Gotland is Sweden's largest island and the home of the Gutes, occupied since prehistory and is home to many breeds of horses, for example, the Gotland Pony horses have lived in the forest regions of the island of Gotland from time immemorial. Their history is mysterious and fascinating. Discoveries from the Stone Age show that horses have been present on Gotland for 5,000 years, and perhaps longer.. Thanks to decisive intervention on the part of the local inhabitants, Sweden's most primordial horses still live as they have for thousands of years on the wooded moors of Gotland.
Owner designer Åse Öjbro has created wearable mitten art (Åse was also an artist of paints and palette for over 20 years before deciding to express her art in wool). She has created this innovative "equine design" pattern on the back of the mitten hand showing the Gotland Ponies in a forest setting. The inside palm has an alternating grey, black and brown nail dot pattern set off by an alternating small v-shaped uniform patterns of lice "lusemonsters" believed to protect from evil spirits. "I visited Gotland as a child, rode the Ponies, and listened to the island folk stories", continued Åse, and felt a the connectedness to our distant past that my mittens seen to capture." Read the full design story of Gotland Mittens in the pdf below.
For how long a time the Nordic people have been knitting wool mittens are unknown. The earliest sign of wool mitten knitting dates back to the 13th century. Öjbro Vantfabrik has a passion to bring the wool knitting traditions of the old into modern days of wool knitting. The outer mitten shell is 100% merino wool and the patented 3 layer polymide inside creates the Öjbro 3 V-Swedish: ”Varning: Varma Vantar” ===== "Warning: Warm Mittens."
We know you can't try these mittens on in cyberspace, but we can share with you our customer experience. We held 12 trunk shows this summer and every one of the fifty or so men and women loved the warmth, softness, and design of these Öjbro Vantfabrik wool mittens and wanted to buy them on the spot; we took advance orders instead! Now finally in America, from Ted and Åse Öjbro and only at Sweater Chalet.
Knitted in Sweden in Ted Öjbro's small family factory of 100% ORGANIC merino wool, excepting the inner patented 3 layers of polymide.
$79.95