Text and photo Laila Duran ©

Spring is here, the coltsfoot is bright and yellow, cheering us up from the side of the road. We are eagerly waiting for summer. Last summer I went to Dalecarlia and met these  musicians and dancers at Gammelgården, a homestead museum in Boda that is run by Boda Hembygdsförening, the local history society. This summer afternoon people from Orsa, Leksand, and Häverö, as well as Boda, joined in to play and dance till the sun went down.

Britta, Maria and Jon played their fiddles and stamped their feet to the Boda polska, schottis and waltzes. The musicians are dressed in the traditional Boda costume.

Eager to join in the dans are people from Orsa, Leksand and Häverö.

Music and dance are synonymous with the Scandinavian summer.

Sjonsstugan is one of eleven buildings at Gammelgården.

This young couple are wearing parish costumes from Orsa in Dalarna.

Gunilla Landmark, who is making a great contribution showing her collection of folk costumes from Leksand in Scandinavian Folklore vol. II, is here seen with her dancing partner.

All text and photos are protected by Copyright.

Text and photo Laila Duran ©

It was in Mandal, on the lovely shores of Norwegian Sörlandet we had the last photo shoot for the next book. This pretty young girl, Åslaug, dressed in her sunday best spent a whole day with her friend in front of the camera. They are both eighteen and enjoyed this first day of spring. The sky was blue and for the first time this year the wind was warm. The temperature rose to 13-14 °C and we enjoyed it immensely.

The Mandal Husflid, Mandal Arts & Crafts, was the host for this photo shoot. They had prepared several bunads, both the traditional ones but also introduced a new bunad that will be presented to the public for the first time in Oslo at the release of the book.

This is a woman´s bunad showing the fashion in Vest-Agder in the 1830-1870-ies. The striped skirt and the characteristic tiny, tiny “skirt” at the lower back of the bodice is called “klau”. Her headdress shows how unmarried women wore their hair, tied in colorful ribbons and fastened in a ring at the back of the head.

So utterly young and handsome. His dark blue bunad with a red-green-blue striped waistcoat was topped off with a felt hat with silk ribbon.

The headdress that gives the Vest-Agder woman her silhouette  is called “valk” and when she marries she will wear a large white cotton kersheif tied over it. To keep the pleated waistline in place she wears red woven suspenders buttoned to her skirt by two forged silver buttons.

In cooperation with the Vest-Agder Museet, Mandal Husflid is reproducing several of the embroidered shawls and apron that was fashionable in the area in the early 20st century.

The hanging pockets are small pieces of art. The one to the left is the old original and the one to the right is a reproduction. These pockets are now put into production and it is possible to make special orders. An unusual feature is that the embroidery has been made on velvet ground. Usually the pockets are made of broadcloth with wool embroidery. This one is quite exclusive, made of silk velvet with silk edging.

In the book there will be several versions of the Vest-Agder bunads, the local tradition has a great variation of accessories like aprons, shawls, hanging pockets and warming mittens. And if in Sörlandet, even if you are not looking to buy a bunad, the shop Mandal Husflid in the center of the city is well worth a visit.

For more information on the Vest-Agder bunads please visit : http://www.norskflid.no/mandal/

http://www.vestagdermuseet.no/

All text and photos are protected by Copyright.