Ull og vefna\u00f0ur hafa \u00e1 margan h\u00e1tt veri\u00f0 hjarta \u00edslensks samf\u00e9lags \u00ed gegnum aldirnar. Vinna vi\u00f0 ull var mikilv\u00e6gur \u00fe\u00e1ttur \u00ed l\u00edfi og menningu f\u00f3lks, og sterk hef\u00f0 skapa\u00f0ist fyrir prj\u00f3ni og vefna\u00f0i. Sau\u00f0fj\u00e1rb\u00faskapur og n\u00fdting ullarinnar var ein helsta au\u00f0lind \u00fej\u00f3\u00f0arinnar fr\u00e1 landn\u00e1mi og fram \u00e1 fyrri hluta s\u00ed\u00f0ustu aldar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
F\u00f3lk stunda\u00f0i b\u00faskap og var a\u00f0 mestu sj\u00e1lfu s\u00e9r n\u00e6gt um l\u00edfsnau\u00f0synjar. Kindurnar g\u00e1fu meiri ull en landnemar \u00feurftu sj\u00e1lfir, og va\u00f0m\u00e1l var\u00f0 \u00e6 mikilv\u00e6gara \u00ed innlendri verslun. \u00cd Nor\u00f0ur-Evr\u00f3pu var \u00feekkt a\u00f0 skinn v\u00e6ru notu\u00f0 sem grei\u00f0slumi\u00f0ill, l\u00edkt og peningar \u00ed dag. B\u00faf\u00e9 var \u00fev\u00ed lengi helsti m\u00e6likvar\u00f0i \u00e1 ver\u00f0m\u00e6ti. \u00c1 \u00cdslandi t\u00f3k va\u00f0m\u00e1l, ofi\u00f0 ullarefni, hins vegar vi\u00f0 af silfri sem helsti gjaldmi\u00f0illinn \u00e1 11. \u00f6ld.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00cd Gr\u00e1g\u00e1s, lagasafni \u00cdslendinga \u00e1 \u00feessum t\u00edma, voru ver\u00f0einingar flokka\u00f0ar \u00ed va\u00f0m\u00e1l, silfur og gull. Me\u00f0 tilkomu b\u00faalaga um 1100, sem fj\u00f6llu\u00f0u um innanlandsvi\u00f0skipti, ur\u00f0u grunneiningar ver\u00f0mats silfur, va\u00f0m\u00e1l og k\u00fdr. K\u00fagildi var um aldir nota\u00f0 sem ver\u00f0m\u00e6taeining \u00ed vi\u00f0skiptum. Eitt k\u00fagildi jafngilti 120 \u00e1lnum af va\u00f0m\u00e1li og h\u00e9lt \u00fev\u00ed ver\u00f0gildi lengi. Ein alin af va\u00f0m\u00e1li var um 49 cm \u00e1 lengd og 98 cm \u00e1 breidd. K\u00fagildi jafna\u00f0ist einnig \u00e1 vi\u00f0 240 fiska, og \u00fea\u00f0 mat h\u00e9lst um langan t\u00edma. \u00cdslendingar g\u00e1tu til d\u00e6mis greitt landskuld e\u00f0a komugj\u00f6ld \u00ed Noregi me\u00f0 va\u00f0m\u00e1li.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gamalt va\u00f0m\u00e1l var ofi\u00f0 ullarefni, fremur gr\u00f3ft, \u00fe\u00e9tt og yfirleitt \u00f3lita\u00f0. Tv\u00e6r ger\u00f0ir voru framleiddar: verslunarva\u00f0m\u00e1l og hafnarva\u00f0m\u00e1l, \u00fear sem hi\u00f0 s\u00ed\u00f0arnefnda var vanda\u00f0ra. Va\u00f0m\u00e1l var einnig nota\u00f0 \u00ed yfirhafnir og hl\u00edf\u00f0arf\u00f6t. V\u00ed\u00f0a \u00ed Nor\u00f0ur-Evr\u00f3pu var va\u00f0m\u00e1l helsta efni \u00ed vinnufatna\u00f0 allt fram \u00e1 18. \u00f6ld, auk \u00feess sem \u00fea\u00f0 var nota\u00f0 \u00ed r\u00fam\u00e1brei\u00f0ur, tj\u00f6ld og segl.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00cdsland var st\u00e6rsti framlei\u00f0andi va\u00f0m\u00e1ls \u00e1 Nor\u00f0ur-Atlantshafi, og \u00fea\u00f0 var\u00f0 lykil\u00fatflutningsvara \u00fej\u00f3\u00f0arinnar. Va\u00f0m\u00e1l var l\u00f6gm\u00e6tur gjaldmi\u00f0ill b\u00e6\u00f0i innanlands og \u00ed utanlandsvi\u00f0skiptum \u00cdslendinga fr\u00e1 11. til 17. \u00f6ld. Lengd, breidd, \u00fer\u00e1\u00f0afj\u00f6ldi og \u00feyngd mismunandi g\u00e6\u00f0aflokka va\u00f0m\u00e1ls voru skilgreind \u00ed l\u00f6gum. Framlei\u00f0sla e\u00f0a sala \u00e1 g\u00f6llu\u00f0u va\u00f0m\u00e1li var refsiver\u00f0; \u00ed Lj\u00f3svetninga s\u00f6gu er til d\u00e6mis sagt fr\u00e1 manni sem var ger\u00f0ur \u00fatl\u00e6gur fyrir a\u00f0 selja va\u00f0m\u00e1l fullt af g\u00f6tum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sumir fr\u00e6\u00f0imenn telja a\u00f0 vegna mikilv\u00e6gis va\u00f0m\u00e1ls og \u00feess a\u00f0 konur s\u00e1u a\u00f0 mestu um framlei\u00f0sluna hafi sta\u00f0a kynjanna \u00e1 \u00cdslandi veri\u00f0 jafnari en \u00e1\u00f0ur var tali\u00f0. A\u00f0 framlei\u00f0a va\u00f0m\u00e1l jafngilti \u00fev\u00ed a\u00f0 skapa ver\u00f0m\u00e6ti, og s\u00fa \u00feekking sem vefarar h\u00f6f\u00f0u \u00e1 g\u00e6\u00f0um efnisins gaf \u00feeim mikilv\u00e6gt samf\u00e9lagslegt hlutverk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Saga<\/strong>\n\nWool and weaving have in many ways been the heart of Icelandic society throughout history. Working with wool was an important part of the lives and culture of the people and a strong tradition for knitting and weaving. Keeping sheep and benefiting from the wool was an important resource for the nation from the settlement to the first half of the last century. \n\nPeople practiced farming and were mostly self-sufficient in Iceland with most things. The sheep produced more wool than the settlers needed to use themselves and va\u00f0m\u00e1l (wadmal) became increasingly important in domestic trade. In Northern Europe it was known that hides were used for the same purpose as we now use money. Livestock was therefore the main currency and measure of trade value. But in Iceland wadmal, a woven wool fabric, took over from silver as the main currency in the 11th<\/sup> century used between people. In Gr\u00e1g\u00e1s, the Icelandic Law book at the time, price units were divided into three categories; wadmal, silver and gold, but with the enactment of the Estate\/farm-law (B\u00faal\u00f6g) around 1100, which dealt with domestic trade, the basic units in the price calculation were silver, wadmal and cows. Cow-value was for many centuries used as a price measure in domestic trade. One cow value was valued at 120 cubits of wadmal and kept its value for centuries. One cubit of wadmal corresponded to a 49 cm long piece and 98 cm wide. The cow was valued at 240 pieces of fish and that valuation was also maintained for a long time. Icelanders could for example use wadmal to pay their property tax or when travelling pay the arrival tax in Norway with it.\n\nThis old wadmal was a woven wool fabric which was a bit harsh, dense and usually undyed. Two types of wadmal were made, merchandise wadmal and harbor wadmal, and the former was not as elaborate as the latter one (high quality). The wadmal was also used to make spare coats\/furs, which were men's coats that resembled fur or were made of woolen or ruffles that were spread all over the garment (used as a warm cloak). In many regions in Northern Europe wadmal was and remained the primary fabric for working people's clothing into the 18th century, it was also used to make bedspreads, tents and sails.\n\nIceland was the largest producer of wadmal in the North Atlantic and it became to be very important to the country\u00b4s trade as the main export. It was a dominant form of legal currency in Iceland \u2013 both within Iceland and in the Icelanders\u2019 foreign trade - from the 11th to 17th century. Wadmal\u00b4s length, width, thread count, and weight for different grades were fixed by law in Iceland. Producing and selling inadequate wadmal was punishable by law; for instance, in Lj\u00f3svetninga Saga<\/em>, one individual is outlawed for selling wadmal full of holes. Some have argued that given the importance of wadmal in Iceland and the fact that women primarily produced it, that gender relations in Iceland may have been more equal than was previously thought. Making wadmal was making money and this may have provided women with a source of power that was socially understood, as the weavers knew best the differences between good and poor-quality fabric.<\/pre>\n\n\n\nBl\u00f3maskei\u00f0 ullari\u00f0na\u00f0arins <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\u00c1\u00f0ur en v\u00e9lv\u00e6\u00f0ing h\u00f3fst bygg\u00f0ist \u00edslensk text\u00edlframlei\u00f0sla \u00e1 heimilisi\u00f0na\u00f0i, \u00fear sem ull var spunnin, ofin og prj\u00f3nu\u00f0 \u00e1 heimilum landsmanna. \u00deessi verk\u00feekking var undirsta\u00f0a kl\u00e6\u00f0na\u00f0ar og \u00f3rj\u00fafanlegur hluti daglegs l\u00edfs. Me\u00f0 aukinni v\u00e9lv\u00e6\u00f0ingu \u00e1 20. \u00f6ld f\u00e6r\u00f0ist ullarvinnslan sm\u00e1m saman \u00far heimilum yfir \u00ed skipulag\u00f0ari framlei\u00f0slu, \u00fear sem prj\u00f3nav\u00e9lar og vefna\u00f0arv\u00e9lar opnu\u00f0u n\u00fdja m\u00f6guleika og l\u00f6g\u00f0u grunn a\u00f0 \u00edslenskum text\u00edli\u00f0na\u00f0i.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00c1 seinni hluta aldarinnar \u00feurfti greinin a\u00f0 endurskilgreina st\u00f6\u00f0u s\u00edna \u00ed heimi fj\u00f6ldaframlei\u00f0slu. \u00c1hersla f\u00e6r\u00f0ist fr\u00e1 magni yfir \u00ed g\u00e6\u00f0i, efnis\u00feekkingu og h\u00f6nnun. Ull var\u00f0 ekki lengur a\u00f0eins hr\u00e1efni til nytja heldur einnig mi\u00f0ill fagurfr\u00e6\u00f0i, formsk\u00f6punar og s\u00ed\u00f0ar t\u00edsku. Handverks\u00feekking, sem \u00e1\u00f0ur var heimilisleg og \u00f3formleg, var\u00f0 hluti af skipulag\u00f0ri fr\u00e6\u00f0slu og faglegu h\u00f6nnunarferli.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Fram \u00e1 t\u00edunda \u00e1ratug 20. aldar st\u00f3\u00f0 ullari\u00f0na\u00f0ur \u00e1 \u00cdslandi me\u00f0 miklum bl\u00f3ma. \u00c1 sj\u00f6unda og \u00e1ttunda \u00e1ratugnum unnu margir \u00edslenskir h\u00f6nnu\u00f0ir og s\u00e9rh\u00e6f\u00f0ir prj\u00f3narar \u00edslenska ullina \u00e1 n\u00fdjan og skapandi h\u00e1tt \u2014 til d\u00e6mis \u00ed samt\u00edmah\u00f6nnun \u00e1 lopapeysunni og prj\u00f3naf\u00f6tum. \u00c1 \u00feessum \u00e1rum stofnu\u00f0u verksmi\u00f0jur eins og \u00c1lafoss, Gefjun og Hilda jafnframt eigin\u00a0h\u00f6nnunardeildir\u00a0me\u00f0 \u00e1herslu \u00e1 mynsturh\u00f6nnun til a\u00f0 styrkja v\u00f6rul\u00ednur s\u00ednar. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00c1 h\u00e1punkti \u00feessa i\u00f0na\u00f0ar, um 1980\u20131985, var mikil gr\u00f3ska \u00ed h\u00f6nnun vara \u00far \u00edslenskri ull og fj\u00f6lmargir h\u00f6nnu\u00f0ir st\u00f6rfu\u00f0u \u00ed greininni. Svo kom \u00fe\u00f3 a\u00f0 \u00fev\u00ed a\u00f0 me\u00f0 auknum innflutningi og breyttum marka\u00f0sa\u00f0st\u00e6\u00f0um f\u00f3r erlend framlei\u00f0sla \u00fe\u00f3 sm\u00e1m saman a\u00f0 leysa \u00edslenska framlei\u00f0slu af h\u00f3lmi. Starfsemi sem var v\u00ed\u00f0a um land f\u00f3r a\u00f0 dragast saman, fyrirt\u00e6kjum \u00ed ullari\u00f0na\u00f0i f\u00e6kka\u00f0i hratt \u00far um 50 \u00ed um 5 og starfsf\u00f3lki \u00far um 2.000 \u00ed um 200.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00cd dag myndar \u00feessi \u00fer\u00f3un grundv\u00f6ll a\u00f0 samt\u00edmatext\u00edl og t\u00edsku \u00e1 \u00cdslandi \u2014 \u00fear sem arfleif\u00f0 ullarinnar, i\u00f0na\u00f0ar\u00feekking og h\u00f6nnun m\u00e6tast \u00ed samfelldri heild sem byggir \u00e1 efnisvitund, g\u00e6\u00f0um og vir\u00f0ingu fyrir uppruna hr\u00e1efnisins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Golden Age of the Wool Industry<\/strong>\n\nBefore mechanisation, Icelandic textile production was rooted in domestic craft, where wool was spun, woven, and knitted in homes across the country. This knowledge formed the foundation of clothing and was an integral part of daily life. With increasing mechanisation during the 20th century, wool processing gradually moved from the home into more organised production, as knitting machines and looms opened new possibilities and laid the groundwork for an Icelandic textile industry.\n\nIn the latter half of the century, the industry had to redefine its role in a world of mass production. The focus shifted from quantity to quality, material knowledge, and design. Wool was no longer only a utilitarian raw material but also a medium for aesthetics, form, and eventually fashion. Craft knowledge that had once been informal and domestic became part of structured education and professional design processes.\n\nUp until the 1990s, the wool industry in Iceland was thriving. At its peak, around 1980\u20131985, there was strong growth in the design of products made from Icelandic wool, and many designers worked within the field. However, with increased imports and changing market conditions, foreign production gradually replaced domestic manufacturing. The number of wool industry companies fell rapidly from around 50 to about 5, and the workforce declined from approximately 2,000 to 200.\n\nToday, this development forms the foundation of contemporary textiles and fashion in Iceland \u2014 where the heritage of wool, industrial knowledge, and design come together as a continuous whole, grounded in material awareness, quality, and respect for the origin of the raw material.<\/pre>\n\n\n\nN\u00fdtt skei\u00f0 ullarinnar<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Ull er enn mikilv\u00e6g afur\u00f0 \u00edslensks landb\u00fana\u00f0ar. \u00cd dag er \u00cdstex (\u00cdslenskur text\u00edl ehf., \u00ed eigu sau\u00f0fj\u00e1rb\u00e6nda) eini framlei\u00f0andi \u00edslensks ullargarns \u00ed st\u00e6rri st\u00edl. Fyrirt\u00e6ki\u00f0 kaupir ull beint af b\u00e6ndum um allt land, \u00fev\u00e6r hana \u00e1 Bl\u00f6ndu\u00f3si og spinnur garn \u00ed Mosfellsb\u00e6.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sumar a\u00f0fer\u00f0ir \u00ed text\u00edlvinnslu hafa var\u00f0veist betur en a\u00f0rar. Prj\u00f3n og hekl eru helstu vinnslua\u00f0fer\u00f0irnar \u00ed dag. Vefna\u00f0ur gerir efni\u00f0 sterkara, en framlei\u00f0sla \u00e1 ofnum ullartext\u00edl \u00e1 \u00cdslandi hefur lagst af og i\u00f0na\u00f0arv\u00e9lar fyrir vefna\u00f0 hafa allar veri\u00f0 seldar \u00far landi. \u00dev\u00ed hefur text\u00edlframlei\u00f0sla \u00far ull or\u00f0i\u00f0 fremur einsleit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Text\u00edli\u00f0na\u00f0ur og fatah\u00f6nnun eru n\u00e1tengdar greinar. \u00c1 \u00cdslandi s\u00e9st vel hvert helsta hr\u00e1efni\u00f0 er og hverjir framlei\u00f0slum\u00f6guleikarnir eru. Prj\u00f3n \u00far ull er fyrirfer\u00f0amiki\u00f0. Margir af helstu fatah\u00f6nnu\u00f0um landsins vinna miki\u00f0 me\u00f0 prj\u00f3n, sem hefur or\u00f0i\u00f0 eitt af s\u00e9rkennum \u00edslenskrar fatah\u00f6nnunar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A New Era of Wool<\/strong>\n\nIn Iceland, wool is one of the main products from the homeland. Today, \u00cdstex (Icelandic textile Ltd., owned by sheep farmers) is the only producer of wool yarn in bulk. The company buys the wool directly from farmers across the country, washes it in Bl\u00f6ndu\u00f3s and spins various yarns in Mosfellsb\u00e6r. \n\nSome textile processing methods have been preserved better than others. Knitting and crochet are the main techniques used today. Weaving produces a stronger textile, but the production of woven wool textiles in Iceland has largely disappeared. As a result, wool-based textile production has become less diverse.\n\nThe textile and fashion industries are closely connected. In Iceland, it is clear what the primary raw material is and what production possibilities exist \u2014 wool knitwear is especially prominent. Many of the country\u2019s leading fashion designers work extensively with knit, which has become one of the defining characteristics of Icelandic fashion design.<\/pre>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Saga Ull og vefna\u00f0ur hafa \u00e1 margan h\u00e1tt veri\u00f0 hjarta \u00edslensks samf\u00e9lags \u00ed gegnum aldirnar. Vinna vi\u00f0 ull var mikilv\u00e6gur \u00fe\u00e1ttur \u00ed l\u00edfi og menningu f\u00f3lks, og sterk hef\u00f0 skapa\u00f0ist fyrir prj\u00f3ni og vefna\u00f0i. Sau\u00f0fj\u00e1rb\u00faskapur og n\u00fdting ullarinnar var ein helsta au\u00f0lind \u00fej\u00f3\u00f0arinnar fr\u00e1 landn\u00e1mi og fram \u00e1 fyrri hluta s\u00ed\u00f0ustu aldar. F\u00f3lk stunda\u00f0i b\u00faskap … <\/p>\n