Have you ever heard about shoes made of fish skin? How many European nations do you know that still wear ancient national costume on festivals and holidays? Icelandic people are among them. Is it interesting for you to know what material was used to make extraordinary Icelandic high headdresses? Do you want to know what Icelandic product was very famous in Europe and considered to be very qualitative? If your answer is "yes", then you must read this article.

Hello all, Today i am going to talk about the costume and woven ornament of the Vilnius region. Not all sources even recognise such a region, which had me wondering where it came from. After a bit of research, i found out that this is a historical region, being an administrative province which predated the establishment of the independant state of Lithuania in the 20th cent. Here is a good article on the history of this region. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vilnius_Region Here is a map showing the Vilnius region, which is sometimes divided between Dzukija and Aukštaitija. As i said before, some of my sources do not recognise this as a region, and Jurkoviene and Kulikauskiene in particular do not illustrate any costumes that resemble these at all. Tamošaitis writes that because of their proximity to the capitol, and the clothing of townspeople and aristocracy, "Their costumes therefore were characterized by a more ornate appearance in the cut, colors, and patterns than costumes found elsewhere in Lithuania" and "Those of the Vilnius region were easily distinguisable by the exceptionally beautiful patterns, colours, cut, and style of their clothes." In the south and east of the province especially were large numbers of Poles, Belorussians and others, the various nationalities tended to live each in their own local areas. Here are a few examples of the Vilnius costume as presented by V Palaimas. This costume is a favorite of those who took traditional Lithuanian hand weaving for clothes and other textiles and developed it as a national art form in the 20th cent. Here is a set of clothing woven by Anastasia Tamošaitiene and presented to princess Diana of The United Kingdom on the occasion of her wedding. You can clearly see the exceptional care, planning and artistry that went into the weaving of every single piece of this outfit. For the same reason, this costume is very popular among amateur dance groups and Lithuanian musem exhibits, especially in the Lithuanian Diaspora. Here are some examples. [These are images i found on the web, if anyone would like me to remove any of these images, or to include information about the origin of, or the people in, these images, please contact me and i will be glad to oblige] It would be very difficult not to be impressed by the elaborate pattens, tasteful compositions and striking colors of these outfits. The basic article of dress is the chemise, which has the usual cut for Lithuania, with narrow shoulder bars on top of a single piece, front and back. The bottom half was typically made of coarser material. The festive sleeve is fuller than the daily, and is gathered on top at the seam with the body. The festive chemise has woven ornament on the shoulder pieces, collar, cuff, front opening, and lower sleeve. Sometimes the ormament is made by hemstitching. On festive chemises, the collar and cuffs sometimes have triangular points or ruched woven ribbon sewn on for added interest. Here is a graph of the design on the sleeve in the photo immediately above. The skirt was full, and either woven in a small plaid, as in Dzukija, or with horzontal stripes, sometimes with cats paw or other designs woven in, sometimes over vertical ones, or with horizontal bands of patterned ornament, which are also foud in eastern Aukštaitija. For those of you who weave, i will quote a passage from Tamošaitis [I do not, myself weave, and only vaguely comprehend, lol. This author constantly refers to weaving techniques] "Twill or satin striped skirts woven from wool on linen were unlike the skirts of any other area. The linen warp was striped and threaded on four shafts in a straight draw. The background of the skirt was of a plain weave, while the stripes were woven in twill or satin with homespun wool. The stripes on the visible side of the cloth appeared raised and distinct; as a result, the skirt did not seem checked, but horizontally striped." The aprons were elaborately woven with bands of ornament, wider and denser at the bottom, and narrower and sparser towards the top.The same was true of those skirts which had horizontal patterned bands. The aprons were commonly woven from linen, or at least with a light colored background. Red and blue seem to be the commonest colors used overall. Peruse the various images to get an idea of the diversity of designs used. Note also the textures inserted between the ornamental bands. The sashes are typical for Lithuania, wide, patterned in pick up and other techniques, usually with supplemental weft fringes inserted near the ends. The bodice was made of handwoven cloth to complement the colors of the skirt and apron. The most common cut has a plaston in a solid color inserted behind the bands in the center front. Sometimes the bodice has a plain straight front closure. Usually it has pentagonally shaped lappets around the waist, but sometimes has a frill with pleats spaced about the same distance as the width of the lappets. See the various images. The most common headgear in this region for girls is the karuna, made of a hoop of birchbark, and later, cardboard, with pattened ribbon sewn on the inside and outside, one or more rows of trianges sewn on to the top, of the same material or different, and often edged with tatting or crochet. Pattened woven ribbons were attached to the back. The following three photos show a karuna in various stages of preperation by Vida Rimas. The headcloth, or wimple, nuometas, is worn in this region as it is in Aukštaitija, but it is smaller in this region, resembling the one worn in Latgalia. It is always heavily ornamented on the ends, and commonly has a frontpiece resembling the karuna sewn on, or a wreath resembling the karuna worn over it. Originally this would have been a seperate piece worn underneath. The nuometa with a frontpiece sewn on, front and back. The nuometas attached to a karuna. The difference is that the hair is covered. The nuometas worn with a seperate wreath over it A schematic showing how the wreath was made, again very similar to the karuna. Ornament on the ends of one nuometas. The linen wrap, panuometis was also worn in this region, and also highly ornamented The costume was completed with necklaces of amber or coral or glass. Footwear consisted of knitted socks, with shoes, moccasins, clogs, or shoes woven of birch or linden bark. Moccasins in this region were also highly ornamented.They also wear slippers looped, knitted or crocheted of linen strings, as in Dzukija. Thank you all for reading. I hope you have found this interesting and maybe have an inspiration on how to use some of these designs or concepts. Feel free to contact me with requests for research. I hope to eventually cover all of Europe and the Former Russian Empire/Soviet Union. I also gratefully accept tips on source materials which i may not have. I also accept commissions to research/design, sew, and/or embroider costumes or other items for groups or individuals Roman K. Rkozakand@aol Source Material: AntanaTamošaitis and Anastazija Tamošaitienė, 'Lithuanian National Costume', Toronto, 1979 Vida Kulikauskienė et al, 'Lithuanian National Costume', Vilnius, 1994, Kati Reeder Meek, 'Reflections from a Flaxen Past, For Love of LIthuanian Weaving', Alpena, Michigan, 2000 Teresė Jurkiuvenė, 'Lithuanian National Costume', Vilnius, 2006 Mikalina Glemžaitė, 'Lietuvių Tautiniai Drabužiai', [Lithuanian National Clothing] Vilnius, 1955 Stasė Bernotienė, 'Lietuvių Liaudies Moterų Drabužiai XVIII a XX pr.' [Lithuanian Women's Folk Clothing from the XVIII to the XX cent], Vilnius, 1974, Stasė Bernotienė, 'Lietuvių Valstiecių Išeiginės Prijuostės XIX a. - XX a. pradžia' [Lithuanian Aprons of the 19th and 20th cent], Vilnius, 2007 J. Grigienė et al, 'Lietuvių Liaudies Menas - Drabužiai' [Lithuanian Folk Art - Clothing], Vilnius, 1974 Elena Matulionienė, 'Klaipėdos Krašto Tautiniai Drabužiai' [Folk Clothing of the Klaipeda Region], Klaipeda, 2005 V. Palaimas, artist, set of postcards, 'Lithuanian Folk Costume', 1961 R. Paknys, photographer, set of postcards, 'Lietuvių Tautiniai Drabužiai', 1991 Tatyana Razina et al, 'Folk Art in the Soviet Union', Leningrad, 1990 Irma šidiškienė, 'Buti LIetuve', Vilnius, 2004

The national costume of Switzerland is versatile but made in the same style; bright but modest; eccentric but balanced; convenient but beautiful. Such style of clothing is typical for the North Europe. The women's traditional outfit is very feminine, with pretty and extraordinary accessories. The men's folk dress in some regions can be very simple and ordinary, and in other parts of the country it can look rather aristocratic and stylish. Swiss national clothing was originated from the lifestyle, environment and traditions of Swiss people.

Hello all, today I am going to talk about the costume from the region where the Polish, Ukrainian and Belarusian borders come together. I have found references to this costume from books covering each of these three nationalities. This region was part of the Volyn' Principality in the days of Kievan Rus', was later incorporated into the Lithuanian empire, and then became part of the Polish Empire. When the Polish Empire was partitioned, this area went to the Austrian Empire, then became part of the multi-ethnic state of Poland after WWI. After WWII, the border was drawn along the northern Buh [Bug] river. Much of this region is now within the present Polish boundaries. This is enough to show the multi ethnic influences on this region. My sources agree that Polish started settling in this region from Mazovia in the 14th cent. Ukrainians on the Polish side of the border were resettled either across the border or in western Poland at the end of WWII. There were distinctive local dialects in this region that are quickly dying out under the influence of the Literary Languages of the three states respectively. The image above is of a contemporary Polish dance group. Here is the Damachow costume as presented by Mikhas' Ramaniuk in his book 'Belaruskaie Narodnaie Adzennie'. This was taken in 1910 in the village of Chersk, the region along the east bank of the Buh [Bug] river [in Ukrainian and Belarusian pronounced Boo-h, the h must be pronounced, in Polish pronounced Boog, with a long oo] near the town of Damachow, south of the city of Brest. Kul'chytska, in her book on western Ukrainian costumes gives us these sketches made in 1937 in the village of Zabuzhia, along the eastern banks of the Buh [Bug] in the northwest corner of Ukraine. Here is a print from the Polish book 'Stroj Podlaski (Nadbuzanski)' by Janusz Swiezy, published in 1958. This costume was worn on the banks of the Bug [Buh] river, from the point where the Bug ceases to be the border, and flows west into the Wisla [Vistula] south almost to the town of Wlodawa [Volodova]. It was found further south on the eastern side. Here is a rough map of the area. The eastern portion is the approximate range of the Zabuzhia costume. The northernmost of the three western portions is the range of the Biala Podlaska Mazovian costume, the central one is the range of the Radzynsk costume, and the southern is the range of the Wlodawa [Volodava] costume. This area is known in Polish as Polasie, and is the western end of the physical/cultural region known as Polissia in Ukrainian, which marks the southern edge of the thick forests. This region extends for almost all of the northern regions of Ukraine, the southern regions of Belarus, and extends just a little bit into Russia and Poland. [Although the Ukrainian encyclopedia claims that while the Polish name Podlasie comes from pod las, i.e. next to the forest, like Po lis, Polissia in Ukrainian, the Ukrainian term for the area, Pidlashia, comes from pid Lachy, i. e. next to the Polish] The men's costume has little that is distinctive about it. Linen shirt with woven or embroidered ornament, linen pants and footcloths, lychaky woven of birch or linden bark, woven sash, overcoat of natural wool, and straw hat. He could be from anywhere in a very wide region in these three countries. This first photograph is one of the very few that shows a man or boy with his overcoat open.The every shirt had little to no ornamentation and was closed at the neck with a red ribbon. The man's shirt was originally sewn in the ustawka cut, as in west Ukraine or southeast Poland, which later was replaced by a cut with a yoke across the back of the shoulders. On a festive shirt, the cuff, standing or foldover collar, and a placket on the front of the shirt had ornamentation either woven in or cross-stitched, in designs typical of Polissia. This image is from Polish sources, but certainly looks very Ukrainian. The woman's costume of Podlesie comes in four variants, the Nadbuzhansk, which we are covering, is the most colorful and interesting, besides being the most intermediate in detail of the costumes of these three countries. There is also the Wlodawa [Volodova] costume of southern Polesie [Pidlassia], which more closely resembles the costumes of Polissia east of the border in Ukraine and Belarus, the Radzynsk costume of western Polesie [Pidlassia], which resembles the Nadbuzhansk somewat, and the Mazowian costume of the area around Biala Podlaska, which is much more completely Polish in style. Here is a photo of the Nadbuzhansk costume on the left, and the Wlodawa [Volodova] costume on the right. And this is the Radzinsk costume, which is found around the town of Radzyn Podlaski. It differs in details of the skirt, apron, bodice and cap. Here we see the Nadbuzhansk costume on the left, and the Radzinsk costume on the right. Here is the costume of the district around Biala Podlaska. The tulle bonnet, the plainer striped apron and skirt and the lack of ornamentation on the chemise all contribute to this resembling very closely a purely Polish Mazovian costume. To continue with the Nadbuzhansk-Zabuzhia-Damachow costume; the woman's chemise is made with the ustawka or przyramek cut. as seen here. The shaded areas contain a woven design, typicallly with solid stripes on either edge and a more open design in the center. The collar may be a narrow standing one, or folded over, some photos show a larger, almost 'sailor' collar like the ones found in Krzczonow and Sokal'. The inclusion of the woven design on the lower sleeve is unusual. It is also found in some districts of the Volyn' region, but nowhere else in the area, although it is very typical of Lithuanian costume. This may be a way of using up an entire loom width of the woven design. Here are a couple of examples of the woven ormanent. That of the Wlodawa [Volodova] region is similar, but more open, with much more white background showing. Woven ornament of similar design is also typical of the costumes of west Polissia in both Ukraine and Belarus. In Polish sources this is referred to as 'haft tkany', or woven embroidery. Here is an image of such a shirt. The skirt is made of wool, usually woven in vertical stripes, with wide stripes interspersed with groups of narrow ones, the center stripe in each group having two or more colors alternating. The wide stripes are referred to as 'paths' and the narrow ones as 'posts', after being gathered into the waistband, the skirt was pleated on three sides, leaving the front flat, the narrow stripes showing on the top of the pleats, and the wide stripes inside. The colors of the wide stripes would then show when the woman moves. The bottom of the skirt was often edged with a piece of different cloth, effectively forming a horizontal stripe on the bottom. This was edged with ribbons also running horizontally. The apron was made of woolen striped material, see the various images for the various arrangement of the stripes, but they were usually horizontal. Most common seems to be wide stripes of a solid color alternating with groups of narrow stripes. This was edged with factory made ribbon and/or lace. The bodice, korset or gorset, was similar to the Maloposlka or Volyn' type, but was not laced up with a ribbon. It had lappets, either sewn on or cut out of the whole cloth, which was a solid color. There was a seperate placket attached to the front center, fastened by hooks. The lappets were edged with rickrack or ribbon. The front placket was edged or decorated with ribbons or galloons vertically. The center of the placket, the lappets and the center back were decorated with topstitched or backstitched designs. It was lined with calico. Here is one cut used. Here is some detail of two different korset/gorsets from the Belorussian side. Below is a color detail of the front of one from the Polish side. This is the same one as in the color photo above. Notice that in this case, there is a ribbon in the center of the design. Here is a vest from a contemporary stage costume. If you look at the various images, you will see the silk cap with ribbon edging, which is worn by married women. It has a characteristic point in the front, and often ribbons hanging behind. See this photo, which is again from the 'Folk Costume Fashion Show' in Lviw in 1936. [ i wish they had color film back then!] This is Myrosia Hordynska at that event wearing this costume. Caps for married women are very common throughout the larger region, but this does not resemble most of the others, rather being reminiscent of those worn in Sweden and Finland. The photos from Damachow in Belarus, however, show some of the caps being more of a pillbox shape, as in this photo, also, from the top photo, they seem to have been worn by quite young girls. Now that i take a second look at it, i suspect that the two in back are married, while the three in front with their hair showing are single girls. Note that the charactarisic notch design is still present on their caps. Here is another photo of a girl from the Ukrainian side, wearing what I believe is a bridal headdress. Thank you all for reading. I think this is a beautiful outfit, and shows what can happen at the edges of different traditions. Here you have elements from Mazovia and Polissia coming together to create something of grace and beauty. Again i hope this inspires you to create, to make things that you use in a beautiful manner, instead of being satisfied with what is mass produced. A folk group from Zamosc doing dances from this region it starts with dancers from Lublin area leaving the stage https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlJnPxrA7-A Feel free to contact me with requests for research. I hope to eventually cover all of Europe and the Former Russian Empire/Soviet Union. I also gratefully accept tips on source materials which i may not have. I also accept commissions to research/design, sew, and/or embroider costumes or other items for groups or individuals. Roman K. [email protected] Source Material: Mikhas' Ramaniuk, 'Belaruskaie Narodnaie Adzennie', Minsk, 1981 O. L. Kul'chytska, 'Folk Costumes of the Western Regions of the Ukrainian SSR', Kyiw {Kiev] 1959 Petro Odarchenko et al, 'Ukrainian Folk Costume', Toronto, 1992 Janusz Swiezy, 'Stroj Podlaski (Nadbuzanski), Wroclaw, 1958 Kazimierz Pietkiewicz, 'Haft i Zdobienie Stroju Ludowego', Warsaw, 1955 Stanislaw Gadomski, 'Stroj Ludowy w Polsce', Warsaw, after 1984 Ivanna Zel's'ka, 'Ukrajinska Vyshywka', Winnipeg-Toronto, 1981 K Matejko, "Ukrajinskyj Narodnyj Odiah', Kyjiw [Kiev], 1977

Hello all, I received a request to do an overview of the costumes of Brittany [Breizh, Bretagne]. I do not know if this will be in time to help her with her class project, but I had been planning on doing this for a while in any case. I have already done one in-depth article on the costume called Giz-Fouen from Rosparden. Brittany is traditionally divided into two parts, Lower Brittany and Upper Brittany. The lower and upper defined by altitude. Lower Brittany is the western half, where the people speak the Breton Language, which derives from the same root as Welsh and Cornish. Upper Brittany is the eastern half, where the people speak French, and traditionally used the Gallo Language, which is also derived from Latin. The Breton Language has been retreating to the west for some centuries now. Here is a map showing upper and lower Brittany against the traditional provinces. The second map gives the names of the provinces in the Breton Language as well as in French. In France, as in many places, the traditional provinces or regions no longer have any legal standing, purely administrative districts have taken their place for legal and governmental purposes. Some maps that you will see show these administrative regions rather than the traditional cultural regions. Brittany, or Little Britain, was settled by people from the Island of Great Britain who fled their homes during the Anglo-Saxon invasion. For more information about the History, Language and Culture of Brittany, see this article. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brittany There are many costumes in Brittanny, by some counts up to 66, but I will not be able to show them all, in fact I have not found images for all of them. They are also not evenly distributed, there being more costumes and more elaborate and colorful ones in the west. LOWER BRITTANY The four best known and most elaborate costumes are all from the western part of the province of Gernew [Cornouialle]. I will start with these. Giz-Fouen costume from the region of Rosporden and Pont-Aven. I have already done an in depth posting on this costume. Here is the region and the costume itself. Bigouden Costume of Pont l'Abbe. This is perhaps the most famous costume and embroidery of Brittany. Here is the location of the region. The photograph at the top of the article is of a professional embroiderer's shop in this region. You can see the masses of embroidery on the garments they are working on. I find it interesting to see men also engaged in the embroidery. The costumes they are wearing are those of the end of the 19th cent. Here are a couple of photographs, even today some people prefer the old form of the costume. During the early part of the 20th century, the coif continued to grow until it reached monumental proportions. This continued until the advent of automobiles made it inconvenient. The skirts shortened, and the aprons became white with free-form embroidery. The Glazik costume of Kemper [Quimper] This is another well-known costume of Brittany, often featured on the famous pottery of the area. Here is the location of the region. Here is a group performing at a festival in Poznan', Poland. [This photograph is taken from the book 'Ethnic Dress' by Frances Kennett, In the book she implies that this is a Polish dance group, which it clearly is not. Most general books on folk costume, even good ones, have at least one such glaring error. Make sure you check multiple sources.] The exact form of the embroidery, especially on the men's vests, varies by the town. This costume has several variations, some of which are quite reserved. A jacket for the men is part of the costume as well. Alternatively, some versions of the costume are very colorful indeed, as this example from Kerfeunteun. The Costume of Plougastel-Daoulas This is one of the most colorful of all the costumes of Brittany. It is only found in the one city. Here is an older form of the costume. Notice the rich lace and embroidery. Here is a more recent form. The province of Leon. This costume is found in the regions of Brignogan and Plounéour-Trez on the mid-northern coast. Kerlouan, just to the west of the above region, is famous for the cone-shaped coif. Saint-Pol-de-Léon in the northeast corner. Inland Leon The Province of Tregor Tregor is characterized by a small coif with two narrow wings, called the touken. There is also a larger coif called the katiole. The Province of Gwened or Vannes. This province is named after Gwynedd in Wales, another remembrance of the roots of the people of Brittany. The costumes of Gwened or Vannes are characterized by a coif in which the front has developed a flat shield-like shape. Here is an example from Auray. The costume of the Island of Groix, in the Lorient region. Sometimes the entire coif is made of lace which covers the side of the head. Here is the costume of Baud. Sometimes the pinafore apron is highly embroidered. The dances here are just as active and spectacular as in other parts of Brittany. This is the Groupe de Pontivy performing the Gavotte du Pays Pourlet. UPPER BRITTANY There is much less costume material available from Upper Brittany. There is also much less variety in the costumes. I here present what I have been able to find by province. The Province of Sant Brieg [in French, Saint Brieuc or Penthievre]. This is an example of the Burgher's or Town Costume, widespread among the various folklorique groups of Upper Brittany. Province of Sant Malou [Saint Malo] Province of Roazhon [Rennes] Notice the coif has the side lappets folded over the top and pinned in place. Also notice the triskelion on her neckband. This is a very Celtic symbol and one of the National symbols of Breizh [Brittany]. Province of Guerande This is a small province with a very colorful and unique costume. This is known as the costume of the Marsh-Dwellers. Province of Naonaid [Nantes] When the French Government instituted the Departements [administrative regions] to replace the old traditional Provinces, they removed the Bro-Naonaid [pays de Nantes] from Brittany and made it administratively part of the Departement of Loire-Atlantique. The people of Brittany still consider it to be an integral part of their land, however. Historically, the women of Nantes wore a very high coif, somewhat reminiscent of those of Normandy. Here is an image of a couple of girls from Pornic, mid 1800's. Here is the costume of a folkloric group in Vertou. They did a very good job of researching their local materials to make this outfit. You can see many details on their website. http://cercleceltiquevertou.free.fr/dossiercostume.htm A children's perfoming group from Jans. As in many children's groups from many countries, the skirts have been shortened far beyond what any adult would wear. A simple bonnet is worn instead of the adult coif, which is common in many areas. http://filetsbleus.free.fr/groupe/jans.htm Coif and costume from the area of Clisson. Town costume of Nantes itself as presented by the performing group Bleuniadur. http://bleuniadur.over-blog.com/article-2268231.html I would like to emphasize that this is not a comprehensive listing. There are yet other costumes which I have not covered. Thank you for reading, I hope you have found this interesting and informative. Feel free to contact me with requests for research. I hope to eventually cover all of Europe and the Former Russian Empire/Soviet Union. I also gratefully accept tips on source materials which i may not have. I also accept commissions to research/design, sew, and/or embroider costumes or other items for groups or individuals. I also choreograph and teach folk dance. Roman K. [email protected] Source Material: Joseph Jigourel - Yanna Fournier, 'Costumes de Bretagne', Brest, 2000 Pierre Jakez Helias, 'Coiffes et Costumes de Bretagne', 1983 Bruno Helias, 'Breton Costumes', Florence, Italy, 1997 V. Hetet-Roudaut et al, 'La Broderie en Bretagne', Morlaix, 1989 Andre Sainsard, 'Costumes Folkloriques Provinces Françaises', Paris, 1972 Royere, Gardilanne, Moffat et al, 'Les Costumes Regionaux de la France', New York, 1929 Charles-Brun, 'Costumes des Provinces Françaises', Paris, 1937 P. Leroux, 'Costumes Regionaux', Paris, 1940

Museum of Costume (Museo del Traje) Madrid, Spain The museum has nearly 30,000 objects representing historical, contemporary, and ethnographic dress, uniforms, jewelry, accessories and textiles. The historical dress collection houses rare but significant pieces of men's and women's dress from the 16th and 17th century, including jewelry, shoes and accessories. The traditional folk dress costumes…

Sarah 1830′s Dress | Original CC My second commission is finally finished! @tru-mmerhaufen commissioned this 1832 dress and I was so excited, I’m looking forward to doing more 1830′s content. This is...