Håndverket · The Craft

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Strikking er en teknikk der du lager masker ved hjelp av garn og strikkepinner. Selbustrikkinga kjennestegnes som mønsterstrikk. I begynnelsen betød dette mønster i sausvart og naturkvit. Garn spunnet fra egne sauer med sauen sine egne farger. Selbustrikkinga er kjent for sine rene geometriske mønstre med utgangspunkt i stjerner, roser og blomster. Det er funnet over 500 mønstre, noen har kommet til Selbu via gamle handelsruter mens andre oppsto på gårdene rundt i bygda. Det mest kjente plagget selbustrikkinga er kjent for, er votter.

Selbuvotten, spesielt den med sjennrosa eller selburosa i svart på hvit bunn er blitt et «nasjonalsymbol» å regne. Votten strikkes etter egne regler om størrelse og form, og spesielt for selbuvotten er hvordan tommelkilen strikkes. Selbuvotten er blitt et symbol på en tradisjon og en kultur som stikker dypt over hele landet og som gjenkjennes og knytter seg til andre tradisjoner langt utenfor Norges grenser.

Immateriell betyr at den ferdige votten kan ikke stå alene, at verdien i den er knyttet sammen med kunnskapen om hvordan den blir til. Kunnskapen som blir overlevert på mellom mennesker, som går fra hånd til hånd, som knytter sammen generasjoner. Det betyr at verdien ligger i selve strikkinga, i utførelsen. Ved å holde tradisjonen levende, holder du også kunnskapen om hvordan den blir til levende. Uten at kunnskapen holdes levende forsvinner tradisjonen, og alt vi har igjen er en vott i et glass-skap. Arven ligger i hendene, i båndene som knyttes mellom generasjoner, i skaperkraften og i historien om overlevelse, selvstendighet og likestilling.

Du kan lese mer om historien og om Selbu Husflidscentral her

avisutklipp: ukjent

caption: Inga Uthus has 10 skilled children, and everyone, regardless of sex, kan handle the knitting needles. Kjell, 15 years old (with the rake) has himself made the jacket he is wearing. In this household it has been a tradition that that oldest boys bring the knitting along when they are off to work in the forest; Sverre on fourteen has for example brought his craft this summer when he is off herding in Tydal. And these others are also not completely lost: Solfrid, 8 and Svein, 10 has said to deliver 5 pairs of mittens each to the Husfildscentral. Kolbjørn on 6 is currently busy knitting washrags for his mother.

newspaperclipping: ukjent

Knitting is a technique where you make stitches using yarn and knitting needles. Selbus knitting is characterised as pattern knitting. In the beginning, this meant patterns in sheep black and natural white. Yarn spun from own sheep with the sheep's own colours. The Selbu knitting tradition is known for its pure geometric patterns based on stars, roses and flowers. More than 500 patterns have been found, some of which came to Selbu via old trade routes, while others originated on farms in Selbu. The most famous garment the tradition is known for is mittens. The Selbu mittens, especially the one with an eight petal star in black on a white background, have become something of a "national symbol". The mittens are knit after strict rules, and one of the particularities about the selbu mittens is how you knot the thumb. The mitten has become a symbol of a tradition and a culture that runs deep throughout the country, which is recognised and linked to other traditions far beyond Norway's borders.

The Selbu knitting tradition, and with it, the selbu mitten and the classic "selburose" or "norwegian rose" in black on a white background, has become something of a "national symbol". A symbol of a tradition and culture that runs deep throughout the country, an intangible cultural heritage that is recognised and hold ties with other traditions far beyond Norway's borders.
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Intangible means that the finished mitten cannot stand alone, that its value is linked to the knowledge of how it was made. The knowledge that is passed on between people, from hand to hand, connecting generations. This means that the value lies in the knitting itself, in the craftsmanship of it. By keeping the tradition alive, you guard the knowledge of how it is made. Without it the tradition disappears and all we are left with is a mitten in a glass cabinet. The cultural heritage is found in the hands, in the bonds it forges between generations, in the power of creation and in its history of survival, independence and equality.
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You can read more about the story of the mittens and Selbu Husflidscentral here

Bilde: strikkeutstillinga på Selbu Bygdemuseum, Fredrik Ahlsen - Visit Norway