitting patterns. You can also crochet, but the front knitting makes the field smooth, and it is better visible on it.ornament. The color scheme is dominated by natural shades - brown, white, beige, red. In some areas of Scandinavia, all shades of blue and gray were considered national.

The simplicity and genius of the northern pattern

The classic version of the northern pattern implies a small pattern - a deer occupies 14x9 cells, the pattern is constantly intertwined, a herringbone - 10x11, a quadrangular snowflake - 11x11. You can not ignore the star of the northern pattern - a snowflake, consisting of 8 hollow or solid rhombuses, connected in two. The drawing is absolutely correct in the geometric sense, all proportions are identical, it is clear, beautiful. This is a small perfection, located on a field of 19x19 cells. From the inside, the threads are intertwined all the time. The snowflake has become the central figure (even a deer cannot argue with it) of the folk art of the European north. There are a lot of benefits called Knitting. Scandinavian patterns. Schemes”, in which these elements are first described. Truly everything ingenious is simple.