C IS FOR COSTUME
At the National Costume Centre in Kuressaare, on the island of Saaremaa, our host Mareli Rannap is taking us through the subtle variations of Estonian women's traditional costume.
Each region of the country, and each parish within those regions, has its own identifiable patterns and colour schemes. Mareli explains that the distinctive strong reds of the Saaremaa costume, for example, come from natural dyes obtained from the plant madder which grows well on the island.
Not everything is bold and colourful. Skirts and shirts tend to be plain with all the detail concentrated around the collars, hems and cuffs. For men's costumes, the more sober restrained, colours of woolen coats - duns, greys, browns - retain the natural colouring of their sheep.
Costume and the way it is worn - how a hat is positioned, the way a belt is turned - can be used to signify certain key information about the wearer, their age, social status, place of origin, general mood...
Mareli explains. "I can show my costume and tell you lots of things about me. I can tell you where I am from. I can tell you if I am happy, if I am married - and if I am good at handicraft!
"And if you're clever you can work it out for yourself!"
She opens up a large flat grey archival box. Her white gloved hands carefully lift out a woman's jacket that she estimates to be around one hundred years old. The distinctive orange trim around the collar suggests that it's from the neighbouring island of Muhu. And while the garment shows obvious signs of age, it's clear that it was made with skill, made to last.
Mareli herself is dressed immaculately
from head to toe in the costume of her own parish, that she has made herself.
Everything here is handmade, which is how traditional costumes have always been made.
But
since the Soviets banned the wearing of folk costume, entire generations have grown up without the knowledge of what to wear and how. Important details, customs, subtle signals are slowly being lost from living memory as those who remember traditional Estonian life pre-Occupation, pass away.
Research, committing this knowledge to books, archives, image libraries, is vital if Estonia is to hold onto its traditional costume heritage. Mareli recently completed her Masters degree in heritage technology, specialising in folk costume, making her one of the country's leading authorities on the subject. She sits on Saaremaa Museum's Advisory Council, which "collects, possesses and distributes information on the folk costumes" of the island parishes.
As well as her museum work, Mareli runs a number of practical classes for local women - and a few men - teaching them how to make their own costumes. A full made-to-measure traditional festival costume can easily cost €1500, so there's plenty of incentive to learn the craft for those who want to wear the garb.
These days, traditional costumes are generally worn at weddings, festivals and national celebrations such as the Song and Dance Festival, but growing numbers of young Estonians are taking an interest in wearing the costume - or combining traditional elements with modern clothing. An elaborate hand-woven belt with a shop-bought dress, for example, or stitching distinctive regional trim to the hem of your jeans.
The signs are that Mareli's skills as an accomplished maker and teacher and as an authority on traditional costume will continue to be in high demand as Estonian national self-confidence continues to grow.