A Sweet Time in Riga

The day Mitten Camp ended, my husband Chris arrived on Latvian soil for the first time. I hopped the bus from the city center and went to the Riga International Airport (RIX) to meet him and bring him "home" to our hotel, Radi un draugi (the name translates as Friends and Family). My Latvian weaving friend, Vita, had recommended this hotel to me in 2005 and since then I've stayed here any time I've had the opportunity to visit Riga. It's a comfortable place to stay even if I happen to be traveling solo.

View of St. Peter's Church from my quiet room at Radi un draugi

One of the first places I wanted to visit in Riga was a little handicraft and gift shop located just a short distance from our hotel. Latvju Lietas at Audeju iela 6 is owned by the very friendly and talented Ieva. I had read about her shop on a Ravelry forum and although I had never communicated with her, I felt that we had a connection. When we stopped in the shop I found the connection that I was looking for -- a mitten-shaped purse or tote bag that Ieva had designed and knit. I had pinned a photo of her bag from an Etsy listing over 2 years ago on Pinterest. The bag turned out to be the inspiration for me and a number of others in the Knit Like a Latvian group on Ravelry when we did a Maxi Mitten KAL (KnitALong) in the autumn of 2015. I introduced myself to Ieva, told her about the Ravelry KnitALong, and showed her a photo of me with my mitten bag; I had styled the photo just like her original photo. Well, I didn't need to buy a mitten bag since I already own one but I did find some nice Latvian-design coasters, postcards, earrings, and a beautiful wooden butter knife at Ieva's shop.

Ieva and the infamous mitten bag

My version of the mitten bag

In February I contacted the National History Museum of Latvia about a visit to the stacks (or as they say, the funds) to study some of their mittens and socks. I had studied knitwear at the museum before when it was located at the castle, but things have changed a little since a fire at the castle a few years ago. Good news! Nothing in the museum was damaged, but everything had to be moved out so that restoration work could be done on the building. Ilze was my museum email contact and she helped me with the logistics of selecting items and with the formal request that I needed to write to the director of the museum asking for permission to study items from the funds for my own personal education. My request was granted and we made plans to meet at the building that currently houses the funds (items in storage). I was able to chart and photograph a number of items but the photos are for my personal use and I cannot share any of them here - sorry! Following my research time, we walked with Ilze to the museum's current location and she provided us with an in-depth, personal tour of the museum. It was an educational and interesting day!

Ilze from the Department of Museum Pedagogy and Exhibitions

Mara is a knitting friend of mine who lives in Riga. I met her just two years ago (see my prior blog post here) but her life has changed a bit since then. She is not knitting quite so much these days; her twin babies were born in August, 2015! However, we were still able to meet for a walk one afternoon with the babies in their double-wide baby pram. 

We were also invited to join Mara, her husband, and the babies for a picnic on May 4th, a national holiday. We met near the Latvian National Museum of Art where there was a grand reopening following restoration and reconstruction, and admission was free for the day. That meant there was a tremendously long queue, so we skipped the museum and had our picnic instead. Art will have to wait.

Mara made individual servings of a very interesting Latvian dessert - Rupjmaizes kārtojums. I had previously seen this dessert listed on a restaurant menu and thought that rye bread as an ingredient in a dessert sounded rather strange, so I hadn't ordered it. Well, we had our chance to try it - rye bread crumbs, cream, and berries. Unusual but delicious! I can now recommend it.

My husband and I enjoying our dessert

Photo courtesy of Mara

Latvian Mitten Camp Continues

"Knit Out Your Latvian Design" Mitten Camp included not only lectures and hands-on workshops, but also an afternoon field trip to the nearby town of Talsi and an evening of music and dancing!  Yes, all women dancing together, just like in my high school gym class where I learned to lead since I was always in the tallest half of my class (the tallest half learned the man's part, the shortest half learned the woman's part). To this day, I can't follow -- as my husband can testify.

Photo courtesy of Carla of The Dutch Knitters

(shown dancing here in a blue jean skirt and cowboy boots)

Hands-on knitting techniques were focused on various unique mitten cuffs.  Some of these were familiar to me, but there are always variations and little tips and tricks that get passed along, so it was fun and interesting to sample these cuffs.

One of the cuffs was scalloped or what the Latvians call "notched."  It was a slight variation from a scallop that I've done before.  I'm using the scallop now on a mitten that was inspired by a little Estonian knitting book that I bought from author Külli Jacobson, titled Siberi lilled or Siberian Flowers.  Külli was a participant at Mitten Camp but is a professional knitter living in the Seto region of Estonia. The book is currently available here and Külli writes about the background of the book on her website here (scroll down to October 28, 2014).  I love how the mitten is turning out!

We also sampled a wedge-shaped cuff that was shown in Maruta Grasmane's book Mittens of Latvia on page 164.  I had tried this interesting cuff before mitten camp and had questions regarding the chart in the book which has an error in it.  Here are the errata details for those who are interested: The orange wedge (as shown in the book) is not diagrammed properly.  Each wrong-side row is NOT worked over fewer stitches than the preceding right-side row.  Also, the row that works each wrap (yarn over) together with its associated stitch is worked on the right side with green (not on the wrong side with orange as shown).  Here's my little cuff sample:

On our field trip to Talsi, we saw a weaving exhibit and a weavers' studio.  We also met with a talented group of knitters and saw their beautiful display of mittens.

We weren't the only ones dancing.  In Talsi, we saw a young, energetic group of dancers posing for a group photo.  So colorful, and check out their stockings!

At the Talsi Museum (Talsu novada musejs) we viewed some of their mittens, socks, and woven belts that are held in storage drawers.  Besides getting our hands on this knitwear, we also had some fun electronically.  We photographed ourselves into a historic scene complete with traditional dress and you'll see that still we were busy with yarn in our hands.  Here's the usually elusive Lizzy with her crown and braid.

After an evening of toasting the organizers and teachers, we finished up on Day 3 with a little more hands-on work, then we received our official diplomas from the Latvian National Centre for Culture, ate lunch, and hopped on our bus for the ride back to Riga.  Farewell friends -- until we meet again!

Teacher Baiba, teacher Ina, organizer Linda, participant Külli, and Senā klēts representative Ziedite

Four Latvians plus Team Estonia

Latvian Wedding Mittens?

My trip to the Baltics was planned in January when I heard about a knitting camp entitled "Knit Out Your Latvian Design" that would take place in Latvia from April 29 to May 1.  All I needed was this little nudge and plans started to form.

My husband, Chris, who had not yet been to Latvia or Estonia was feeling left out and thought it was finally time for him to see these countries that I had visited so many times before.  It was decided that I would start my trip a little in advance of the knitting camp and take the opportunity to visit Lithuania for the first time (see my blog post here).  Chris would then join me when the knitting camp ended and we would have a chance to travel together in Latvia and Estonia.

So, after a few days in Vilnius, Lithuania, I arrived in Riga, Latvia, the day before the knitting camp started and met up with old and new friends at Senā Klēts, the National Costume Center.  We went out for a very nice dinner at Province (www.provincija.lv), a restaurant in the Old Town.  Since I was walking back to my hotel I could try the black currant version of Riga Black Balsam (Rīgas Melnais balzams) liqueur.  The standard version of Black Balsam herbal liqueur is not my favorite, but the black currant version was rather tasty!

Maruta Grasmane is the author of a fabulous book titled Latvieša Cimdi in Latvian or Mittens of Latvia in English.  The book is also known by some as the "Latvian Mitten Bible."  It is 438 pages thick and contains 178 individual mitten photos and 178 corresponding mitten charts.  Did you know that mittens have been an important part of Latvia's heritage and traditions?  Historically, a bride needed many pairs of mittens in her hope chest because she gave mittens as gifts to members of the bridal party and her new in-laws.  She also hung mittens in her new home and barn to symbolically bring good luck and prosperity to her marriage.

Līga, Maruta, MaryG, and Connie

Maruta joined us for dinner and we were almost on our way out the door of Senā Klēts when this photo was taken with the backdrop of some of the mittens from the book.  Līga works at Senā Klēts and is the main contact for English speakers.  Connie goes by the name of "Wockensolle" on Ravelry (see my blog post about Ravelry here) and is one of the moderators of the Knit Like a Latvian group.  She is from Germany and is currently working on the German translation of the Mittens of Latvia book.  Latvian knitting is spreading around the world!

Since I was one of the editors of English text for the Mittens of Latvia book, that became a way for me to introduce myself to various people that I met.  The book is available for sale in yarn shops, book stores, and handicraft shops in Riga, so I could pick the book up off the store's shelf, turn to the last page of the book, show my name, and introduce myself to the shop owner or clerk.  I had instant credibility!

Then it was on to the mitten camp.  A small bus picked us up and took us to Strazde manor, which is located a short distance from the town of Talsi.  Knitters from Latvia, Germany, the Netherlands, Estonia, Lithuania, and the United States came together for the conference.  Our accommodations were in the Strazde manor house, which also had an auditorium/conference room for our lectures and classes, as well as a kitchen and dining room for our buffet meals.

Strazde Manor

Külli (Estonia), Baiba (Latvia), Connie (Germany), and Pat (USA)

 

Our first lecturer, Baiba Vaivare, spoke about Latvian Mitten Design and showed many beautiful examples via her slide show as well as actual knitted mittens.  Baiba spoke in Latvian but Dārta, one of the organizers, was our translator.

I was especially interested when Baiba showed a particular pair of mittens that she had designed.  To me they did not appear to be traditional Latvian mittens.  They were figurative rather than repetitive and geometric.  Then Baiba told us how she had designed the mittens with inspiration from an old painted dowry chest.  So, it turns out that the design WAS based on traditional Latvian design, but one that the designer had seen in wood rather than knitting.  What makes this even more interesting to me is that when I was in Latvia in 2001, one of my friends bought a pair of mittens of this very design.  I liked the mitten and asked to borrow the mitten from her to chart it.  I haven't knit the mitten yet, but recently another friend, Sandy De Master, decided to knit a replica of these mittens as a wedding shower gift for her niece, Sara.  I shared my chart with Sandy.  We've decided to call them the "wedding mittens."  I shared the story with Baiba, the lecturer and designer -- the story of these wedding mittens being knit 15 years after the purchase of the original pair.  What a small world!  I'm happy to know the design story behind these unusual Latvian mittens.

Sara wearing the "Wedding Mittens" knit by Sandy

Photo courtesy of Sandy De Master

One, Two, Three - Lithuania has been added

I finally added Lithuania to the list of Baltic countries that I've visited.  I started with Latvia in 2001, added Estonia in 2005, and have returned a number of times to each of those countries since then.  But this is the year I was able to add Lithuania to my list.  I got just a small taste of the country (and its cuisine).  It started with my arrival in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, at the end of April during unusually cold weather and precipitation of the sleet and slush variety.  I love the little airport in Vilnius.  It's so cute!

I immediately made use of the new wool hat that I had finished knitting on the flight over, the hand-knit, Latvian-style mittens that I had brought along with me, and a lot of layered clothing.  Brrrr!

On my first full day, I went on the Vilnius Free Tour, also known as "the Yellow Suitcase tour."  I had read about it on TripAdvisor and the 2-hour-plus tour was fabulous. 
TripAdvisor Reviews of Vilnius Free Tour

The tour starts at noon every day from the Town Hall steps.  Unfortunately, I've forgotten my tour guide's name, but she was great, and from the photo you'll see that she was dressed for the weather.  Of course, there is no such thing as a free lunch (or a free tour) and tips are collected at the end of the tour.  Well worth it!  I was so impressed with this tour that when I was in Riga the following week, I went on the Riga Free Tour as well.  Fortunately, the weather got much nicer after the first few cold and wet days. In fact, it was dry and unseasonably warm for the rest of my trip.

As a knitter, I made sure that I checked out every knitting store or wool shop that I could find in Vilnius.  Amazingly enough, I found absolutely no Lithuanian yarns there.  It appears the Lithuanians are interested in fashion knitting (yarns from Italy and such) rather than traditional ethnic knitting.  I was hoping to find Teksrena yarn here (an 8/2 wool yarn that is spun in Lithuania and is perfect for mittens), but instead I found it in Tallinn, Estonia, at a knitwear shop known as Alberto Käsitöö at Vana-Viru 11a.  And at a great price to boot!

Besides yarn shops, I also did some sightseeing including a tour of Gediminas' Tower which had a wonderful exhibit about the Baltic Way.  The Baltic Way (or Baltic Chain) was a show of solidarity in the pursuit of independence that was demonstrated by approximately 2 million Lithuanian, Latvian, and Estonian people on August 23, 1989.  The people joined together, hand in hand, from Gediminas' Tower in Vilnius, Lithuania, through Riga, Latvia, and on to Tallinn, Estonia, a total of 600 continuous kilometers (373 miles).  Independence from the Soviets for all three Baltic countries came about within two years following that peaceful demonstration.

Views of the surrounding countryside and the city of Vilnius from the tower are outstanding!

The Show Must Go On

I wasn't able to attend Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival this year because I was teaching at Fiber College of Maine that same weekend.  However, in spite of my absence, the Second Annual Walk & Knit Relay Challenge still took place at the festival on Saturday, September 12, 2015.

The Arachne Spinning Guild of Door County took over running the event with Chris Vuco acting as emcee.  Thanks to my spinning guild for taking this on and still gathering a team together to participate on the racecourse.  A total of eleven teams participated this year!  You can see the energy the winning team had as they got ready for the race.

Winning Team, left to right:  Aviva Cantor,

Kirsti Johanson, Caitlin Brecklin, and Renata Hornik

This Walk & Knit event was inspired by a similar team-relay race that takes place in Estonia, known there as Käi ja Koo.  Winning is based on rankings in the following criteria:  fastest speed of walking, highest number of stitches completed, and lowest number of errors.

 

After bringing this event from Estonia to the USA last year (see my blog post about last year's event here), I was pleased to hear that some knitting students of mine also held a Walk & Knit event in Iowa earlier this year.  I watched a video from their event and some participants thought that one of the teams had cheated when a "walking knitter" ran part of the course.  There is no rule that precludes running to produce a winning time, but there is definitely a trade off; finishing fast also means finishing with fewer stitches.  It just depends on your strategy.

Some people think of a knitter as the stereotypical grandmother sitting in a rocking chair, but this event shows that knitting is also for active people.  You know you're watching a sporting event when you see team huddles and team T-shirts.

Well, I hated to miss the second annual Wisconsin event, but I did talk up the Walk & Knit event when I was at Fiber College of Maine and it looks like the Käi ja Koo could make an appearance on the East Coast next year!

I'm spreading the word!

Where in the Blue Blazes Was I?

Blue blazes on the trail

in Acadia National Park

Some of my favorite activities are knitting and being active outdoors.  These are usually mutually exclusive, but not when I had the opportunity to teach at the Fiber College of Maine in early September.  I was also able to spend a very active day at Acadia National Park and the knitting classes that I taught at the Searsport Shores Ocean Campground where Fiber College is held, took place nearly in the out-of-doors.  While students were learning about knitting Estonian cuffs and lace and special Latvian cuffs, we were all protected from the (sometimes inclement) weather by large tents.

It all began when Maryly, an East Coast friend through Ravelry (see my prior blog post about Ravelry here), suggested that I apply to teach at this event that takes place in Searsport, Maine, each year in September.  It was a great idea and I loved hanging out with so many fiber people in the wonderful setting of Searsport Shores Ocean Campground, run by Fiber College director, Astrig, and her crew.  At the campground, I found a colorful dyer's garden, a meditation cabin on a bluff above the seashore, and walking trails through the woods.  Fiber College offered many inspiring classes, a selection of vendors, musical entertainment at various times, a mentored dye tent, other special events throughout the week, and some fabulous meal options including wood-fired flat breads and chowder.  On my first night at "college," there was a Somali Bantu Celebration which included a feast of traditional Somali food as well as music and dance performed by Somali people.

Maryly was my transportation from the Portland airport and made sure I had any camping supplies that I needed.  Camping accommodations were provided by Fiber College and they were well above my normal camping standard, which is usually a small tent with an air mattress and sleeping bag.  Instead, I was housed in a Hornet, a hard-sided camping trailer with slide outs for additional living space, a kitchen including a refrigerator, and a bathroom including a toilet and shower.  All of the comforts of home!

I had a roommate, Daryl Lancaster, who is another teacher at Sievers School of Fiber Arts, where I teach regularly in Wisconsin.  Daryl is a weaving and garment construction expert from New Jersey whom I've always wanted to take a class from but haven't quite managed yet.  I've been reading her blog for a while but I had never actually met Daryl in person.  We got to know each other in our shared abode and we had a nice time hanging out together in the evenings after our classes while enjoying conversation and knitting time along with a glass of wine or two.  She is an energetic and expressive teacher who shares so much in her classes.  Daryl wrote a blog post about her experience at Fiber College here.

Daryl Lancaster teaching inkle loom weaving

Each teacher was interviewed and featured in a Fiber College blog post.  My interview appears here.

I had an entire free day after my arrival with Maryly and I made good use of it by taking a short one-hour road trip to Acadia National Park to see the sights and take a hike.  After looking at the park's website, I thought that the Precipice Trail sounded like the trail for me.  Since I was traveling solo for the day, it seemed that this trail would be well-enough traveled that I would have good company along the way.  At the visitor center, the ranger warned me that the trail was rated "strenuous" but I thought, how strenuous can a trail be that is less than one mile each way?  I was soon to find out.  The trail is named Precipice for a reason; it is not recommended for people with a fear of heights.  I don't have a strong fear of heights, but climbing tall ladders can get me a bit shaky.  It turned out that was exactly what some of this trail entailed.

When I got to a point where the trail required climbing metal rung after metal rung up quite a long stretch of vertical rock, with a long drop off just a few feet away, I got a bit weak in the knees.  As I stopped to catch my breath on a ledge, the sun came out and I realized that I had not put on sunscreen for the day.  I chose not to apply it at that point; I didn't need greasy hands right before my next ascent of metal rungs.  I waited for the last two people that I had passed to catch up to me, and then I ventured forward, or more accurately, upward.

Since I had just returned from a hiking trip to Colorado, I figured I was ready for this hike.  It turned out to be a great, challenging hike, but Western hiking is so different from East Coast hiking.  In Colorado, you travel up switchbacks and are perpetually out of breath from lack of oxygen at the high elevations, but you are hiking using your two feet.  In Maine, hiking seems to consist of hiking with hands, arms, knees, and shins on the ground and rock surfaces rather than always using your feet, which happen to be safely encased in hiking boots, seemingly designed for the purpose of hiking.  What were those East Coast trail planners thinking?  Well, of course, the completion of the hiking challenge was rewarding and the views were beautiful!

Next year will be the 10th anniversary for Fiber College of Maine.  It's a great venue that offers a wide variety of fiber classes.  I believe the dates will be September 7-11, 2016.  Watch their website for details here.

More Interwoven Latvian Connections

At age 85, Erna Jansons published her first book.  It is a beautiful and colorful book about Latvian Mitten Designs.  It is now nine years later and, of course, she has another book in the works.

I first met Erna in 2006, shortly after her book was printed.  I went to her home to buy a couple of copies of her book; one for me and one for my teaching buddy, Sandy.  In 2013, Erna moved into the senior-living complex that my parents lived in.  When I found this out, I started to visit her in her apartment.  Erna is a very talented artist.  She makes unique use of Latvian motifs and colors in her paintings, weavings, tapestries, drawings, and knitted mittens.

Mary and Erna in the Dining Room at Christmastime

A different, but related, Latvian connection began in 2013.  I received a Ravelry message (see my blog about Ravelry here) from Rachel, a knitter in Minnesota who is of Latvian descent.  She also writes a blog at:
http://balticstitches.com/

Well, Rachel and I have written back and forth for a couple of years now.  However, just recently she contacted me and asked if I knew Erna Jansons.  Rachel had requested Erna's book Latviešu Cimdu Raksti or Latvian Mitten Designs from the Library of Congress and after viewing the book at her local library (Library of Congress books apparently cannot be removed from the local library), she Googled the book and ran across a prior blog post of mine here and surmised my connection with Erna.  It seemed like the best course of action would be a visit to Milwaukee by Rachel to meet with Erna and me.  Well, this meeting sounded like too much fun for my friend, Sandy, to miss, so I invited her as well.  Sandy and Rachel had also previously connected through Ravelry.  So we began to plan a knitters' weekend in Milwaukee.  We added one more knitter to the mix when Rachel invited her aunt, Zinta, to join her for the road trip.

This is where things begin to get even more interesting.  Zinta is a retired Lutheran minister so I suggested that we might want to go to the Milwaukee Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Holy Trinity Church on the Sunday of their visit.  I emailed our friend, the pastor, Archbishop Lauma Zušēvica, to see if she would be in town and preaching that Sunday.  Yes, indeed she would be.  I heard back from Pastor Lauma again shortly after that and she offered an opportunity for Pastor Zinta to preach.  Zinta agreed to preach, and we all went to the Latvian service which was presided over, in Latvian, by Archbishop Lauma.  Pastor Lauma was just consecrated in April 2015, as the Archbishop of the Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Church Abroad (Latvijas Evanģēliski Luteriskā Baznīca Ārpus Latvijas), meaning everywhere outside of Latvia.

Archbishop Lauma at her Consecration as Archbishop



Besides our meetings with Erna (one on Saturday and one on Sunday), I also set up a visit with a Latvian weaving friend, Vita Kakulis.  She invited us to her home where we could see her studio space, her weavings, and her huge library of Latvian design books.

Rachel, Vita, and Zinta

Vita showed us a video from the Folk Costume Exhibit that took place at the XIII Latvian Song & Dance Festival in Milwaukee in 2012, served us a lovely luncheon which included pīrāgs and traditional Latvian open-faced sandwiches, and gave a copy of the fabulous, but out-of-print, Cimdu Jettiņa book to Rachel.  The day was a gift for all of us.

UPDATE on 10/29/2016:  Erna Jansons' book Latviešu Cimdu Raksti or Latvian Mitten Designs is now available for purchase - details for ordering are on my website here or you can find the book on Etsy here.