Embroidered Simplicity 3684

I finally did it -- made my very own Vyshyvanka! A vyshyvanka is a Ukrainian embroidered blouse, but mine is not traditional. I found this lovely soft yellow cotton at the thrift store recently, and decided to use it to make Simplicity 3684. I chose View C as the one with the most "vyshyvanka" feel to the sleeve and I also liked the simple collar band.

I did all my regular adjustments to this blouse pattern - shortened above the waist by 1/2", shortened the sleeve (in this case I shortened both top and bottom parts of the sleeve by 1" each) and graded from 14 at neck to 16 at bust and 18 at hip. This usually does the trick for me. I do find the shoulders a bit wide, so may take those in at the shoulder seam a bit, would definitely remove some width if I make this again. And the fit is quite close, check those finished measurements before you choose your size. 

It went together quite smoothly. The sleeve/cuff used a continuous lap, which I am used to from Burda patterns, but I do have to stop and think hard about it every single time! I found that the most difficult part of the whole thing, the construction was pretty straightforward otherwise. And as it turns out, I don't have to unbutton the cuffs to slip this on, so it was unnecessary anyhow! There were also two fisheye darts on the back, but when I tried it on I didn't like the way the blouse sat with those darts, so unpicked them and pressed them out again. This fabric is pretty forgiving.

As for the embroidery: 

I tested out various stitches and thread weights on my scraps, to see what I liked best. This cotton is lightweight and translucent so I was concerned about shadowing from the threads on the back. I found a simple motif that didn't require heavy stitching, again because this fabric doesn't have the weight to support lots of stitching. 

I ended up using the rhomb pattern, which can symbolize nature's rebirth, abundance, fertility, etc. From what I could find, this is often used in men's traditional designs, but I thought it would work nicely in my modern, non-traditional project. I used single, small motifs on the cuffs, button placket and collar, but created larger double rhombs for the sleeve decoration. All of these except for the sleeve are interfaced, so the stitching is supported well. I will keep my eye on the sleeve and see how it holds up. 

I chose three threads from my stash - all DMC. White, light blue (827) and a darker blue (996). I used three strands of each and the motifs were all done with buttonhole stitch and a few straight stitches, while the white was all straight stitch. I considered french knots but when I was testing I realized they would be too fragile for regular wearing. Using buttonhole stitch means there isn't much thread on the back, either, which is perfect. The stitching, after the testing and tracing, took me about 4-5 hours to complete. Not too bad, but these are simple motifs so it wasn't as lengthy. I don't know how to cross-stitch so went very basic here, also I know I am a slow stitcher so didn't want something really complicated for a first try. 

Buttons were a lucky match. I searched through a big box of shirt buttons that my sister gave me a few years ago, and found the perfect size and muted colour for this project. I wanted buttons that would blend in and not distract from the stitching. I think these worked really well. 

Well, after much dithering, I finally went ahead with a first simple Vyshyvanka project. I have a handful of other blouse patterns to try out and see if I like them for this purpose, but I had to start somewhere! This Simplicity pattern, which I put on my 2025 MakeNine list, was the one to begin with. Now that's 2 Make Nine projects completed for the year :) 

Vyshyvanka Day and big plans for 2024

Vyshyvanka Day is a relatively recent celebration, held on the 3rd Thursday of May each year. The aim is to celebrate traditional Ukrainian embroidered clothing. The idea of Vyshyvanka Day was suggested in 2006 by Lesia Voroniuk, then a student of Chernivtsi University, and has grown to involve all of Ukraine and the Ukrainian diaspora across the world. 

I've worn my store bought Vyshyvanka the last couple of years (a gift from my sister). But as I have mentioned previously, I would like to make my own to wear next year! So I'm planning on starting now, to hopefully get it done by next year ;) I won't be making a fully traditional, heavily embroidered one, since I don't have those skills. But I have a few patterns to try out for the base, first, and then I'll choose some less complex embroidery that I want to add. 

Here are a few patterns that I already have in my stash, which might work with some small changes or adaptations. I hope to try them out and see how I like the fit before choosing the one I like best to embroider. 

First is this older pattern, Simplicity 3786. While there are some pintucks in the centre panel, I do like the sleeve and overall silhouette of the view she is wearing.

Simplicity 3786

Next up is this more recent McCalls 8042, which I picked up in a sale just recently. I really like View C but am not quite sure about that neck ruffle bit. Probably would change that!

McCalls 8042

I also have two Indie patterns that have potential -- one is the Love Notions Rhapsody Blouse. This gives a little bit more of a modern shape to the traditional blouse, which I might like.

And the other, which might be the most likely of all of these to be the one I use, is my recently purchased Poppy Blouse by PatternScout. 

There is also the option of making the blouse in the traditional manner, which is just following body measurements and cutting mostly rectangular pieces. There is an example of this in the book Ukrainian Embroidery, by Ann Kmit, which I might follow. Or if I'm lucky enough, I might be able to take a sorochka pattern class with Myroslava Boikiv from Toronto. 

With all of these options, I see some fitting muslins in my future. Then, on to deciding on the embroidery patterns -- and that's the more complicated bit, both the choosing and the stitching! And that's why I'm starting a year ahead :) 

The Peace Piece of my Stitchalong project

As promised, this week I'm getting to the stitching part of  the Peace for Ukraine stitchalong project. After the central heart is painted, the word "Peace" is filled in with french knots. Uh, that's a lot of french knots! 

Fortunately, Natalie has some videos to follow along with, and since I'm a visual learner I find those really helpful. I watched the video on this step of the stitchalong, and also took a peek at her video on french knot technique as a refresher. Some of the knots in my "P" are a bit messy, but by the time I hit "E" the knots were more consistent, and my thumb was also a bit sore, lol. 

This was a good way to get going; lots of repetition and chance to practice a stitch. Also, the meditative nature of simply repeating a stitch gave me lots of time to think about the issues I'm stitching for. Craft is a great way to meditate on important things, and I was doing that here.

 

A suggestion if you are also interested in Peace in Ukraine:

Take a look at the suggested organizations to donate to on Natalie's Stitchalong page

More suggested organizations thanks to Vinok Collective on IG (a great person to follow, too) 

Or, listen to the Ukrainian Spaces podcast while you stitch, which talks to Ukrainians about many different issues, from war & colonialism to language to feminism and more. Really great stuff. 

Peace for Ukraine Stitchalong Underway!

 

image by @EmbroideryArtbyNat

I mentioned that I have started this beautiful project by Natalie of EmbroideryArtbyNat; you can find the pattern and all the information about how to donate to Ukrainian charities and other ways to help Ukraine, on her website and Etsy store. (hot tip: there's a 30% off sale in her shop this week!)

I thought I'd better get going on prepping this project so that I can finish it up this summer - I have a long trail of unfinished projects behind me, but this one is a special one that I'm very motivated to finish. 

There's a lot of compact stitching in this design, but the central heart is painted in blue and yellow to set the base. (Although there are other versions out there where people have gone their own way with the heart - if you check out the #PeaceforUkraineSAL hashtag on Instagram you can see some of the creative approaches that have been used). 

However, I decided that I am going to follow this pattern as closely as possible. I don't often follow along with patterns, liking to go my own way, but this one looks perfect to me, so I'll follow directions ;) 

So to make a quick start, I popped out the craft store and picked up some craft acrylics in the exact tones of blue and yellow I wanted. I already had some fabric medium so mixed up the colour with a touch of medium and was ready to go. The fabric medium helps regular acrylic to adhere better to the fabric and also gives it a bit of flexibility so that it won't crack when I'm manipulating the hoop with all the stitching. At least that is what I think!

Anyhow, it was a lot easier than I expected to follow the outlines and fill in the heart shape. I let it dry and then decided I needed a second coat for solid coverage. I found it quite fun to paint on fabric... uh oh, another thing to add to my endless project list ;) 

Next week: on to some stitching!

Embroidering some Peace for Ukraine

I recently acquired this embroidery project by Embroidery Art by Nat on Etsy. All the details on it can be found on her Etsy listing and her social media -- essentially she was asking for a donation to a Ukrainian charity (a list can be found on the main post on her website) in return for receiving the pattern. And now you can just buy it outright and stitch along as well, though a donation never goes amiss!

I finally had a chance to get the project started this week. But just barely begun! I found some pale blue linen blend fabric in my stash, and prepped a piece of it for a 10" hoop (she has both an 8" and 10" version to print off).

Just starting...

I used the classic technique of taping the pattern to a window and taping the fabric carefully on top. It was a sunny day and my porch windows make for a bright location. I used a Frixion pen to trace off the fine lines of this pattern, and now the pattern is ready to work on! 

All done!

But I also had to take some time to go through my thread stash and pull out all the colours in this pattern. Fortunately I have most of the 30 recommended colours, so will only have to pop out to buy 8 more skeins to complete my kit bag. 

It's quite a complex image with a lot of different flowers in it -- each one has meaning to Ukrainians, and they are all described and explained in her pattern info. The instructions are clear and cover a lot; the colours and stitches used, a pattern with stitch direction lines drawn in, and as mentioned 2 sizes of the traceable pattern, a colour guide and more. Plus, there are videos on her YouTube channel explaining the sections of the pattern, that show her embroidering the flower while explaining the hows and whys. About half of the pattern is currently posted, and she's working on the next ones while also sharing videos for her other patterns; she has a lot of really interesting designs! 

I'm a Ukrainian Canadian, and so this project is especially meaningful to me right now. I encourage you to keep reading and sharing information about what Ukraine is suffering right now, and to stand up and support Ukraine. Fellow Canadians, you can also write to our government about their decision to send turbines to Germany (aka Russia) this week. If we all speak up, we can keep Ukraine in focus. But being able to stitch quietly while thinking about the situation is a way to keep from burning out, to stay engaged and involved. And so I've begun this project and will share my progress along the way. 

International Vyshyvanka Day!

 Happy International Vyshyvanka Day! 

The third Thursday of May is International Vyshyvanka Day. The idea of Vyshyvanka Day was suggested in 2006 by Lesia Voroniuk, a student at a Ukrainian university. The day of celebration was intentionally set on a weekday and not in the weekend to emphasise that the vyshyvanka is "a component of the life and culture of Ukrainians, and not an ancient artifact" (Wikipedia)

It's a day to wear one's Vyshyvanka (embroidered blouse) and represent Ukrainian tradition. I pulled out my vyshyvanka, a store bought one -- someday I will make my own. Could that be why I've been reading so many books on traditional Ukrainian embroidery? Why yes. I decided to wear this with one of my favourite new skirts & masks. 

Maybe next year I'll be wearing a Me Made!