Traditional Danish Sweaters

From a little-known chapter of knitting history comes the Danish “night sweater”—part of women's traditional dress in the 1800s, these sweaters have long been overlooked in surveys of Scandinavian handcrafting and design. But now celebrated Danish knitting expert Vivian Høxbro has brought together diligent research, comprehensive charts, and her own painstaking efforts to reconstruct these carefully-preserved garments to create a unique collection of single-color relief patterns. Within, knitted, purled, and crossed stitches form hundreds of classic star motifs, edgings, horizontal and vertical pattern panels, and striking “traveling stitch” designs.

Learn the history of night sweaters in Denmark, with a rundown of special techniques and regional knitting practices, and then dive into a neatly-organized library of 200 charts for motifs of all kinds. Follow step-by-step instructions as you reconstruct traditional Danish sweaters in contemporary sizes, work traditionally-inspired patterns for a stole, top, tunic, and more—or use these motifs, edgings, and decorative panels in projects of your own design.