Table of Contents

Introduction
Our Route Around Iceland’s Ring Road

Travel Guide by Kyle Cassidy
It’s Easy to Get to Iceland, You Should Go
Iceland’s History of Wool
About the Lopapeysa
Knitting a Lopi in Iceland
Getting Started
How Is Iceland Even?
The Ring Road
Getting Around Iceland
The Icelandic Handknitting Association
The Waterfall at Helgufoss
The Hot Springs at Skátalaug
Heavy Metal Horses
Designer Profile: Rebekka Guðleifsdóttir
Knitter Profile: Pálína (Palla) Gunnarsdóttir
Reykjavik is a 24-hour Party
Fagradalsfjall, an Erupting Volcano
Hestaland, a Horse Farm that Lets you Stay
Illugastaðir, the Land of Seals and Ghosts
Dalvik Camping, Whale Watching
Akureyri
Grjótagjá Cave, Mývatn's Underground Hot Springs
Möðrudalur: The Farm at the Top of the World
Námafjall Hverir, the Mývatn Geothermal Area
Djúpivogur
Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon
Skaftafell National Park
Black Sand Beaches
Vik, Where All the Movies are Filmed
Knitter Profiles: Hera, Guðlaug and Anna Halla
Knitter Profile: Janina Witzel
The Hot River
Nauthólsvík Geothermal Beach
Designer Profile: Védís Jónsdóttir
Back Home
Coda

Knitting Guide and Patterns by Joan of Dark
Knitting the Lopapeysa
Recipes versus Patterns
Sizing
Needles
Abbreviations
Cardigans and Steeking
Yarn
Important Skills
The Patterns
Learn to Chart Headband
Hot Springs Hat
Executioner’s Capelet
Everywhere Sweater
Hestaland Horse Sweater
Puffin Sweater
Lakeside Lopapeysa
Hiking Gloves
Adventure Sweater
Waiting Cape
Learned Lopi
Vik Dress

Endnotes
Acknowledgements

Promotional Information

Part-knitting book, part-Icelandic travel guide, this is a book for knitters and those with a taste for adventure!

About the Author

Joan of Dark aka Toni Carr is the author of Knockdown Knits, Knits for Nerds and Geek Knits, and a contributing designer for Vampire Knits, Once Upon a Knit and various Knit Picks publications. Joan has been a featured instructor and guest of honour at numerous knitting and pop-culture conventions.

Kyle Cassidy has photographed a wide range of people from writers and punks to politicians and scholars since the 1990s. His work appeared in publications such as The New York Times, The Sunday Times, Marie Claire and Forbes. His first book, Armed America (F&W Media), made Amazon's 'Best 10 Art Books of the Year'. As a journalist at Philadelphia Weekly, he won three Keystone State Professional Journalism Awards.

Reviews

This is a joy of a book. I know nothing of sweaters and little of Iceland, and this book used pictures and words to open Iceland and its people for me, using Icelandic sweaters and knitting to do it.
*Neil Gaiman, author of 'Norse Mythology'*

Lopapeysa is a seamless knitting together of the author's travels in contemporary Iceland with one of that splendidly idiosyncratic island's most highly prized and traditional crafts, the art of knitting itself.
*Lawrence Millman, author of 'Last Places: A Journey in the North'*

Through the story of their travels and the people they met along the way, Joan and Kyle have lovingly captured both the technical and artistic aspects of Icelandic knitting tradition, and the culture that created it.
*Smári McCarth, former member of the Alþingi, Iceland's national parliament*

If you've ever fancied visiting Iceland, or simply admire its timeless knitting pattern styles, then you'll love this book!
*The Knitter*

Lopapeysa is part travelogue, part pattern collection, making it something you can curl up with and enjoy reading as well as browsing the designs to choose which to knit first. Outstanding photography makes it perfect for your coffee table too… The combination of text and gorgeous photography is enough to get you packing your bags immediately.
*Knitting Magazine*

It’s an absolute dream to one day travel up there, buy some local wool, and then start knitting one of the dreamy designs from the book. Until then, I’ll enjoy Lopapeysa from my armchair and keep dreaming!
*Blackwell's*