Comparisons and Observations, as well as Materials Research

Comparison of Nalbinding to Knitting

Overall, I found knitting to be much faster than nalbinding. Completing a row of 10 knit stitches took about 20-30 seconds, while 10 Oslo stitches took around 2.5 minutes. Part of this difference in time could be attributed to my relative lack of experience in nalbinding as compared to knitting. However, I am also quite amateurish where knitting is concerned, and the difference in time/stitch also seemed noticeable when videos of people knitting and nalbinding were compared. Knitting also was more efficient in that you did not have to stop as often to add on more yarn.

Additionally, the use of two needles in knitting, instead of a needle and a thumb, made it significantly easier to keep the stitches uniform. This was one of my main struggles in nalbinding, as the wool would slip from wider to thinner portions of my thumb as I worked. Nalbinding also had to be worked in the round, where knitting can be worked into a square or in the round.

I did find that the product achieved through nalbinding was much denser than knitting, and so could potentially be warmer. However, this could also be attributed to the fact that I used only plied yarn for knitting, and used mostly non-plied yarn for nalbinding.

Knitting Swatch

Nalbinding Swatch

Comparison of Yarn Types (Plied vs. Non-Plied)

Although I used mainly non-plied yarn in my nalbinding, I did make a few attempts using plied yarn. I found the plied to be easier to work with, as the stitches were more spaced out, and 'visible', but I preferred the results of the projects made with the non-plied wool. The final product made with non-plied had less gaps, and was much thicker than the plied work. However, the non-plied wool had a tendency to 'stick' to itself, and was far harder to untangle. It was also weaker than the plied, as I didn't need scissors to break off strands, it could just be pulled and snapped with the tension.

Non-Plied Cuff

Plied Cuff

Comparison of Needle Types

 I also made one of the chopstick needles, and tried it out on a row of Oslo stitch. I found it to be harder to use then the shorter, metal needle, mostly because I found the size was less 'clumsy' to maneuver. I also found that the metal needle slid much better, the wood had a tendency to catch as it was being pulled through, particularly when using the non-plied wool. Having said this, I might find a needle made of bone or something of the sort preferable to wooden needles, or perhaps a shorter wooden needle.

Materials Used

Although wool seems to be quite prominent as a material used, there has also been discussion regarding the use of plant based fibres in Viking textile production (Jorgenson, 1990; Skoglund, 2013). Jorgenson speaks mostly about pre-Viking age Northern Europe, focusing primarily on the Stone Age. Although this is quite long before the time period in question (the Viking Age), it is relavant in that it is noted that most textiles from this time period seem to be made of vegetable fibre (such as flax and willow). This indicates that these are materials which would have been readily available in the region, seeing as it would be some time before the arrival of the domestic sheep in Northern Europe (Jorgenson, 1990).

By the time the Viking Age came about, domesticated sheep would have become much more widespread, and it seems likely that their wool would have been adopted into use by textile producers. However, the possibility that vegetable fibres continued to be used throughout textile production remains, and is supported by Skoglund et al. (2013). He argues that hemp and flax continued to be used, alongside wool, in the production of both coarse (sails, etc) and fine (clothing, etc.) textiles. In his study, ten samples of locally produced textiles dated to the Viking Age were tested, with four being found to contain hemp mixed in with the wool fibre (Skoglund et. al, 2013). This, he feels, is evidence which suggests that plant material continued to be used in textile manufacture, despite the adoption of wool.

Sources

Jorgenson, L.B., (1990). Stone-Age textiles in North Europe. Textiles in Northern Archaeology, 1-10.

Skoglund, G., Nockert, M., & Holst, B., (2013). Viking and early middle ages northern scandinavian textiles proven to be made with hemp. Scientific Reports, 3, 2686.