What is Nalbinding?
Scandinavians developed a technique for making fabric that pre-dates knitting. The technique involves taking short pieces of yarn left over from weaving, and crafting them into smallish items like mittens, hats, socks, nets, sieves, and bags. The technique they used to make these items is called nalbinding.
Nalbinding items are made with a single needle, using short pieces of yarn which are pulled through previous stitches, creating dense and warm items which don't unravel the way knitted items do.
Nalbinding spread from Scandinavia to the Mediterranean. Outside of Scandinavia, nalbinding became a lost art once knitting was introduced. In Scandinavia, nalbinding has continued uninterrupted as a craft up to the present.
In the the video Good and Basic (below) we can see nalbinding up close, and how some stitches are made.
In the video below, Good and Basic shows how to make a nalbinding needle from a ham bone.
· Don't miss: How to Knit Like the Vikings, Nalbinding, and 25 Best Selling Knitting Books. You can find Nalbinding books and wooden needles here. [As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases (at no extra cost to you).]
POPULAR POSTS
 Follow a tutorial for making a patchworked bag with Sashiko topstitching. |  Follow tutorials for how to create traditional Japanese embroidery stitching. |  Explore a library's digitized vintage maps, which you can download for free. |  Learn from a museum textile curator how to best care for your quilts. |
 Learn to make a basket weave pattern quilt from scraps of fabric. |  Sisters Lorna and Jill Watt create amazing yarn bomb installations . |  Ceramic artists create fantastical structures using magnetic clay. |  Learn about a Viking fabric-making technique which pre-dates knitting. |
 Follow a tutorial for making a bilum bag - PNG's traditional fabric. |  Learn to make a pinhole camera; develop paper film with common items. |  Learn about a stretchy fabric made with connected loops. |  Free digitized knitting magazines 1800 - now. |
