Roses in embroidery, crochet and knitting in Dala-Floda - part 2 (Påsöm)

Embroidered jackets and wrist-warmers, Dala-Floda

Day two was all about the local embroidery tradition, in Swedish it is called "Påsöm". Anna-Karin Jobs Arnberg (born in Dala-Floda) was our teacher and her skill and enthusiasm made the classes an real joy.

Embroidery on woman´s jacket, Dala-Floda

Embroidery was not just a part of the local traditional costumes, but also a way for women to earn a living. Especially in the second half of the nineteenth century when the floral motives became very popular in all of Sweden. The women of Dala-Floda where known for their embroidery skills and their products where bought and sold in Stockholm and many other cities in Sweden.

Embroidery on woman´s jacket, Dala-Floda

The techniques were passed on from generation to generation and Anna-Karin is in that aspect a link in an unbroken chain. She had prepared a sampler that we were all to copy, and her instructions were systematic and progressive - even I could follow, although I am not comfortable with needle and thread.
But I enjoyed working with all the bright colours and found the day both inspiring and enjoyable.

Man´s wrist-warmer, Dala-Floda

We also saw samples of  men`s wrist-warmers. These wrist-warmers (shown in my photos) pre-date the floral motives seen on the jackets in the pictures above. Their characteristics are more geometrical motives, flowers were not used.  Wrist-warmers were only worn by men at that time. They are very ornamented and often feature many and very bright colours. Wrist-warmers for women came later and they were then crocheted and decorated with pearls.

Man´s wrist-warmer, Dala-Floda