Embroidered Hutsul Shirt
Shirt-making is an ancient Slavic tradition that has particularly flourished in the Hutsul region. Cutting techniques, modelling, decoration arrangement, embroidery techniques, colours and patterns have all been preserved here since time immemorial. The shirt was a talisman that brought good fortune, protected from harm, and was handed down from the older generations to the younger ones.
The finest linen or hemp fabric, bleached by the sun and water, was chosen for shirts.
Most shirts are characterized by a straight cut with the top part called ‘stanok’ and the bottom part ‘pidtochka’. ‘Stanok’ was gathered in folds around the neck. The sleeves of the shirt were sewn in the ‘stanok’ with inserted gores beneath (quadrangular-shaped cloths – welts).
Only certain parts of the shirt were embroidered – sleeves, neckline, and hem. The patterns made by embroiderers on homespun cloth have a relief texture. In the Hutsul region, along with embroidery patterns of red, black, and green colours, drawn thread work was widely used to decorate the neckline, sleeves, and hem. The drawn thread embroidery had both decorative and functional purposes: it was used to join parts of the shirt and highlight the colourfulness of the embroidery.
Depending on the purpose of the shirt, the appropriate type of thread and pattern were chosen. More complex, solemn patterns were used for holiday shirts and modest and narrower ones for everyday shirts.
Factory-made cloth shirts gained popularity at the beginning of the 20th century.
Insertion is a patch at the cup of the sleeve. This is the most important part of a woman’s shirt. First, a contour is embroidered on a white background with black threads, and then the background is filled with colours.
The embroidery on the chest part of a shirt is less complicated and includes two or three stripes.
Men’s shirts, on the other hand, were embroidered with wide patterns on the chest in stripes down to the waist. These had to be only geometric ornaments. A standing collar around the neck, or ‘proshyvka,’ was required for men’s shirts. The compositional structure of the shirt has been preserved to this day and remains unaffected by the changes in traditional ornamental art.
