The book presents 178 samples of mittens, reproduced from the 18th Century originals in Latvian museum collections, their knitting secrets and wearing traditions.
Although there have been publications before concerning Latvian ethnographic mittens, the book “Mittens of Latvia. 178 Traditional Designs to Knit” provides the most complete and exact information.
Moreover, it is a visually magnificent book that tells us the story of Latvian traditional culture through bright and inspiring photos. The book is a perfectly designed trustworthy historical encyclopedia.
At the same time, it is also a practical treatise encouraging knitters to carry on ancient traditions with original and exciting patterns. The left-hand page presents the pattern, the right-hand one shows a knitted mitten for better visual perception of the pattern.
Every sample of a mitten carries with it precise historical information about the location where it comes from, the museum where the original can be found and its inventory number.
Every pattern presented by the book is unique, but they still all have roots in the cradle of Indo-European culture and it is easy to see resemblances with ethnographic sign systems in many other traditional cultures.
Discover more about the projects in the book on Ravelry. Note that this book contains charts with minimal instructions. Each chart is presented without a complete knitting pattern: you'll need to be comfortable with knitting mittens to add the thumb, which can be flexibly inserted in various ways according to your preference for fit and style!
