Cieszyn folk costume, also known as Valachian, is a Silesian folk costume, which used to be worn within majority of the area of Cieszyn Silesia, but mostly by Cieszyn Vlachs. Taking into consideration ornamentation, cutting and materials, it can be observed that it is a replica of historical costumes of the Renaissance. [1] The male folk costume was worn only to the late 19th century, whereas the female folk costume was more popular and spread in the vicinity of the Wisła, Istebna and Koniaków. Previously in this area the costumes of Silesian Gorals prevailed. Female folk costumes in Cieszyn were subjected to many changes, especially in respect to ornamentations and better quality of materials. Due to its richness and elegance the costume quickly became a target of artists and specialists in folk culture.
A significant change concerning sets of garments, cutting and materials can be observed in the second half of the 19th century. Moreover, the process of modernization intensified after the first World War. Since that time Cieszyn folk costumes have never come to their traditional form again. Men constituted the social group which was most prone to change and they first ceased to wear traditional costumes. It may be due to the fact that majority of men migrated to industrial cities for economic reasons. A clash of different cultures resulted in greater standardization. Tastes have changed and new materials were introduced to modify traditional cuttings. Kabotek is the conspicuous example of this process. The cutting of this short waist shift was simplified. What is more, handmade ornaments were replaced by machine embroidery and laces. Leather and silver elements in Cieszynian belt were frequently replaced by rubber and beads. [2]
The female folk costume featured the lush and elegance, due to its essential element, silver jewellery. In the 18th and 19th century, women in Cieszyn wore splendorous clothes which consisted of a lace cap, covered with headgear, a short shirt (kabotek), redbreas,[ check spelling ] padded corset (żywotek), sewn at the waist, apron, white stockings and black shoes. It was not until a century later that the jewellery previously worn by the nobility and the bourgeoisie was adapted as the traditional costume by the population of small towns and villages.
Similarly to Cieszynian folk costume, jewellery is a replica of ornaments from times of the Renaissance and the Reformation. Because of its being a trade rout and having fertile soil, Cieszyn was rather a rich city. Fashion was being modified in accordance to European markets thanks to trips of the last descendants of the Piast dynasty in Cieszyn on the turn of the 16th and 17th century. Cieszyn was the biggest centre of jewellery trade in the region. Ornaments were made of silver, gold, and some alloys. Metalwork techniques were filigree and casting. Male costumes were decorated only with metal buttons (knefle). [7] A set of jewellery of a wealthy woman consisted of a collar stud, orpant, hoczki and belt. [8]
Korean embroidery techniques and artifacts have a long history, but there is the most evidence from the Joseon Dynasty, after the 14th century in Korea. This article talks about the history, styles, preservation, artists, and examples of screens, costumes, and domestic wares of this exacting and beautiful art form.
Armenian needlelace is a pure form of needle lace made using only a needle, thread and pair of scissors.
Fashion in the period 1550–1600 in European clothing was characterized by increased opulence. Contrasting fabrics, slashes, embroidery, applied trims, and other forms of surface ornamentation remained prominent. The wide silhouette, conical for women with breadth at the hips and broadly square for men with width at the shoulders had reached its peak in the 1530s, and by mid-century a tall, narrow line with a V-lined waist was back in fashion. Sleeves and women's skirts then began to widen again, with emphasis at the shoulder that would continue into the next century. The characteristic garment of the period was the ruff, which began as a modest ruffle attached to the neckband of a shirt or smock and grew into a separate garment of fine linen, trimmed with lace, cutwork or embroidery, and shaped into crisp, precise folds with starch and heated irons.
Phulkari refers to the folk embroidery of the Punjab Although Phulkari means floral work, the designs include not only flowers but also cover motifs and geometrical shapes. The main characteristics of Phulkari embroidery are use of darn stitch on the wrong side of coarse cotton cloth with coloured silken thread. Punjabi women create innumerable alluring and interesting designs and patterns by their skilful manipulation of the darn stitch. According to Kehal (2009), a cloth where only a few flowers are embroidered is called a Phulkari. The other types are distinct varieties. The traditional varieties of Phulkaris are large items of cloth and include Chope, Tilpatr, Neelak and Bagh. Sometimes, the Bagh is given separate categorization of its own as on other varieties of a Phulkari, parts of the cloth is visible, whereas in a Bagh, the embroidery covers the entire garment so that the base cloth is not visible. Further, in contemporary modern designs, simple and sparsely embroidered dupattas, odhinis, and shawls, made for everyday use, are referred to as phulkaris, whereas clothing items that cover the entire body, made for special and ceremonial occasions such as weddings are called baghs. The Phulkari continues to be an integral part of Punjabi weddings to the present day.
Serbian traditional clothing, also called as Serbian national costume or Serbian dress, refers to the traditional clothing worn by Serbs living in Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and the extended Serbian diaspora communities in Austria, Australia, Bulgaria, Canada, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, North Macedonia, Romania, Russia, Slovenia, United States, etc. Like any traditional dress of a nation or culture, it has been lost to the advent of urbanization, industrialization, and the growing market of international clothing trends. The wide range of regional folk costumes show influence from historical Austrian, Hungarian, German, Italian, and Ottoman Turkish presence. Nonetheless, the costumes are still a pinnacle part of Serbian folk culture. From the 19th century and onwards, Serbs have adopted western-styled clothing. This change has started in larger settlements such as cities and towns, although it was not uncommon to see rural women in traditional working costumes all the way until the end of 1970s. Today, these national costumes are only worn by some elderly in rural areas but are most often worn with connection to special events and celebrations, mostly at ethnic festivals, religious and national holidays, weddings, tourist attractions, and by dancing groups who dance the traditional Serbian kolo, or circle dance.
The Armenian Taraz, also known as Armenian traditional clothing, reflects a rich cultural tradition. Wool and fur were utilized by the Armenians along with the cotton that was grown in the fertile valleys. During the Urartian period, silk imported from China was used by royalty. Later, the Armenians cultivated silkworms and produced their own silk.
Cutwork or cut work, also known as punto tagliato in Italian, is a needlework technique in which portions of a textile, typically cotton or linen, are cut away and the resulting "hole" is reinforced and filled with embroidery or needle lace.
Ghagra choli is a type of ethnic clothing for women from the Indian Subcontinent, notably in the Indian states of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir, as well as in the Pakistani provinces of Punjab and Sindh. In Punjab, the lehenga is traditionally worn with a kurti. It is a combination of the gagra or lehenga and the choli (blouse), however in contemporary and modern usage lehenga choli is the more popular and widely accepted term by fashion designers, trend setters, and boutiques in South Asia, since ghagra is synonymous with the half-slip (petticoat) worn as an undergarment below the sari.
Ukrainian embroidery occupies an important place among the various branches of Ukrainian decorative arts. Embroidery has a rich history in Ukraine, and has long appeared in Ukrainian folk dress as well as played a part in traditional Ukrainian weddings and other celebrations. Appearing all across the country, Ukrainian embroidery varies depending on the region of origin. From Poltava, Kyiv, and Chernihiv in the east, to Volyn and Polissia in the northwest, to Bukovina, and the Hutsul area in the southwest, the designs have a long history which defines its ornamental motifs and compositions, as well as its favorite choice of colors and types of stitches.
Palestinian traditional clothing are the types of clothing historically and sometimes still presently worn by Palestinians. Foreign travelers to Palestine in the 19th and early 20th centuries often commented on the rich variety of the costumes worn, particularly by the fellaheen or village women. Many of the handcrafted garments were richly embroidered and the creation and maintenance of these items played a significant role in the lives of the region's women.
A parzenica is a heart-shaped traditional handicraft pattern and decorative folk art of the Goral people, who live in the mountainous region of southern Poland. It is often found embroidered on the upper front side of men's trousers.
English embroidery includes embroidery worked in England or by English people abroad from Anglo-Saxon times to the present day. The oldest surviving English embroideries include items from the early 10th century preserved in Durham Cathedral and the 11th century Bayeux Tapestry, if it was worked in England. The professional workshops of Medieval England created rich embroidery in metal thread and silk for ecclesiastical and secular uses. This style was called Opus Anglicanum or "English work", and was famous throughout Europe.
Croatian national costume, also called as Croatian traditional clothing or Croatian dress, refers to the traditional clothing worn by Croats living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, with smaller communities in Hungary, Austria, Montenegro, and Romania. Since today Croats wear Western-style clothing on a daily basis, the national costumes are most often worn with connection to special events and celebrations, mostly at ethnic festivals, religious holidays, weddings, and by dancing groups who dance the traditional Croatian kolo, or circle dance.
The Mordovian National Costume appeared in ancient times in peasant environments, and during that time it was endowed with characteristic features, such as particular cut, special cloth, ornaments and special decoration. The folk Mordovian costume, especially female, is very colorful. It is subdivided into Erzya and Moksha types. Most fabrics for making clothes were homemade. Erzya and Moksha folk costumes had reached their complete artistic expressiveness by the middle of the 19th century. The people, who worked on the land, could make fabrics themselves. They produced linen or stout canvas for hempen shirts, woolen cloth for warm clothes, brightly colored wool embroidery threads. They were painted using vegetable colorings. The most interesting is the women's clothing. It contains a lot of traditional features. Hand embroidery patterns has national symbols of ancient pagan beliefs.
National costumes of Poland vary by region. They are typically not worn in daily life but at folk festivals, folk weddings, religious holidays, harvest festivals and other special occasions. The costumes may reflect region and sometimes social or marital status.
Traditional clothing is one of the factors that has differentiated this nation from neighboring countries, dating back as far as the Illyrian era.
The term Hedebo embroidery covers several forms of white embroidery which originated in the Hedebo (heathland) region of Zealand, Denmark, in the 1760s. The varied techniques which evolved over the next hundred years in the farming community were subsequently developed by the middle classes until around 1820. They were applied to articles of clothing such as collars and cuffs but were also used to decorate bed linen.
Suzhou embroidery, Su embroidery or Su xiu is the embroidery created around the city of Suzhou, Jiangsu, China. It is one of the oldest embroidery techniques in the world and is the most representative type of art in Chinese embroidery. One of the well-known "four great embroideries of China" along with Cantonese embroidery, Sichuan embroidery and Xiang embroidery, Suzhou embroidery already has a history more than 2,000 years and is an important form of handicraft in the history of Chinese art and folk custom, representative of Chinese traditional folk arts. It is famous for its variety of stitches, beautiful patterns, elegant colors, and consummate craftsmanship.
Volhynian folk costume is a type of Ukrainian national clothing worn in Volhynia. The costume includes Polesia influences such as colourful ochipoks, fitted corset-like waistcoats and striped skirts, as well as Dnieper Ukraine: namitka headscarfs, kersetka vests and dark skirts.