CUSTOM KNITTED AFI SWEATER

My father’s father, afi Arthúr, was a Norwegian. He was born in Sandnessjöen in the north of Nor- way but moved to Iceland in 1925 when he got hired as marine engineer on an Icelandic vessel. His mother Emma sent her son a sweater for Christmas around 1950. She had made him a beautiful dark blue “kofta” with a traditional Norwegian pattern. When I was a teenager, I remember admiring this beautifully knitted sweater. I particularly admired the finishing of the borders and sleeves, as is customary for Norwegian “kofta” but I did not find the shape of the “kofta” modern.

I decided to knit a sweater that was big and baggy as was the fashion at that time. With my grandmother’s help, I remade my grandpas “kofta.” I altered the shape but kept its characteristics. Now, forty years later, this “kofta” is an inspiration for a new sweater. That is the sweater I call KBG 17 – AFI, “afi” is the Icelandic word for grandfather. This time it’s knitted with a yoke that is traditional for Icelandic sweaters, but the reference to my afi ́s “kofta” is evident