© Text and photo Laila Duran.

This woman is from the parish of Norra Ny situated at the river Klarälven in Värmland. She wears a black pleated skirt, a red festive bodice and the fact that she is not covering her hair shows that she is unmarrried. The Norra Ny costume is one of Värmland’s most traditional and has been strongly influenced by Empire fashion.

Her hair is tied up in a red ribbon and she is wearing a hårnäver. This is a kind of diadem that is used as a hair band to keep the hair high up on the fore head. A hårnäver is made from two pieces of birch-bark that are sewn together with long stitches on the back. They are decoratively painted in red or reddish-brown. Matte paint is used to cover the hårnäver and patterns are painted on free-hand. Bark is collected from the birch trees in the spring when the rising level of sap makes it easy to remove.

The hair is tied up in an “oppbindning” before the hårnäver is placed like a diadem. The decorative red ribbons are hanging loose over her back and shoulders.

The married woman from Norra Ny is wearing the same pleated skirt but with a home woven striped bodies. She also wears her red calico necker chief.

Her hair is tied in a slightly different fashion but this is regarding to personal taste and the length of the hair.

Married women always covered their hair. The white linen cap is tied at the neck with ribbons.

Pretty cross stitch embroidery decorates the cuffs of the Norra Ny shift.

Dressed for autumn with a black wool jacket and embroidered mittens. A bone needle case is hanging from her apron. The white linen cap covers the hårnäver, but the cap is decorated with a fine white lace to frame her face.

All text and photos are protected by Copyright.

© Text and photo Laila Duran.

During the past weeks we have visited two museums and the first one was Setesdals Museet in central Norway. We spent three days at Rygnestadtunet for the photo shoot. Curator Randi Gåserud Myrum had prepared the most exquisite selection of bunads from Setesdalen including this everyday costumes I am going to show you in this entry. Local women came to show their bunads as well as their handy crafts. Special dishes, typical for the area, where brought and we set a festive table in the beautiful main room in one of the houses from this 15th century farm.

The spinning wheel was invented in the late middle ages. It speeded up the production of yarn which before that had to be spun on a spindle that was turned with the hand. Still the preparation of yarn was the most time consuming part of the textile production. The spinning wheel is driven by a pedal as it this leaves both hands free to handle the carded wool.

The spindle wheel makes the spindle rotate which twists the wool into a yarn and winds it up on a bobbin.

Wool waiting to be carded.

The roll of carded wool, called rowing, is held in the left hand while the wool fibers are pulled out to create the yarn with the wright hand.

Today we often think of white as a color for festive occasions but in Setesdalen the natural white bunads are everyday and working wear. Note how she has put the ribbons tied to her plaits under the belt. While working the plaits sometimes came off, and to make sure she does not loose the ribbons they are fastened this way.

Outdoor weaving on a simple vertical loom. During summer the temperature was pleasant and the light good for many long hours. Pattern woolen bands are made on the vertical loom where the warp is held in tension with loom weights. The shed is opened with a shed rod and a heddle rod operated with the hands. This device has been used for weaving since the Iron Age in Scandinavia. The pattern is picked up with the fingers and the weft is beaten in with an iron knife.

Wooden boxes full of colorful woven and braided bands of wool, used as various decoration on the Setesdalen bunad. The festive belts in red, green and white are a feature detail on the costume. The patterns are made without any design drawings; instead they were memorized and varied freely by the weaver.

To keep up the spirits and get a break, a traditional soup is served. She is wearing her work outfit with an off white printed wool head kerchief.

Carrots, cabbage, potatoes and meat are some of the ingredients in this filling and very tasty soup. With every meal the “flatbröd”, the flat bread is served.

Thanks to the cooperation of Setesdal Museet there will be several pages in the next book in the series Scandinavian Folklore about Setesdalen, one of the oldest bunad-eras in Norway. From the museum textile collection we are able to show how a newborn child was getting dressed for baptism and the ceremonial wrap that would follow the child through it´s whole life. For these shoots we used the beautiful settings from the interiors of the old houses of Rygnestadtunet from the 15th century.

For more information about the Setesdalsmuseet please visit: www.setesdalsmuseet.no

All text and photos are protected by Copyright.