Greenland Inspired Knitting

Looking at a map, something immediately stands out: Iceland is surprisingly green, while Greenland is largely blanketed by ice, yet their names suggest the opposite. Despite being only about 300 kilometres apart, these two lands share the challenges of life in the freezing North. 

Design Shaped by the North

Iceland and Greenland both face the harsh conditions of the Nordic North, but their climates are very different. Greenland, farther north and mostly covered in ice, is much colder than Iceland. Still, both places need clothing that can handle cold, wind, and isolation. These shared challenges led to strong textile traditions and practical, iconic Nordic garments such as the Lopapeysa.

Greenlandic Influence on the Lopapeysa

Though it feels like a timeless artifact, the Lopapeysa is actually a product of 20th-century innovation. Its iconic circular yoke, rather than being an ancient Icelandic invention, emerged through mid-century cultural exchange, inspired by the Greenlandic women’s national costume, particularly the nuilarmiut, a vivid beaded collar draped over the shoulders.

This visual form was first translated into a knitting pattern by Norwegian designer Annichen Sibbern Bøhn in her 1932 book Strikkeopskrifter, where her “Eskimo” pattern captured the geometric beauty of the Greenlandic collar and introduced the circular yoke to a wider Scandinavian audience.

Iceland’s Adaptation and Innovation

By the 1950s, the Greenland-style pattern had reached Iceland and appeared in the December 1956 issue of Melkorka magazine as a Grænlenzk peysa or Greenlandic sweater. Icelanders soon adapted the design using lopi, an unspun wool roving that preserves the dual-fibre qualities of Icelandic sheep, creating a garment that was lightweight, exceptionally warm, and weather resistant.

Interestingly, while Icelanders first called them "Greenlandic sweaters," neighbours in Sweden and Denmark soon called them "Icelandic sweaters," showing how quickly the design became a symbol of Icelandic identity. For the full story behind the story of the Lopapeysa, check out the Icewear blog.

Greenland-Inspired Collaboration

Greenland-inspired knitwear continues today through contemporary designs, including Icewear Garn’s collaboration with designer Lisa Sólrun, whose patterns reflect her Greenlandic, Danish, and Faroese heritage. Drawing on the Greenlandic national costume, she reinterprets its traditional patterns and colors, where shades carry deep meaning by region, age, and occasion. From pink in youth to red in maturity and finally to darker tones of red and blue.

About the Designer

Lísa Sólrun is one of the few knitting designers in Greenland creating patterns. Alongside her creative work, she is a trained occupational therapist, works as an advisor at the Ministry of Health in Greenland, and has an Icelandic partner and five grown children.

She learned to knit at just five years old from her grandmother and mother and has been knitting ever since. Encouraged by family and friends, Lisa Sólrun began designing her own patterns in 2021, naming each one after her children and grandchildren and giving every design a deeply personal meaning. Her patterns can be found in the knitting patterns section of the Icewear website, though not all patterns are available in English.