Embroidery was a very popular and widely practiced form of handicraft, practiced by women of all ages, from young girls to the very elderly. This type of handicraft, compared to other traditional crafts, was more individualistic, as it did not require collective efforts.
Many items were easily embroidered: ribbons decorating the dome of the yurt; the curtain covering the doorway of the yurt; bags; horse blankets; clothing. Headgear, especially those with long hanging elements, were also richly adorned with embroidery. In the twentieth century, even covers for radios and televisions were often embellished with intricate embroidery. A special case of embroidery usage is the tush kiyiz.
In the northern part of the country, women often stretched the working fabric on special frames, while in the south, the material was pinned to the woman's dress, stretched over her bent knee—so that she could work while sitting on the floor.
Often, the patterns included ornaments made from precious metals, coral, and other materials. Various types of stitches were used—chain, tambour, whip, satin, and buttonhole—but please, do not ask us to explain the differences between them... it’s better to look at a few samples yourself.
Some museums across the country have samples of embroidery, but very few of them date back to before the 1880s.
Source: crafts.kg
