Traditional women's and men's clothing and footwear. Hairstyles and ornamentation
Lemko clothes were distinguished by their stylistic and ornamental features. The set of women's folk costumes of the Lemkos of Transcarpathia included a short shirt («oplichcha»), a skirt («kabat»), an apron («shurts» «zapinachka»), a tank top («vizytka») made of factory fabric, tank top («kamizelka»), jacket («laibik» «sirak»), gunya («guncha»), scarf, cap, beaded jewelry («monistyata»), boots («chizmy»).
In the second half of the 19th century, short women's shirts («oplichcha») made of home-woven linen were spread in the villages of Zarichevo and Novoselytsia, Perechyn district. Shirts were cut with both one and two side seams, around the neck, in the upper shoulder part of the sleeve and near the cuffs gathered in small folds («rows»). Sometimes «curves» were embroidered on top of the wrinkles. Embroidery made of «low», «cross», and since the 20's of the twentieth century – «smooth» decorated collar («skin»), longitudinal incision («strut») of the sinuses, shoulder and cuffs . The main ornamental motif was a rhombus, the inner plane of which was filled with crosses, rosettes, squares, and from the beginning of the twentieth century - stylized flowers (roses and daisies).
From the late 1920s to the early 1930s, short (50-55 cm) shirts («oplichcha») with short sleeves spread among the Lemkos of the Perechyn region. They were cut in the same way as the «oplichcha» with long sleeves. Only cuffs were decorated with cross-stitch or «double-sided» embroidery. The ornamental composition looked like a narrow branch of small burgundy or red flowers and multicolored shamrocks.
The Lemkos of the Perechyn region tucked their shirts into a home-woven underskirt («podolok»), which was trimmed at the waist and sewn with threads. On top of the lower skirt they wore the upper one («kabat», «ryashenyk») made of home-woven hemp cloth, and from the 1920s - from factory fabrics of black, blue, green brown colors. Local Lemko «ryasheniks» decorated with four or ten folds, between which they embroidered ornamental compositions of flowers with leaves embroidered with multicolored threads, and stems and leaves were of light green and blue colors.
In the second half of the 19th and the first half of the 20th century, women wore an apron over their skirts. Work aprons were made of home-woven hemp, and holiday aprons were made of bleached linen decorated with embroidery. With the advent of factory fabrics in the early twentieth century, aprons began to be sewn from silk or satin.
The skirt and apron were tied with a knitted woolen belt («opas», «pletenka», «pasina») in burgundy, red, pink or green. The length of the belts ranged from 150 to 230 cm, width - 5-6 cm, tied them so that the ends fall back. A characteristic feature of the long braided belts of the Lemkos of Transcarpathia was that they ended with braided laces with tassels («bibs») made of multicolored woolen threads.
Sleeveless jackets («vizitivky» «laibyky», «kamizelky») made of various materials were an integral part of women's traditional clothing of Transcarpathian Lemkos. At the beginning of the 20th century, short (30-35 cm) linen tank tops («laibiki») spread among the Lemkos of the Perechyn region. In the villages of Zarichevo and Novoselytsia, «laibyky» were decorated with polychrome embroidery made by the technique of counting and oblique smoothing. The ornamental composition had the form of multi-colored ribbons of stylized flowers, floral motifs of realistic forms and vases.
In the 19th and the first half of the 20th century, the outer shoulder garments of the Transcarpathian Lemkos were short white gunas («hunchaky») with a transverse cut with long pile («kostruby»), cut from two saws of home-woven woolen cloth. The contours of the neck of the Lemko Huns were lined with three pieces of red velvet fabric so that a thick seam («pidshyjniki») was formed. The ends of the pieces of cloth were not sewn together, but tied in a bow («kuchery»).
The woman's hair was braided into one or two braids, weaving ribbons («zaplitky», «volichki») from woolen threads of burgundy, red and green colors. A cap was a must-have item for a married woman. The Lemkos of the Perechyn region had a cap extended to the top. In such caps, the corners («rohy») protruded to the sides. Women put braided braids in the «kontya». The woman's head was tied with a shawl («khustya», «kestemancha», «skoryancha»). Young women wore scarves of bright, older – of dark colors. From the beginning of the 20th century, Lemkos, as well as Boyks and Dolynians, spread shawls on which embroidery was placed at the corner that fell on the shoulders. The composition of ribbon embroidery was formed from bouquets or individual plant motifs. Often a tree of life was embroidered between two ribbons surrounded by small plant motifs. Its colors were dominated by light shades of pink, orange, red, cherry, blue, green, brown.
One of the components of women's clothing of the Transcarpathian Lemkos were necklaces («monistyata», «barkhatky») 1-3 cm wide and 20-40 cm long. In the 1920's and 1940's, wide (10-12 cm) beaded jewelry complemented the traditional Lemko women's attire. They looked like a semicircular collar, which, falling from the neck, covered the chest, shoulders and back with a continuous weave. They were tied on the back with braided laces, less often on buttons.
In the XIX - early XX centuries, the traditional type of Lemko shoes were postoly («bochkory», «verptsy») made of ox, cow, horse leather. Grandchildren wore «onuchi» or knitted socks («shrimfli», «fusikli»), which were wrapped in long leather straps («obuvantsi»). Lemko's postoly, as well as those of Boyko and Dolyna, were cut with a cut toe and a split heel.
At the beginning of the twentieth century, leather boots («chizhmy») made by village shoemakers («shusters») became widespread. Freebies («saris») of festive («pumped») women's «chizhmy» were sewn from hard leather. The connection between the saris and the string was made of soft leather, which when worn folded under the saris («were pumped»). The sole of such boots was made of a half-thick piece of leather. In the 1920's and 1940's, both women and men wore leather boots («topapki») with high heels. Wooden shoes were also worn, with a wooden sole and a leather upper.
Lemko men's clothing in Transcarpathia is not as colorful as women's. The set of their clothes consisted of a shirt, summer pants («gatey»), winter pants («holoshen»), leather belt («cheres»), outerwear, hats and shoes.
The basis of men's clothing of the Lemkos of Transcarpathia was a shirt. In the 19th century, long (70 cm) shirts were cut from two wide floors (70 × 54 cm) and one narrower one (70 × 20 cm). At the end of the 19th century, shirts with «plechyky» and a folding collar began to be sewn. The sinus incision (15-20 cm) was fastened with three to five blue buttons. The only decoration of the shirts were the folds («zashchypy») around the incision of the sinuses.
Lemko shirts with a wide turn-down («rolled») collar and an insert on the back were decorated with embroidery on the slit, collar and cuffs. Geometric motifs were embroidered using the «cross» or «low» techniques. Such shirts were called «hutsuls».
Men's waistcoats were made in accordance with their functional purpose. They wore trousers («gati») to work, under which they wore «nadragi» or «patchmagi». «Ghatі», sewn for every day, were without decorative decoration. They are 7-10 cm longer than the underwear «patchmagі». A wide linen belt with a rope («ushyvalnikom») was sewn to the top of the «gati», and linen laces («motuzky») could be sewn to the bottom of the trousers, with which the «gati» was tied to the foot when putting on shoes or boots. In winter, men wore pants made of compacted home-woven cloth («kholoshny») in white or gray over the «gates». Pants were sewn with a diamond-shaped wedge («lastkoyu») between the pants.
A longitudinal incision («rozpirku») was made in the front part, which was fastened with buttons and a metal clasp. Two open pockets were made on the holes. 7-10 narrow cloth straps («psyky») were sewn to the upper part of the trousers to advance the belt. The waist part of the trousers was hemmed on the reverse side with factory fabric. The side seams on the trousers were decorated with blue factory ribbons («lampasy»). The straps were fastened with wide leather straps with three to five fasteners («pryazhok»), which were the same in cut and decoration as the Dolynyans and Hutsuls.
In the 19th and the first half of the 20th century, men's shoulder-length sleeveless clothes made of home-woven cloth, fur and cloth were worn in the Lemko villages of Transcarpathia. Lemkos wore linen tank tops until almost the end of the 1940's. Unlike women's, men's shoulderwear does not stand out in great variety. It was the same in cut and decoration, as the women's one. The only difference was in size.
Until the middle of the 19th century, the only men's outerwear of the Lemkos of Transcarpathia was the Huns. Already at the end of the 19th century, linen and dress jackets became widespread among them. The gray Huns of the Lemkos sewed with short hair, without a collar. Hunya with pile («kostruby») was a mandatory element of the bride's wedding dress. In the early 1920's, cloth jackets («siraki») became popular among Lemkos of Transcarpathia.
Lemkos of Transcarpathia wore long hair. It was combed on both sides (parting) and it fell freely on the shoulders. The men's hats of the Lemkos included factory hats («kresani», «klebany») in black, navy blue, dark green, gray, and brown. They were decorated with peacock, jay, black grouse, mountain eagle feathers, wild boar fur, and colorful hairpins. The feather, according to folk custom, meant youthful strength, courage and youthful honor.
Winter hats («kuchmy», «kovpaki») were made of tanned leather of black or white lamb, sheep or gray hare with fur on the outside. Inside, winter hats were hemmed with home-woven cloth, and in the upper part one or two ears were made to cover the face when it was cold. In the Lemko villages of the Velykobereznyanshchyna in winter, men wrapped a long piece of black, red, and green cloth over their head, neck, and ears, and wore a hat on top of it.
Lemko men's shoes included leather soles («bochkory», «hodaky»), rubber («gumaky», «gnotovanky»), «derevyanyky», made of leather nailed to a wooden sole. From the 1930's to the 1940's, chrome boots became widespread. Postoly («hodaky») were the main footwear for both women and men. They were made mostly of untreated pork skin, and occasionally – of a wooden bark.
Common shoes were boots («chizhmy») with high heels. Freebies were made of hard leather, at the bottom they could be decorated with geometric ornaments in the form of various stripes and circles. The middle part of the freebies was made of soft leather. Before putting on the boots, they wore woolen socks («shtrifmli»).
