Lopapeysa is good for you

Lopapeysa is the name of the most famous garment in Iceland and the smartest thing you can buy once you land there.

You probably have seen it: it's a thick sweater decorated with traditional shapes. To be fair, it seems the design isn't traditional at all and began to be knitted just about 60 years ago. Some people say it was brought from Greenland by Halldór Laxness and his wife but who knows, really.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, here's a pic of Kjartan from Sigur Rós wearing one (on the left):

he seems quite proud, doesn't he?

Anyways even though the lopapeysa may seem incredibly expensive, you will need it (not only in Iceland, I use it really often in Switzerland too for example). It comes in any form and shape and design (I even saw one with a peacock design which I didn't quite understand but, you see, you can find anything). You can even have one made specifically for you in some shops and lopapeysa dominate every thrift shop I've seen across Iceland. I bought mine in a thrift shop and the girl told me it was knitted by a 90 years old lady. every lopapeysa is hand knitted, as I don't think there is a large scale production.

Believe me, it's a win/win situation. 

What always struck me as awesome is that Icelanders seem to be really proud of their traditional sweaters. They own many and wear it whenever and wherever possible. 

They don't seem to be embarassed by their customs, on the contrary. 

And rightly so, because their sweaters are comfy, cozy and incredibly warm. Thank you, Iceland, for one more amazing product of yours.