Return of the busserull
Hovden Formal Farm Wear is bringing the classic Norwegian work shirt to America
Photo courtesy of Hovden Formal Farm Wear
Hovden Formal Farm Wear’s version of the traditional Norwegian work-shirts.
Molly Andrus
Norwegian American Weekly
You can help bring back the busserull-shirt! Hovden Formal Farm Wear is a project created by Ingvill Montgomery to integrate the traditional Norwegian work shirt into American culture. From July 8 to August 8, Hovden Formal Farm Wear will be accepting donations and pre-orders through their Kickstarter campaign.
“Every contribution will help us get to our $12,000 goal,” says Montgomery. “If we make it, we will make more shirts. We are hoping that we can start selling them on our website, in stores, and attend festivals such as Norsk Hostfest. We have lots of dreams for the future of Hovden Formal Farm Wear.” There are rewards for contributing, too. If you contribute $125 you will get a linen busserull-shirt, and for $150, you will get a wool busserull.
Photo courtesy of Hovden Formal Farm Wear
Ingvill and partner Zurine model their shirts.
The project all began when Norwegian-native Ingvill Montgomery moved to the U.S. in 2008. “I realized that there is a large Norwegian community here that is very passionate about the country that is very dear to my heart, Norway. I have thought many times that there must be something Norwegian that I can introduce to this community, I just never knew exactly what, until I thought of the busserull-shirt,” says Montgomery.
The unique thing about the busserull is that it doesn’t waste any material—it is made out of only square and rectangular pieces of fabric. Although the busserull-shirt was traditionally worn only by men, half of Hovden Formal Farm Wear’s customers are women. There are both linen and wool busserull-shirts available. The shirt not only looks great, but it designed to be comfortable, too!
Photo courtesy of Hovden Formal Farm Wear
The busserull.
The busserull-shirts proved to be a hit at the Portland and Astoria Midsummer Festivals. “I think that people are looking for products, and even clothes, with meaning and a story. There seem to be very few garments out there with ‘soul.’ I think that this shirt has exactly that—soul,” adds Montgomery.
If you’re interested in contributing to their campaign, visit www.kickstarter.com/profile/hovdenformalfarmwear to contribute. Check out www.hovdenformalfarmwear.com to learn more about the company and buy your own busserull-shirt.
This article originally appeared in the July 11, 2014 issue of the Norwegian American Weekly. To subscribe, visit SUBSCRIBE or call us at (800) 305-0271.
