By Lisa Torvik

Anne Holden came from Scotland to Norway as a young woman to learn to ski.  She ended up farming and weaving in the Vestre Slidre municipality, part of the region known as Valdres.

She became one of the area’s most important weavers of traditional plaids for one of Valdres’ national dress or bunad, called a rutestakk.   “Rute” means square or plaid in Norwegian and these plaids came into use in the 19^th century for formal dress, for church and for weddings and christenings.  Certain plaids are associated with particular farms or areas in Valdres and one can imagine that a bit of local pride went into the creation of their different designs.

Anne came to learn to ski on the advice of a Norwegian skiing instructor in northern Scotland who told her that she would have better luck going to Norway where the winter weather was more predictable.  She convinced her parents that a three month sojourn was a good idea and she returned a few more months later a much better skier and with a Norwegian boyfriend.

She returned to Norway and married this fellow from Valdres and settled on his farm.  In 1965 she enrolled in the local home craft school in the weaving class.  After completing the six month course, she began at once to weave alongside her daily farm chores and caring for her family.  She even had a loom to work on at the family’s cabin when they took the cows to the mountains in the summer.

Over the years, Anne has supplied fabric for rutestakkar to professional tailors and home seamstresses, taught weaving in her home studio and abroad, and contributed to the preservation of this important tradition.  She has been recognized with several awards for her skill and work.  She was awarded the Cultural Prize from her home community, Vestre Slidre, in 2019. 

In April 2024, she and fellow weaver, weaving teacher and Vestre Slidring Marit Anny Tvenge were invited to a weavers’ conference at the palace in Oslo, hosted by Queen Sonja in honor of her daughter-in-law.  Crown Princess Mette Marit has become an accomplished weaver over the past few years and requested this gathering as a present for her 50^th birthday.

In October 2024, I was fortunate to be introduced to Anne by Bodil Enger, a professional tailor of bunader who lives and works “over the hill” in the neighboring municipality of Øystre Slidre.  She has enjoyed a working relationship with Anne for years, and we had a splendid visit to her home and the weaving studio she set up in the old barn that she herself rebuilt on her farm.  

March 2025