The word “sarafan” might not be familiar to many, but most people easily recall how a traditional Russian costume might look. The sarafan is, in fact, built around the concept of a long, trapeze-shaped dress that, over the centuries, went under the names of “feryaz”, “klinnik” and, finally, “sarafan”. The word itself takes its [Continue reading...]

Traditional Russian embroidery intertwines itself closely with the history of Russia, or more precisely, the land that it now occupies. Seen as an ubiquitous folk tradition, it is, in fact, a diverse and multi-faceted skill that spread and evolved through centuries and over geographical borders, equally distinguishing and uniting people. [Continue reading...]

Traditional Russian fashion is hardly imaginable without famed colourful scarves that instantly evoke associations with “babushka”, rural countryside and practically everything that is historically deemed to be Russian. These vivid and characterful scarves were once a necessity for innumerous villagers and city dwellers of then Old Russia and [Continue reading...]

I positively cannot think of another piece of clothing or accessory that would feel more “Russian”. Kokoshniks were worn as early as in 10th-12th century and had quite a history since then. Together with other elements of traditional Russian costume they were banned by Peter the Great in order to modernize Russian social system, but [Continue reading...]