Russian folk embroidery and embroidery of the peoples of the world (pictures)

April 24, 2017 handmadebase

Content

Chinese embroidery
A Brief Overview of European Needlework
How the embroidery of the peoples of the world was applied
Slavic embroidery
Old Russian embroidery in gold and silver
Ukrainian and Chuvash embroidery
Russian folk embroidery
Embroidery of central and southern areas
Video: Mari and Chuvash embroidery

One of the most ancient types of handicrafts of alltimes and peoples is embroidery. Each nation had its own unique type of sewing, introducing its national elements into it, therefore such folk embroidery is known as traditional, for example, Tarusa embroidery or Hungarian. A person who is well versed in it can immediately determine by the characteristic features of the pattern to which folk tradition the embroidered product belongs.
Bright, juicy geometric shapes speak ofthat we have Florentine embroidery, floral, convex curls in pastel colors - French embroidery, volumetric surface - Brazilian embroidery, silk satin stitch - Chinese embroidery, strict geometric ornament with red thread - Chuvash embroidery. Each of the techniques used received the name of the people or region in which it developed, for example, Indian embroidery or the Moscow stitch known to all seamstresses. The simplest type of counted technique is considered to be Bulgarian cross embroidery. In the modern world, the cross stitch technique is also popular among needlewomen of all nationalities. The embroidery of the peoples of the world is one of the most interesting research materials for those interested in this type of needlework. Also, ancient embroidery stored in museums of different countries is a very interesting subject for study, especially Suzhou embroidery.

Chinese embroidery

The birthplace of this type of handicraft is considered to be AncientChina, so the first known Chinese embroidery, it dates back to about the 4th - 5th century BC. It was sewing on silk fabrics, since it was in the regions of China that silk fabrics were first produced. The main embroidered patterns were elements of nature, animals, birds (Suzhou embroidery), oriental hieroglyphs and patterns, ornaments, traditional Chinese flora and fauna. In the modern world, interest in the traditions of China does not decrease, so various products in the Chinese style are very popular: clothing, dishes, interior items. Chinese embroidery is rightfully considered one of the most exquisite and refined. The most famous and ancient is Suzhou embroidery. It used only natural materials - silk fabrics and threads, the plots were embroidered complex, with a large number of colors and shades, and the back side was without a single knot, like the front. Very close to this technique is the neat Moscow seam. Chinese exotic motifs were also used in Jacobean embroidery (satin stitch, made with woolen threads).

A Brief Overview of European Needlework

Florentine embroidery "Bargello"
Tarusa embroidery
Hungarian embroidery
French embroidery
Brazilian embroidery Florentine embroidery"Bargello" (sometimes this name is borrowed by Italian embroidery). This technique is characterized by bright, rich colors, patterns, zigzags, geometric motifs with smooth transitions prevail among the drawings. In Italian, the name of this technique is translated as "embroidery". It uses only a straight stitch with woolen threads.
In terms of the brightness of its colours, it is close to the Slavic Tarusa embroidery and Hungarian embroidery.
An exquisite French embroidery technique. Combines many decorative types - rococo, Richelieu, bouteille, cross stitch and half cross stitch, satin stitch and other stitches.
Original Brazilian embroidery.It uses French Rococo very often, along with other types of stitches. This is a surface technique that elevates the pattern on the fabric. It is dominated by both bright and pastel colors, floral and plant motifs are embroidered, and the sewing is done with silk threads on thin fabric (like Suzhou embroidery). European embroidery mainly uses satin stitch, but cross stitch is also found.

How the embroidery of the peoples of the world was applied

Both in Rus' and in European countriesThe original use of stitches was to join pieces of fabric that were used in clothing. For example, the Moscow stitch was used to hem fabric. The stitches were simple, practical, and animal hair was used as thread.
Embroidery was used everywhere:in bed linen, casual clothing, and religious vestments. Any textile product could be embroidered with beautiful patterns, everyday scenes, elements of nature, and traditional Russian embroidery patterns.

Bulgarian crossBesides the aesthetic side,embroidery also had a sacred meaning and its own purpose. The ornament was located mainly on clothing in places of contact with the outside world: sleeves, collars, headdresses and played the role of a talisman. Ornament patterns were usually embroidered with a cross, which was given magical power, the name of the cross was also used in the names of techniques (Bulgarian cross embroidery).

Slavic embroidery

Handicrafts of the pagan period in Rus' are almost allare magical amulets that protect a person from hostile forces. Russian clothes were all embroidered with these sacred symbols, the main products for such sewing were metrics, rushnyks, Ukrainian embroidered shirts. The main elements of the embroidery of the Russian folk ornament were geometric figures - a rhombus and a cross. The rhombus was a symbol of fertility, the sun, the cross had the magical power to drive away evil spirits and remove damage. Gradually, cross-stitching ceased to carry a sacred meaning and serve as a magical amulet. Modern cross-stitching is simply a beautiful and fascinating type of needlework, which carries more of an aesthetic load. Although, even now in some settlements, Russian folk embroidery has the character of amulets. At folk craft fairs, you can often see such clothes in the Old Russian style, very often it uses Bulgarian cross-stitch embroidery. In modern fashion collections, the Russian style remains very popular. With the adoption of Christianity, Christian motifs were introduced into embroidered works, icons and vestments, religious objects, and household items were embroidered with a cross. Embroidery became a more expensive type of handicraft, with the use of expensive threads and precious stones.

Old Russian embroidery in gold and silver

The richest and most beautiful Russian embroidery.Its heyday was in the 16th - 17th centuries, when the nobility decorated their clothes and headdresses with precious stones. Gold embroidery with stringed pearls was used to decorate interiors, horse harnesses, and festive clothing. This type of embroidery was considered one of the most difficult, so only a skilled needlewoman could master it, some craftswomen learned this skill in monasteries, and sometimes the nuns themselves were experienced embroiderers. Precious threads were used to embroider plant ornaments, fairy-tale creatures, complex flower arrangements, and not only cross-stitch was used in the work, but also a combination of various stitches, which gave the product sophistication and originality. Now such ancient embroidery with gold and stones has survived only in museums or private collections. Jacobin embroidery is very close to it in terms of plot line; the Moscow stitch was used to process finished products.

Ukrainian and Chuvash embroidery

Ukrainian embroiderySlavic, Ukrainian andRussian embroideries are united by the use of a small number of colors, geometric and floral ornaments, and the use of cross stitch. Vyshyvankas, national women's and men's shirts, deserve special attention. The images on them were given a sacred meaning (protection from damage, wealth, and fertility). The main element was a rhombus, the most popular Slavic symbol, and an eight-pointed star. Different types of stitches were used in different areas; Ukrainian craftswomen used cross stitch, half-cross stitch, satin stitch, openwork, and black, blue, and yellow threads were added to the traditional red ones. Embroidery was done mainly on a white or gray background.

Chuvash embroidery is very close to UkrainianChuvash embroidery. It also uses a gray and white background, strict geometric patterns, and a small number of colors. The main colors used are red, blue, yellow, and green. Ukrainian and Chuvash embroidery use the same elements - rosettes with eight petals (a symbol of the Sun) and the tree of life, their elements are also present in the state symbols. Chuvash embroidered towels, rugs, and clothing motifs are very similar to Ukrainian ones, so they are often confused. You can distinguish the Chuvash national costume by its headdress; Ukrainian women use flower wreaths as one. Tarusa embroidery is very similar to Chuvash and Ukrainian embroidery. Belarusian embroidery has the same similar properties.

Russian folk embroidery

Karelian embroideryA distinctive feature of Karelian embroidery is the use of threads of one color.
Many peoples use one color in their work,Mari embroidery can serve as such an example. Patterns were embroidered with red thread on white or gray fabric, if the sewing was openwork – white on white. In the first case, a simple but elegant canvas was obtained, in the second – openwork embroidery.
The needlewomen used techniques such ascross, set, laying on a grid, double-sided seam, tambour, combination of tambour and set. On the embroidered canvas a rectilinear pattern with geometric figures was obtained, an ornament was also embroidered, with many crosses and eight-pointed stars, patterns were combined into complex compositions. In addition, plant motifs, people, animals, birds were embroidered.

Mari embroideryKarelian embroidery is verylaconic, but nevertheless very popular among needlewomen. Mari embroidery is very similar to it. It used the counted cross-stitch technique, the color scheme consisted of red, blue, green and black. The patterns stood out clearly on the canvas due to the straight lines. Tarusa embroidery is close to Mari in terms of color scheme. It used colored interlacing, inserts from the flooring, white stitching.

Embroidery of central and southern areas

Vladimir embroideryThese regions are characterized bygeometric ornament, using many bright threads - crimson, gold, scarlet, in addition to this, plants, animals, people are embroidered. In the southern regions, colored intertwining and counted satin stitch, Moscow seam, white stitch with bugs, cobwebs, air loops are used, and multi-colored threads were sometimes added to it. It was a bright and beautiful embroidery, pleasing to the eye. In these areas, embroidery on black silk was also practiced, using gold threads. One of the most famous in the central region is Vladimir embroidery. Its main element is a large satin stitch (Vladimir seam), various ornaments were embroidered with it, it was done with red thread, with the addition of other colors. Moscow seam, related to these regions, is still actively used by seamstresses and needlewomen, previously it was done by hand, now it can be easily done with a sewing machine.