My Flickr Favorites: Traditional Costume Terschelling, The Netherlands

Today we move back to the north, to the Wadden or Frisian islands. The islands had all their own costumes, but I only show you the ones of the island of Terschelling because it looks different from the rest of the Frisian costumes. Just as the rich costume of the Zaanstreek, the female costume has a kaper, but a plain back cotton one, and a bit smaller. It is worn over a knitted and crocheted white 'mutske' (bonnet) tightly fitting around the head.

For more flickr favourites see ArtMind's blog.

1. Terschellinger volksdansers., 2. 11 Terschelling- Jet Necklace, 3. Fokke en Sukke op Terschelling,, 4. Folk Dancing Terschelling


And two picture postcards from my own collection.

My Flickr Favorites : Traditional Costume North Netherlands

Today we move from the east of The Netherlands to the north of The Netherlands, the provinces of Friesland, Groningen and Drenthe. There are differences in the costumes between the various regions in this area, but they are very difficult to see for outsiders. That's why I combine them here in the mosaic. The women wear a rich costume (silk, wool, damask) with the characteristics of the crinoline fashion, namely a tailored upper part with a wide skirt and petticoats. Above it they wear a scarf and an apron made of embroidered lace. The most striking element however is the the broad gold casque, a goldcap that covers the entire head. Above the gold casque they wear a lace cap with a small pleated tail.

For more flickr favourites see ArtMind's blog.
1. People of The Netherlands , about half a century ago, 2. Lace headdress, 3. Ljouwerter Skotsploech-Folklore Dancing-Group, 4. Ringstekken Burgum


And two picture postcards from my own collection.

My Flickr Favorites: Childhood Memories

Today in the Flickr Favorites we are playing by theme (every first Tuesday in the month), and the theme for this Tuesday is "Childhood Memories". The most of my childhood memories are around all the holidays we had at the house of my Friesian grandparents. The smell of peat in the kitchen, the blue walls against the flies, the white goat and the fresh milk, the heaps of forget-me-nots we picked, the washing under the cold pump outside, the chicken and the eggs, the fishing with my dad early in the morning, the meat simmering on the oil-stove, etc. etc.

For more flickr favourites see ArtMind's blog.

1. Washing at the pump, 2. Vergeet-mij-nietjes, 3. Keuken , 4. Geit melken

Traditional Costumes : Postage Stamps Holland

This Friday I show you some stamps of The Netherlands that have some connection with traditional Dutch costumes. The stamps above are from the summer stamps of 1974 (of designer J. v.d. Toorn Vrijthoff) and they show the Dutch author Herman Heijermans and the actress Esther de Boer – van Rijk in her star role as Kniertje in the famous 1900 play "Op Hoop Van Zegen" (Dutch for "Trusting Our Fate in the Hands of God") of Herman Heijermans. The play is taking place in a North Sea fishing village, and Kniertje is wearing a typical North Sea traditional Dutch costume.


This stamp is from the local post service in North East Friesland for the winter season in 2000. It shows 3 couples in traditional Friesian costumes glide skating, a typical old Dutch way of skating.


The next stamps do not show traditional costumes as such, but more typical (Dutch) historical costumes. Because I like them too, here some pictures and a short description.
This stamp is of 1996 and commemorates 200 years of the province of Noord-Brabant. In 1796 Noord-Brabant became the ninth province of the Netherlands; this fact was celebrated with roll of drums and flag throwing in historical costumes.


This lovely milkmaid is a historic ornamental stone on a house in Alkmaar. She is in the 1975 Child Welfare Issue together with some other ornamental house-stones. She is wearing a typical 16th century farmer's wife costume of North-Holland. I found this picture of her on Flickr (Sierag):


This lovely set commemorates the 50th Anniversary of Child Welfare Issues in 1974 and shows early photographs. They are from an old photograph album of around 1900 of Gerardus van Bruggen and Cornelia van Nes with their ten children (living on a farm in Haarlemmerliede). The kids pose in their Sunday clothes looking like small adults: Gerrit with a hoop (30 ct), Dora holding hands with her little brother Jo on a chair (35 ct), Sjaan and Ans (6 and 5 years of age) standing beside a chair (45 ct), and Cornelia sitting beside a decorated travelling box (60 ct).

Traditional Costumes : Postage Stamps Holland 1960

This Friday I show you the children charity stamps of The Netherlands of 1960.




Children charity stamps are distributed each year by the Dutch Post and you can buy them at every post office in The Netherlands. There is an extra charge on the stamps, which is intended for cultural, social or health projects. In 1960, the children stamps were designed by Jeanna Bieruma Oosting, one of the most prominent Dutch graphic artists in that time. The rather realistic colored line drawings of children in traditional costumes are placed in front of loudly colored backgrounds. Funny enough, just like the rejected designs of Hubert Levigne from only two years before, she gives only a bust view of the kids (face and half-face).



The stamps depict some traditional costumes from around the former inland sea the Zuiderzee (now Lake IJsselmeer), and very appropriately the first sale of these stamps started in the Zuiderzee Museum in Enkhuizen. The children portrayed are Aaltje van Rie from Marken (4 ct), Jannetje Kwakman from Volendam (6 ct), Magda van Halteren from Bunschoten (8 ct), Janna Marijke Atema from Hindeloopen (12 ct) and Dittie Klein from Huizen (30 ct).



I think this 1960 series is a very charming set, lovely designs with children very well taken into consideration.

Flickr Favourites: Traditional Costume of Hindeloopen, Holland

Today in the Flickr Favourites it's the turn of the traditional costume of Hindeloopen in Friesland in The Netherlands; it's an old city in the north at Lake IJsselmeer. In 1368 the city became part of the Hanseatic-league. Ships of Hindeloopen made journeys to the North Sea and Baltic Sea coasts. The strong overseas connections with foreign countries were probably the reason for the development of an own Hindeloopen language; a mixture of Frisian, English, Danish, and Norwegian. The ship-trade brought Hindeloopen great prosperity, especially in the 17th and 18th century. Lots of money were spent in Amsterdam on precious fabrics and objects, which were supplied through the Dutch East India Company (VOC). The rich town developed in those days her own costume and interior design style with colorful painted walls and furniture. The costume was very richly decorated and knew many variations; so you could easily see whether a woman was married or not, or if she was in mourning or not. They used dyed cotton from India and woolen and linen materials from Holland. The long or short coat was made of chintz with a flower-pattern and the apron and the headdress were made of a woven check pattern.

For more flickr favourites see ArtMind's blog.

1. Fries Museum Hindelooper dracht, 2. Hindelopen klompjes, 3. Chintz Baby Boy Hat - original, 4. IMG_6993

And two picture postcards from my own collection.

Challenge : My Home Town

Every week the European Street Team at Etsy organizes a challenge to make something with a special theme.
The theme this week is organized by MirthQuake and is called "My Home Town".
She writes: "Anything that inspires you thinking back to the old days. Good memories or even bad memories...melancholy or pure bliss... I would like to see a black and white picture of your hometown (anything, a house, a church, a garden, even a tree is ok) in the listing, either as a background for your item, or as part of your item (for instance with photography), or as a picture in your listing if you can't embed it in your item itself."

My Friesian grandparents (pake and beppe in the friesian language) lived in a small house at the border of a large forest; I loved to be there when I was a little girl. It smelled good (I still remember the smell), it played marvellous (lots of animals, flowers, water and trees), it felt good (protected, at home and cozy); in short, a real paradise for a little town-born girl. My grandparents are dead for already many many years now, but I still think of them and that paradise of a house. This summer, after 40 years, I went back to that house, and it was a big shock. Nothing of a paradise anymore; it was much smaller than I remembered and everything was broken, the roof, the windows, the land; all was a ruin. Hence, a true faded glory ! Although, my father told me it was also like that 40 years ago; he never saw it like a paradise.... And seeing the pictures of then and now, I have to confess he is right. So, that's what feeling happy and at home does to a kid, I think, it creates this fairy tale memory of the "good old time".

Well, the old house inspired me to make this "faded glory" necklace for our weekly challenge. This 3-chain necklace is made of old vintage metal and bone buttons woven together with an old rope, old metal chain links, an old key and other rusted metal findings. Available on P8 Button Art on Etsy.