Kjærlighetsvotter is Norwegian for ”Lover’s mittens”. These mittens are patterned after the traditional rose or snowflake pattern seen in Selbuvotter. Selbuvotter are traditional stranded mitten patterns from Selbu, Norway, a small town about an hours drive from Trondheim. Traditionally, mittens were knitted using natural black and white wool, though modern knitters incorporate colors into their mittens. It was tradition to wear these mittens on festive occasions, including weddings.
The pattern set consists of the lover’s mitten, designed to be used by a couple wishing to hold hands inside the mitten, and the corresponding men´s and women’s mitten. It is optional to make a set of 5 mittens, a pair of both men´s and women´s mittens in addition to the lover´s mitten, but please note that the yardage given is for the set of 3. Using traditional Norwegian shaping and construction technique, the mittens’ stranded colorwork is knit at a tight gauge to keep your hands warm and protected from the elements.
I submitted the pattern to the December 2011 Knitty issue, but they were sadly declined recently. Which means I was in the running, but there are a lot of good designs out there ;) You can find them now on ravelry.
