Russian Embroidery, an Overview

Hello all, welcome back.

Today i am going to do a very general overview of ethnic Russian Embroidery. There have been many publications and exhibitions showing embroidery from the Russian Empire, or the Soviet Union, or from Russia, which include much that is not Russian. I have seen Uzbek, or Chuvash, or Armenian or Nanai, or Ukrainian embroidery blithely listed as 'Russian' by those who couldn't be bothered to investigate properly. The Russian Empire, and later the Soviet Union, of course included many non-Russian nations, and even today the Russian Federation contains millions of people who belong to various indigenous peoples. Ukrainians are very familiar with this, and it seems we are constantly having to tell people, NO,  we are not Russian. One case in point, a german music company Laser Light, has put out an album using one of my grandfather's paintings for the cover. The painting showed a Strilets', one of the elite troops which fought under Austria, and later for Ukrainian independance around WWI, playing a guitar to a girl. The album they put it on was named 'Russian Folk Songs of the Urals'! That would be like putting a painting of Don Quixote on the cover of an album called 'French Paladin Songs of the Alps'.
Another example, here is a very good book of Ukrainian cross stitch designs.

The problem is that the german authors titled the book 'Cross Stitch pattens from Old Russia'. I suppose considering all of the old Russian Empire to be Russian, which hopefully we all know is not the case.





Here is a photograph from the book showing some of the finished designs on projects that are included. The designs are very familiar to anyone who has done Ukrainian embroidery.

I grew up seeing designs like this all over.
The telling point is, i have read several books on Russian Embroidery, and they do not claim these types of designs.
Having gotten that out of my system, I will devote the rest of this posting to embroideries of the Russian People.  Russia, like Poland does not have a ubiquitous culture of embroidery, but does have several well developed and expressive local embroidery styles. Today i will give a small taste of several of them.
I will not be including Church or Court embroidery styles, that is rather out of my sphere.
First, the gold embroidery done on headresses and outer clothing in northern and central Russia. Here is a detail of a woman's jacket.

This was worn with the typically North Russian Sarafan costume, which grew out of the Boyar tradition of the aristocracy before they adopted western styles. This was widely copied by lower class Russians who could afford to, especially in the Northwest.
Another style of embroidery is that which the Russians refer to as 'painting', essentially designs built of backstitch or Holbein stitch, most typically entirely in red. This is an example of a local development of a technique which is extremely widespread over Europe and Asia. This is found in Central Russia, but is most typical of the Northwest, and is also found among the Veps and Karelians. Here is a design which Russian historians call 'the Sun Chariot'.

There has been much written about the mystical significance of designs like this, but you will have to research that elsewhere. Another type of embroidery of the northwest, especially Olonets' province is this type of darning stitch embroidery, bearing some resemblance to Hutsul work. I do not think that this is any evidence of a genetic connection, but rather of the survival of a very old technique in different places.

You will notice a preponderance of red in these embroideries. The Russians have a proverbial love of the color red. This goes back many centuries, to the point where the word for red has been lost in the Russian language. The slavic word for red is 'cherviony', but in Russian they use the word 'krasny', which actually means 'beautiful'. This has taken such deep root in the Russian language that they had to invent a new word, 'krasyvy' to be used for 'beautiful'.
By the way, I am covering the folk arr of the Russian homeland, which lies north of Ukraine and Belarus, and west of the Volga, The Russians have of course spread far to the east since the time of the decline of the Golden Horde, but the bulk of the development of the folk culture took place in the Russian Heartland.
 Here is an example of Russian cross-stitch embroidery from the northeast province of Vologda. This photo is in black and white, but the embroidery is all in red.

Here is an example of the type of embroidery which in the English speaking world is known as blackwork. It was done in black in Spain, whence it was introduced into England. In Russia it is primarily done in red, of course. Similar embroidery is done around Poltava in Ukraine, but the motifs are different. Again an apparant survival of an  old technique in different places. This example is from St. Petersburg Province

There is often some admixture of other colors, as in this example from Kargopol.

Chain stitch or tambour embroidery was introduced into Russia at some point, and became very popular in some areas. It was often done on a colored backgraound of factory cloth, as it is not a counted thread technique, as so many of these are. Below is an example from Olonets Province.

Reticello became popular in the north, I believe as an import from the west, but I do not have data to support that. This is an example from Novgorod Province. Certainly many of the designs on this kind of work seem to be of the court.

There were many pieces like this made in the north, done on premade netting, as in western Europe.
This was possibly the inspiration for four different local styles of embroidery in Russia. The first one starts by outlining the design in blanket or chain stitch. Then the backgroun is worked, two threads left and two threads drawn, as in hemstitching, except that this was done in both directions. these threads were then wrapped singly by thread, holding them in place to form a sort of netting. the inside of the motifs were then worked with 'blackwork' stitches, only in white. Here is an exuberant example from Arkhangelsk.

The next phase was to draw threads from the entire area to be worked. Other threads then woven back in to the netting to form the design. This example is typical of the subtle colors used in the Yaroslavl style.

In Tver' Province, after the cloth was drawn and the 'netting' bound, the motif was rewoven in white, either vertically and horizontally to basically reweave the cloth to its original opacity, or diagonally, so as to create a distinctive waffle texture. Then they were outlined in bright colors, which were also often used on the netting to create designs. Here is an example showing both types of reweaving.

Here is another piece showing the use of colors embroidered over the 'netting' and also showing some of the motifs rewoven in red instead of white.

In Kaluga Province, instead of taking just one turn around each bar of the netting to hold it in place, they instead wrap it completely in colored thread, a technique also found among the Chuvash. Unlike the Chuvash, they then reweave the central motif in white, as they do in Tver' Province. The end effect is of a white image against a colored background. This has to be one of the most unique and impressive styles of embroidery found among the Russian People. The typical color palette is red white yellow and blue, with some green added at times, Here is one fine example from the work of M. N. Gumilevskaya, a renowned artist who developed this folk technique to a great degree.

In the background is a closeup of one of the motifs on the pillow. Here is an even closer view of another piece, showing details of the work. This style of embroidery in Russian is called 'perevity'.

And that is it for today's posting. This is not an exhaustive survey of Russian embroidery, but I hope it is a good overview of many of the styles developed by the Russian people. I hope this inspires you. I will do a more in depth coverage of at least some of these styles in the future.
Here are a couple of good links on this subject.
This site concentrates on verifiable peasant costumes and some of the embroidery techniques which i have covered today, including the mystical meanings of some of the traditional motifs. Make of that what you will, but it is a good resource.
http://traditionalrussiancostume.com/embroidphoto/index_en.php?nametxt=0

And here you can buy Russian shirts for men and women and other items.
http://www.rus-sell.com/ethnic+specialty+cloths+accessories/russian+kosovorotka/catalog1024.html

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.com

Thank you for reading, go and be creative, and tell others about this art form.
Roman K.

Source Material:
M. N. Gumilevskaya, 'Kaluzhskaia Narodnaia Vyshyvka', [Kaluga Folk Embroidery], Moscow, 1959
S. Y. Gumilevskaya, 'Vyshyvka Khudozhnik M. N. Gumilevskaya' [Embroidery of the Artist M. N. Gumilevskaya], Moscow, 2005
Barbara & Julia Mueller, 'Kreuzstichmuster aus dem Alten Russland', [Cross Stitch Designs from Old Russia], Rosenheim, 1995
The Museum of Folk Art, Moscow, 'Russian Embroidery: Traditional Motifs', Moscow, 1990
Yefimova & Belegorskaya, 'Russian Embroidery and Lace', Moscow, 1982
I. Boguslavskaya, 'Russkaya Narodnaia Vyshivka' [Russian Folk Embroidery], Moscow, 1972
L. Kalmykova, 'Narodnaia Vyshivka Tverskoy Zemli' [Folk Embroidery of Tver' Land], Leningrad, 1981

Hutsul Cross Stitch Embroidery, Ukraine

I have written about the Hutsul Nyzynka embroidery, which is considered to be the most typical. But Cross stitch embroidery has been made in the Hutsul lands for quite a long time now. The color palette tends to be much the same, based on black, maroon, red, orange, yellow ochre, yellow and some admixture of green. This has become very popular in the foothills and lowlands north of the Hutsul lands proper. You find embroiderers doing this style of embroidery all over Halychyna and further.

One version is doing a cross stitch imitation of Nyzynka designs, which tends not to be very effective, like this.

This results in a loss of the clean diagonal lines of the Nyzynka technique, obtaining instead a clumsy stairstep effect. This particular design could easily be done in Nyzynka. However, cross stitch enabled these designs to be elaborated in ways that Nyzynka was not capable of. Here are a couple examples of Nyzynka inspired designs that take advantage of the versatilitly of cross stitch. This first one is from a collection of graphed designs gathered and published by Ksenia Kolotylo.

And this one was embroidered by Ol'ha Voznytsia.

Cross Stitch is characterized by strong vertical and horizontal lines, and so lends itself to different sorts of designs. Here is a very old Hutsul design that has been copied and adapted over quite a wide area, even outside of Ukraine.

Many people have copied and elaborated designs in this style, and there are literally hundreds of them out there. Here are a couple of pieces executed by Yevhenia Henyk.

You will find these designs in many Ukrainian homes on various pieces of linen. Pillowcases, table scarves, rushnyks, curtains, table cloths, clothing, etc, The art of embroidery is very much alive among the Ukrainian people, and these are some of the most popular designs. Just a few more examples.

Yet another design from the collection of Ksenia Kolotylo, not derived from Nyzynka.

And just a couple more examples.

This is only a small sampling. This does not exhaust Hutsul embroidery by any means. One final note, the colors in many of these images are not exact. Either they were graphed schematically, without access to the exact shades necessary, or the printing technology available was not very good. So some of the images show darker or lighter or variations in hue that are not true to life. Brown is not used, what may appear to be brown will actually be some shade of maroon. If you decide to do some of these designs, i recommend that you go to the store, pick a skein of each color, hold them in your hand to see how well they complement each other, and substitute various possible shades until you find them pleasing, that is what i do myself. My recommendations for a Hutsul palette in DMC numbers: Black 312,

Maroon 777 or 815 or both, the darker could substitute for black, Red 666 or 321, Green 905,  Ochre 741. Orange 947, and Yellow 444? [i think].

I hope you find this inspiring. I think Diane will find this useful.

Please contact me with requests for research or commissions for something you may want designs, sewn or embroidered.

One positive thing that the Soviets did was to put the applied arts into the realm of art, and its practitioners on a level to be admired and respected. As they say, no-one can be wrong ALL the time.

Go forth and be creative. Our ancestors made much of what they used day to day, and they felt it necessary for such items to be things of beauty. We should not settle for the ordinary or the ugly in utilitarian items.

Thank you for reading.

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.com

Source Material:

Ksenia Kolotylo, 'Ksenia Kolotylo Al'bom', Kyjiw [Kiev], 1992

Hasiuk & Stepan, 'Khydozhne Vyshyvannia' [Artistic Embroidery], Kyjiw [Kiev] 1986

Yevheniya Henyk, 'Embroidery and Weaving', Kyjiw [Kiev], 2007

Ol'ha Voznytsia, 'Vyshywka Moje Zhyttia' [Embroidery of my Life], Drohobych, Ukraine, 2006

V. Bilozub et al. 'Ukrainian Folk Art - Weaving and Embroidery', Kiev 1960

Is there a Sicilian Folk Costume?

Hello all,

Folk costume, while having its roots in the deep history of an individual local community, was to some extent the result of the romantic-nationalist movement of the 18-19 centuries. It was partly self-expression of the textile artists of an area, and partly a method of proclaiming and promulgating ethnic identity. It was based on the domestic manufacture of clothing in the home or at the local level, the local traditions of ornamental weaving, embroidery, leatherwork, etc.

One of the mysteries of this field of study is why some regions developed a rich varied local costume tradition and others did not. A classic example is the Netherlands, which have a very rich [if rather bizarre] folk costume tradition [in spite of Calvinism], while Belgium does not. Belgium has a folk culture very rich in other areas, but never developed any distinct folk costumes. [If anyone has information otherwise, please let me know] When the Belgian people put on folk festivals, or folk dance performances, they copy costumes from the paintings of Breugel, which fortunately show a lot of detail.

Another such example is Sardinia and Sicily. It is true that the two peoples are not closely related, the local languages are very different, yet much of the history is similar for these two neighbors. Again, Sardinia has a very rich folk costume tradition which is very much alive today, [to which i will devote several future postings] while Sicily seemingly does not. I feel that i must state that Sicily is very rich in folklore, in the form of festivals, traditions, music, stories, food of course, etc. I do not know of any tradition of peasant costume, however.

In my experience, when viewing folk presentations, or folk dance performances of Sicilian groups, the clothing worn will fall into one of three categories. One, the very colorful and beautiful costumes worn by the Arbereshe, the Albanian ethnic minority. Two, generic stylized costume of the west European type in the colors of the Italian flag. And three, what looks like period clothing from the 19th century, which is likely the most 'authentic'. [I would certainly welcome more input on this subject from those who may have more information than i do.]

Here is an example of the first category, This is the Albanian costume of the area known as Piana dei Greci or Piana degli Albanesi.

I will do a future posting on this costume, i am sure. While it is very beautiful, it is not properly a costume of the Sicilian people. [I do feel that there must have been influence from Italian costume sometime in the past. This costume is not worn in Albania]. This costume is very widely copied on postcards and the like however,because it is very colorful and genuinely native to Sicily. I got this photo from a Sicilian Informational website.

http://www.siciliano.it/go-foto.cfm?id=28016&provincia=PA

For the mens costume there is not a real distinction between period dress and the generic. It consists of a white shirt, red bandanna, ribbon or cord with pompoms on the ends tied around the neck, brown or black vest, brown jacket, usually corduroy, cut like a modern sports coat, knickers, white over the knee stockings, low black shoes, possibly a red sash and either a felt hat or red or black stocking cap, the latter being very widespread for mens costumes around the Mediterranean. This is also the standard mens costume for much of Italy.

Here are some photos showing this costume.

Here is what i think is the same man and his son driving two different carts. The Painted carts of Sicily are a very famous part of its folklore.

Here are two young men riding in the festival called 'Mastru di Campu' in Palermo.

Here is a plate from Emma Calderini which substantiates this costume. This gentleman is wearing striped stockings covered with short gaiters as well.

For the women, the generic costume consists of a white blouse with wide sleeves, often trimmed with lace, a simple black bodice, a kerchief, a full skirt usually in red or green, trimmed with ribbons, and a white apron. Here are some young women taking part in the festival of 'Li Schietti' in Calatafimi.

Here are a couple of videos of amateur dance groups in Sicily using versions of this generic costume.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5IKdZ9N-ZE&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PD5CRjbf_0&feature=related

This is another example, i admit i don't remember where i got it, from a Tourist information site, no doubt.

Here is a still from a video of another amateur dance group from Sicily.

You will notice a wide variation in the length of the skirts.

Here is a typical Italian-American example

On the one hand, one might say these were not 'authentic' because i am not sure that people in Sicily ever dressed this way.  On the other hand, it has now become a tradition in its own right.

The third type of costume seen is typified by these prints from Emma Calderini, whose work i have found copied over and over by other artists. She seems to be the source material for many who came after.

Very elegant, but i am not sure that they fall in the category of  'Folk Costume' rather than 'Period Costume'. Perhaps the distinction is irrelevant, and certainly traditional costume in western Europe is closer to modern western clothing than it is in central or eastern Europe. One does not seem to see costumes as distinctive in their way as one does in Sardinia. These three ladies seem to be well off, or at least dressed up to go to Church or an Occasion. Calderini also provides a couple of prints showing women who were either less well off, or maybe just working in their everyday clothes.

You will notice that none of these resembles the 'generic costume'.

This type of costume is sometimes used by performing groups, like this one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLZJ4t0PUqY&feature=related

I have also seen a couple of groups wearing what looks like a dirndl.

Perhaps they took this type of costume and just shortened the skirts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVXymZA0mb4&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7m7ZDJjZVM&feature=related

It is amazing what is online these days.

If anyone has more information, or knows of sources for more information on Sicilian costume, or Italian costume in general, please let me know.

Thank you for reading, as always, and i hope that this provokes some thought and causes more infomation to come out.

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.com

Source Material:

The websites linked to above, thank all of you very much

Emma Calderini, 'Il Costume Popolare in Italia', Milano, 3rd edition 1953

Giuseppe Lazzaro Danzuso, 'Sicily', Vercelli, 2002

Charles Holme, 'Peasant Art in Italy', London, New York, 1913

Elba F. Gurzau, 'Folk Dances, Costumes and Customs of Italy', 1981

One Costume, Three Countries. Nadbuzhansk, Zabuzhia, Damachow Costume, Poland, Bielorus and Ukraine

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.
Rkozakand@aol.com

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