Norwegian Craft Fair

My dear readers, I thought you might be interested in what a Norwegian craft fair looks like. This one was rather large, and wonder of all wonders, the admission was free! There are so few free things in Norway! I went this weekend, camera in hand, so that I could show you what the craft trends look like here. Most is rather old fashioned still, and most booths featured very skilled knitters, painters, and jewelry makers. There were very few hand sewn goods available, much to my disappointment.

The RV's parked in the lot outside made me think of working antique shows on weekends with my mother, helping her unload, set up, and then wandering by myself through the  aisles of dusty treasures to greet the same dealers we saw yearly, all of whom felt like my other family.

This was only half of the first room full of table after table of lovingly made goods.

 Before we leave Norway, I'm going to make sure that we purchase some art by this artist. I see her work often in this area and badly want some for myself.

 These nick knacks are painted in the traditional Norwegian Rosemaling. Every region in the country has it's very own pattern, much like we have state flags.

 I just loved the wall of color created by these beautiful hand woven scarves. The same woman made the lovely leather purses below:

 Lovely hand-sewn Christmas ornaments.

 These heart shaped ornaments are from soft, felted local sheep's wool.

 Hand made purses and clothes at this one booth in particular were my favorite. Mostly because I recognized a few of the fabrics from my own collection.

These lovely little gnomes and trolls are my favorite part of Norwegian culture. These little guys were everywhere! Here, you are hard pressed to find a Norwegian who will say they don't believe in trolls. They are very good luck and I find myself looking over my shoulder on some forest hikes, wondering if I'll see one for myself.