Thursday, December 13, 2012

CHRISTMAS GIFTS: ETHNIC CLOTHING

If you're lucky enough to live near shops that sell ethnic clothing (above) you might consider giving your significant other a folk costume gift. You don't have to buy the whole ensemble, just a nice element, something that looks good all by itself. 

Me, I think the Poles beat everybody in Europe, or at least they beat other women's designs. You'd never know it to look at the Polish girls in the picture above. They seem downright miserable. I wonder why? 


Here's (above) some Hungarian designs with a Gypsy influence. I wonder if traditional skirts were that high? Maybe they were.


This beautiful design looks like a synthesis of Polish, Russian and Scandinavian influences, so I'll guess that it comes from a place where all those elements merge, mmmm....maybe Latvia or Estonia. 

Boy, it's elaborate! Costumes like this were more common before The Reformation. After that designs were more austere.


Geez, one of the sexiest things a girl can wear is a simple white blouse (above).


Above, more white blouses set off with dark vests and embroidery. The country of origin? Maybe...mmmmmm...Danish???


So far as I can tell the best costume designs for men (above) come from German speaking countries. The problem is that they favor leather jackets and pants and those can be pricey and difficult to alter.

John gave me a whole outfit like this once. If I can lose some X#@%*& weight I'll wear it.


Fortunately Germans also make great woolen jackets and vests. The green makes a nice contrast with the red, white and black.



Now where do these (above) come from? East Europe? Armenia?


Above...Finnish?


Here's (above) a dress from Ireland. Wow, a nice blend of Celtic and Viking. I like the suggestion of lightning on the bodice. I don't know why, but the design reminds me that the true art of that country is storytelling.



There are lots of outlets on the internet (sample above) for this type of clothing. According to the ad embroidery is used as a protection against evil spirits.



6 comments:

zillustration said...

I'm of Ukrainian decent. The black and white family photos we have from "the old country" don't do the dresses justice. These Polish/Hungarian photos fill in the blanks (or sepia tones). My wife also knits socks, and those ethnic patterns are very difficult to do, certainly not daily attire - afraid to wear them out!

Eddie Fitzgerald said...

Z: I love Ukrainian costume. I could easily have done a whole post on that country alone and still not have done more than scratch the surface.

It seems to me that every ethnicity looks best in the traditional colors and shapes that flatter their physiques. As it is, we're all trying to fit into one international style.

I wish there was some way of making traditional dress acceptable for ordinary formal occassions. It should at least be acceptable wear for parties and weddings, even when the host's ethnicity is different than your own. After all, this is America, the Great Melting Pot.

Anonymous said...

If only the girls here in Ireland actually dressed like that!

I've never seen anyone wear dresses like that in real life, except for Irish Dancing competitions and stuff like that.

Nowadays they all dress in white tracksuit bottoms (that look like pajamas) and that kinda stuff.

Julemannen said...

The dresses in the picture of the two girls you thought were Danish is Norwegian. The costume is called bunad.

Anonymous said...

If I may, the last girl with the green bodice is definititely Norwegian as well, not Irish. Her entire outfit is the very distinctive Hardanger bunad from Norway, except with a green bodice instead of the usual red, and I've seen it amongst other Norway-specific threads. No offense, just putting credit where it's due :)

Norwegians are well known for their national spirit and use of bunad for special events, even though the sets are so expensive! So a person wearing a non-Sami Nordic folk outfit is far more likely to be Norwegian than from any of the other Nordic countries. I wish folk dress and folk-inspired clothing would be worn more often around the whole world, not just here and there! Share the art and beauty...!

Eddie Fitzgerald said...

Anonymous: Thanks for the correction! That gives me one more compelling reason to visit Norway!