Binding the ends of a Sámi belt.

A beautifully finished Sámi belt.

Sámi belts have a range of different endings. One of the most decorative is the multi-coloured binding.  This is easy to do.

This type of binding is called a three-strand plait in the Ashley Book of Knots on page 488. This is an amazing book. My copy has started to fall apart as I have referred to it so often. 

A Sámi belt 

Here is a belt that I wove using the Sigga heddle.

Sámi belt woven on the Sigga heddle. 

 

Sigga belt  width: 25mm  length: 172cm  Material used: Sámi band weaving wool

I wove it for a workshop at the International Conference on Braiding in Denmark 2022. The warp stretched across the room.

 

Weaving the belt at home

I made a number of belts and band samples to illustrate the different patterns made with this type of weaving.

Two samples of binding.

I am giving a workshop in Oxford this month.  I wove a number of short samples so that participants could learn how to finish a band. These bands are woven on a Sunna heddle with 9 pattern slots. 

Samples to practice binding.

The Decorative Binding Sequence.

Here is the sequence in pictures to show the process of binding.

Step 1 Divide the warp into four sections. Two sections are used to make the binding on each side. These are called the foundation groups.

Step 2 Take two strands of yarn from the right hand side. This is the working strand.Take them over the first group and then under the second group.

Step 3. Take the working strand over the left group and then under the first right hand group.

These two movements are repeated for the length of binding that is required.  movements 

Step 4. Take the working strand over the right hand group and under the left. Pull tightly and push up the working end to fully cover the group of threads. 

Step 5. Take the working strand over the left group and under the right hand group. Pull tightly and push the binding together. 

Step 6 Changing colour. The white working strand is over the left group.  It will be part of the  right hand group of threads for the next binding colour.

Take the next coloured binding thread from the right hand group.  Take the blue working strans over the right group and under the left group.

Step 7. Changing colour. The blue binding thread will be in the left hand group. The next colour, red comes from the left hand group. This is to ensure that each group remains approximately the same thickness. 

Keep binding until you are happy with the length.

Finish with a tassel or West Country Whipping.

The Working Thread.

It is important that the working threads are of the same thickness. The eight red pattern threads and the one blue central pattern thread are twice as thick as the other background threads. So for this binding, the working thread is two strands when using a background thread. This makes them the same thickness as a single pattern thread.  

The Ashley Book of Knots suggest that the binding thread, the working thread, should be at least five or six times longer than the area you wish to cover.

I have made a YouTube video to show the process in action.

Here is the link:

Sámi Decorative Binding

https://youtu.be/_9Qzr-9UEmc

Happy decorative binding!

Susan J Foulkes  June 2024

Sámi Tartan and shawls

This lovely cushion is made by Stoorstalka.  The colours are delightful and it brightens up the room. It is very comfortable.

A beautiful cushion from Stoorstalka

Tartan as a fabric has travelled around the world, not least because of the entrepreneurial spirit of Scottish men. On our travels in Finland, we discovered in 1820 James Finlayson established a cotton mill because he recognised the potential of the fast flowing river.  We started to notice the number of times in the history of places we visited the importance of Scottish immigrants.

Close up of the material

A postcard from the Stoorstalka shop shows the delightful shawls which look just the thing to wear in such cold weather. Shawls are such a practical and yet decorative item. Their brightness is very visible in northern climes when sunlight is very low in the winter.  I think it is a shame that scarves have taken their place.

Bright cheerful shawls

Addition to post

I have had some beautiful pictures sent tome by a friend who is cruising the Norwegian coast.  here is a great picture of a Sami shawl.

Canada

First Nation and Métis women across Canada also took to wearing tartan shawls which were worn up until the 1950's. The wearing of shawls was also very meaningful in other ways. With a shawl, you can lift it up to hide or conceal your face which can indicate a willingness or unwillingness to communicate. Shyness, modesty and concealment can all be conveyed with a simple gesture of the shawl. With the lower part of the face concealed behind the shawl, eyes alone can communicate and can show emotion surprisingly well.
Look at this web site for a picture of the tartan shawl being worn by a Métis woman.

http://firstpeoplesofcanada.com/fp_metis/fp_metis1.html

The Aran Islands

Inishmaan in the 1940's

The women of the Aran islands off the coast of Ireland, also appreciated the bright tartan patterns. The black and white photograph cannot show us the colours of the tartan but the pattern is clear. Tartan travels everywhere.

Italy

In the wonderful textile museum in Prato, Italy  which I visited last year, had a book about tartan which was written to accompany an exhibition in 2004 (See my blog entry for June 1st 2017). The booklet is called, 'Tartan: the Romantic Tradition - Plaid, a fabric and a cultural identity.'

The exhibition was 'a gesture of gratitude towards a textile design that accompanied, from the mid 18th century, the destiny and success of our industry and thus of our company'. They describe the long and intense bond which grew up over the decades between a fabric and a distance culture:

 'The tartan is a reference point in western taste and for the aesthetics of all time.'

Tartan is everywhere.  

STOP PRESS

This week in my Sunday newspaper, The Observer,  there is an article by Morwenna Ferrier about tartan with the headline;

 'Loud proud and rebellious: tartan is back as designers celebrate the spirit of punk.' 

It seems that fashion has appropriated the tartan yet again, with labels such as' Balenciaga to rising star Loverboy.' The article finishes with this:

'Wilton believes that the resurgence in popularity of tartan reflects something deeper than a designer's heritage, or even a colour scheme. "It represents rebellious youth but, at times of uncertainty, people want to feel like they belong. Tartan is a good visual identifier - and provides a sort of security."

The Observer, 11.02.18 pages 16 - 17.

You can read the article here: 

https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2018/feb/11/tartan-balenciaga-loverboy-catwalk-fashion

Tartan is back.

Susan J Foulkes Feb 2018

Sámi Sleigh Ride and slow TV

Over Christmas there were two programmes about the Sámi.  All Aboard! The Sleigh Ride was an example of slow TV. It was filmed in Karasjok, Norway and the journey followed an old postal route. The traditional sleigh was fitted with fixed cameras.   The three sleighs jogged along through snowy hills and past birch forests and across a frozen lake.  The journey took two hours - slow TV - and the programme was strangely hypnotic.  There was no dialogue just the natural noises of the reindeer feet crunching the snow and the tinkling of their bells.  You can watch some clips here:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06t3psw/clips

All Aboard! The Sleigh Ride

The second programme concerned two reindeer herder from Kautokeino in Norway .  It was first shown as part of the Natural World series in 2007- 2008 in episode 13.  The two girls Elle and Inga were seventeen years old when the programme was made. The film shows one journey they took herding their reindeer to summer grazing.

Previously on BBC TV, The Hairy Bikers, visited Sweden.  These two characters are excellent cooks and they journey around different countries trying out the local delicacies. To find out more about their adventures and lots of wonderful recipes here is their web site.:  http://www.hairybikers.com/

They visited Jokkmokk and met Lotta and Per Niila from Stoorstalka.   http://shop.stoorstalka.com/en/start.html

Here they are in the shop.  They tried their hand at traditional Sámi crafts and I was thrilled to see that one of them was taught how to weave a narrow band and the other made a belt.

Weaving for the first time is not easy, especially when you have to do it to camera.

You can see the curved Gehpa shuttle in use.

There was also a close up of a woven band - one which I had woven and sent to Lotta and Per Niila.

A band from Karesuando

The full pattern for this band is in my book  Weaving Sámi Bands and is illustrated on the front cover. 
To have three programmes about Sámi culture and way of life in such a short space of time was wonderful.

The Winter Market in Jokkmokk 2016.

Jokkmokk in north Sweden is the home of the Winter Market. It takes place in February each year. It has been held for over 400 years and is an important occasion for the Sámi.

Here is the link to the web site.   http://www.jokkmokksmarknad.se/visitors/   The list of events is very enticing.   Do take a look at some of the images from previous Winter Fairs.  Traditional craft work is an important element of the Fair. There are several exhibition of art and craft work, including an exhibition of the work of students from Sámi allaskuvla which is the only Sámi-speaking institute of higher education where the approach to Duodji (Sámi handicraft) is from a research perspective.  I wish I could be there.

I first visited Jokkmokk in 2011.  It was quite an adventure travelling so far north from the UK. I went to the fair held in August which is much a smaller event. I would love to go to the winter fair - perhaps next year.

Susan J Foulkes January 2016

Travels around the Baltic: Sámi weaving

The Sámi people

The Sámi people are the indigenous people of northern Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia. When I first became interested in band weaving, I decided to travel to Sweden to see the type of bands that were in museums.  I had only seen black and white diagrams of band patterns and a few colour photographs.

In 2009, travelling up to Sweden through Europe, we stopped in Schleswig and it was there that I saw my first collection of bands.  They were Sámi bands - and I knew nothing about the Sámi people  I was thrilled to see such lovely examples of band weaving and I wanted to find out more about the Sámi people, their crafts and culture.

Of course, in Sweden most museums have collections of woven materials and many small towns have small museums as well. I have researched the beautiful woven Sámi bands from Sweden.  Looking closely at the patterns is illuminating.  The colours have a particular significance; a rare example of there being a meaning in the woven bands.  Too often meaning is assigned to patterns and symbols and this meaning is assumed or ascribed but has no basis in fact.

Sweden

In Stockholm, the Nordiska museum has a Sámi gallery which was very interesting and introduced me to the place of Sámi people and culture in the history of Sweden.  Going back last summer, I was slightly disappointed to see that the gallery has hardly changed in the last six years.

In 2011, we travelled as far as Kiruna and Jokkmokk to attend the Sámi market in August in Jokkmokk. However, the real highlight was the Ájtte, Swedish Mountain and Sámi Museum which has a stunning collection of clothes and lots of examples of woven bands. Every year the most important Sámi market is held in Jokkmokk in the first week in February.  I would love to attend this event. 

Last summer, we went to the Weave Fair in Umea.  Umea was the European Capital of Culture in 2014 and the programme for the year included many events for and about the Sámi people.

 Sámi heddles and bands

At the Weave fair, Astrid Enoksson, who lives in Tarnaby, had a display of display of Sámi costume and weaving. Her rigid heddles are made out of reindeer antler.

This beautiful coat and band was on the display.

See the blog entry for October for more about the Weave Fair in Umea.

This band has nine pattern threads and is a very quick design to weave.

At the Weave Fair, Stoorstalka had an attractive stall at the entrance of the Market Hall. They had a  very dramatic backdrop for their stall. 

The Stoorstalka stand at the Weave Fair

Sámi rock art

In Umea in the Västerbottens Museum there was a display of  ancient Sámi rock art.  A fascinating glimpse into another world.

 a replica Sámi pot

I bought this lovely copy of an Iron age Sámi pot.  It is 3.5 inches tall and stands on my desk as a reminder of a wonderful holiday.

 Finland

On our travels around the Baltic, I found two other museums with a Sámi collection. Unfortunately the museum in Estonia had none of its collection on display when I visited.  In Finland however, there were many examples of Sámi weaving and craft. We spent two weeks in this lovely country.

I visited the craft museum in Jyväskylä in central Finland which I will mention next month in my blog about Finland. We traveled further north and stayed in Oulu.  Here, I stumbled across a lovely museum, the Northern Ostrobothnia Museum which had a collection of Sámi artifacts.  These had been collected by the museum director who spent his summers with the Sámi people in the north of Finland.  He counted them as his friends and the collection was displayed with much thought.

There were a number of bands displayed.  These lovely Sámi shoe bands have one of my favourite
patterns ( see Handwoven  2013, March /April Vol 164, no 2 for the weave pattern).










One of the shoe bands on display had three motifs.  I analysed the pattern and wove it.  It has eleven pattern threads and the graph is given on my blog.  The speckled edges are made by using a yellow weft thread so that it shows up against the red border threads. It is a very attractive shoe band. I have posted the pattern draft onto the blog for you to try.

This shoe band has eleven pattern threads.

If you want to know more about Sámi weaving, I am running an online workshop for the Braid Society on their Yahoo discussion group, Braids and Bands in March 2015. The workshop shows how to weave a particular type of band using a newly designed heddle from Stoorstalka - the Sigga heddle.  This heddle is used to make bands that have 'jumping' pattern threads. Details about the workshop and how you can join in are given on my blog.

I think that it is rather exciting that a new weaving tool has been developed.  It shows that the craft of band weaving is still meaningful and creative.

An excellent booklet The Sámi - People of the Sun and Wind, published by the
Ájtte Swedish Mountain and Sámi Museum is available in the Nordiska Museum 


Happy weaving

Susan J Foulkes
January 2015

Sámi weaving at the Weave Fair

Umea is European Capital of Culture for 2014.  Their plans for the year were based on the Sámi year of eight seasons.

I was looking forward to seeing contemporary Sámi culture as part of the Weave Fair and the accompanying exhibitions and events.

I was thrilled to meet Per Niila and Lotta for the first time.  They are Stoorstalka who make the wide selection of heddles which make patterned band weaving more accessible to people all around the world. Click on his link to see their web site. http://stoorstalka.com/


I had found their web site quite by accident and discovered that they had made a double holed heddle for a weaver.  I wrote to them to ask if they could make a double slotted heddle.  These heddles are not widely available and even standard heddles are not easy to find in the UK. I can now teach band weaving using this design of heddle which makes learning to weave patterns so much more straightforward. Their stall was beautiful.










I had the chance to relax and do some weaving.

At the Weave fair, Astrid Enoksson, who lives in Tarnaby, had a display of display of Sámi costume and weaving and was on hand to answer questions.

There is an article about her in Vävmagasinet nr 3, 2014 pages 40 - 41.  She was also part of the cultural show of Folk costume at the Västerbottens Museum.

The Västerbottens Museum has a large open air section of traditional buildings where the costume show took place.

Later that evening at the nearby Sámi Cultural Centre, a singer demonstrated  joik, a traditional type of Sámi singing. 












There were also a number of weavers on hand to demonstrate different techniques for producing bands. 


There was considerable interest in this.  Here is one weaver being interviewed for a radio programme.

Another weaver was making plaited bands

.






































On the Saturday, there was an 1860's market at the Västerbottens Museum. This was a superb event with all the stallholders dressed in costume and an astonishing variety of stalls selling handcrafted articles and food etc.  It was very fortunate that the weather was perfect. There were many stalls and many beautiful things to tempt buyers. Here is a sample.

There was also a Sámi stall selling reproductions of prehistoric Sámi pottery.

The Västerbotten cheese stall was very tempting.

Cloth and wool were popular

A book binding stall.

One of several 'streets' of stalls.

It was an excellent three days. I am now looking forward to the next Weave Fair in three years time.

Susan J Foulkes

October 2014

Weave Fair in Umea: meeting friends

I have just returned from my trip around the Baltic.  I had planned the journey to see band weaving in different countires and to attend the Weave Fair in Umea, Sweden.

Arriving early at the Weave Fair.

At the Fair, I had a really enjoyable time meeting old friends and making new ones, as well as shopping!

The entrance was very welcoming with the bright colours and patterns.  I had made a bag to take with me on my trip and advertise the Fair.  I had not realised that bags would be for sale. They were produced by a company that specialises in hand printing.  Each bag was unique because of the way that it has been made out of the roll of cloth. They were made from printed cloth by Froso Handtryck, who had a stall at the fair.

Weaves based on the bag design.

Here is the designer showing one of the bags.  It is  lovely souvenir to represent the Weave Fair.







The entrance corridor was festooned with the bags and the way to the Fair hall had a wonderful selection of weaving from local weavers.










A connecting corridor had an imaginative display of rugs.

Arriving early was a good idea as it was easy to get around and to have a detailed look at the stands. Here I met Eva who has just moved back to Sweden from the UK.  I met her at the Derbyshire Guild when I took a workshop there in June.  She is working on the Saterglantan stand.  Of course I was tempted and bought some useful band weaving equipment not available at home.

Eva - before the crowds arrived. 

I also met Ruth from the USA.  She has only been weaving a few years but is very enthusiastic.  She brought her file of Sámi bands that she had woven from my first book, Sámi Band Weaving. She had completed all of them - a labour of love and determination! She told me that she was still finishing the final band the day before she was set to travel.  It was such a thrill to be able to see her work.

Ruth from Austin, Texas

Tamaki, Johan and me. 

My friend Tamaki had traveled all the way from Japan to attend the Fair. I had decided to relax with by weaving with Johan from Stoorstalka.

Marie from Vav Kompaniet

I also met Marie from Vav Kompaniet.  Their first book had just been published, written by eight of the group. It is in Swedish. It is a lovely display of different craft projects with beautiful illustrations.
Vav Kompaniet supply the lovely carved heddles with horse heads, birds and hearts that I bought from them at the previous Weave Fair.  These are made by Åke Erlandsson, who is still enjoying making these lovely items at 80 years of age. 

I hope you have enjoyed a taster of the Weave Fair. It is well worth the effort of going such a long way. I will be posting another item about the Fair later. I have only been home for three days and there is so much to catch up with!



Happy Weaving

Susan