Lovikka Mittens

This particular set of mittens is now 40 years old and a testament to the durability of high quality, untreated wool. These "house mittens" have seen extensive use and continue to be a family favorite. Attention in particular should be drawn to the juxtaposed finishes of original blue, red and yellow embroidery layered over a felted gray base. We are considering recreating this pair in smaller sizes for children, youth and petite. Stay tuned!

100% Icelandic sheep

300 grams

“These thick, white, fluffy mittens are another style that looks very old indeed, but was developed by an enterprising individual within living memory. Before that, mittens in Tornedal, in North Sweden, were made of nålbinding with very long and very wide gauntlets, in shape very like the two-stranded mittens of Dalarna. The ‘mother’ of Lovikka mittens, Erika Aittamaa, was still alive in 1936 and remembered well her first experiments of 1892. She was then one of a poor family who lived in a wooden cabin and knitted for townspeople.

One day a customer wanted really thick, long-wearing mittens. Erika spun special wool and made two pairs of very thick mittens which she thought should last several winters. However, her customer was not enthusiastic and even said she had spoiled good wool. Undaunted she tried again, felted them very carefully and brush them to raise the pile. This was a success and her mittens were soon in demand especially by farmers who drove during the winter. She got orders from towns and Tornedal and from the Lapps. To please the Lapps, who love bright colours, she began to decorate the cuff with bright, loosely stranded patterns, copied from much older embroidery on the nålbinding mittens.

The special yarn is very tightly spun so that it stays very solid even when brushed.” (Sheila McGregor, 1984)

As with Erika’s original design, which remain eminently suitable for a hard driving winter snow, our products too are made with the highest quality material that can be passed down through families.