The Lopapeysa Sweater

The lopapeysa is the round-yoked sweater with a band of geometric pattern across the shoulders, knitted in one piece from lopi, the barely spun wool of Icelandic sheep. That fleece has two layers, a coarse water-shedding outer and a fine insulating inner, which is why the finished garment handles wind and damp so well and also why it scratches. Despite the Norse look the design is recent, worked out around the middle of the twentieth century, and it spread because it was quick to knit and used cheap domestic wool. Knitting is still an ordinary household activity here rather than a revival.

What you actually see

• The yoke pattern - the band of geometric knitting across the shoulders.
• Lopi wool - barely spun Icelandic fleece with its coarse outer and soft inner layers.
• Hand-knitted against machine-made - the labels and prices that tell the two apart.
• Everyday use - the sweater worn as ordinary clothing rather than as costume.

When to go

Year-round; wool shops and the knitting association's outlets trade all year, and craft fairs add stock before Christmas. Buying early in a trip means actually wearing the thing, which is the honest test of whether it was worth the money. Sizes run large and loose, so try one on rather than ordering blind.

Honest expectations

A genuine hand-knitted sweater is expensive, and plenty of cheap lookalikes sold to visitors are machine-made abroad from softer wool, so check the label as well as the price. Real lopi is itchy against bare skin, which surprises people. The wool holds damp and cooking smells. It is bulky to pack home.

Nearby

Wool shops cluster in central Reykjavik, and farm and museum shops sell them countrywide.