Ok so just about every summer fast fashion chains bring blouses like these back into rotation:
These particular ones are from h&m and romwe, tho you can find them all over the place, but the thing is that these designs are pretty blatantly lifted from eastern european traditional clothing designs (but poorly made & without a penny going to those eastern european communities). So, if you like these types of designs but hate fast fashion, I’ve decided to compile a list of some alternative places where you can buy them from actual eastern european artisans. Just as a side note, you are more than welcome to wear these designs even if you do not belong to the culture the design is from, the only issue here is with big corporations profiting by ripping off our culture and then doing nothing for our communities.
Also, a heads up that while the fast fashion version of these shirts are generally really cheap, the traditionally made ones are usually start at around US$50 or more, depending on the complexity of the designs & some other factors (but they also last much longer than the cheap ones & are pretty much always made of natural fibers, like cotton or linen). You’ll notice that many of these places make garments to order, so you can often contact them to request a custom size or color.
BRS - Here you’ll find a lot of items that are made in the romanian tradition but feel fresh & updated. Gorgeous & ethically made but kind of pricey (with most blouses in the $150-250 range)
De Toujours - This brand is collaborating with romanian artisans on a traditionally made blouse that costs €200
Folklorica - A poland-based etsy shop with some blouses embroidered in the Polish tradition, along with other traditional and tradition-inspired garments (most items are in the $30-50 range)
EtnoSoul - A ukraine-based etsy shop, traditional & tradition-inspired fashion. They have embroidered blouses along with other things, such as dresses & children’s clothing. They also have wedding dresses & men’s embroidered shirts, which both look sick as hell (price range: $90-270)
SvitVyshyvanok - Another Ukraine-based etsy shop, really pretty embroidered dresses!! (price range: $60-200 for most items)
This is ofc an incomplete list, please feel free to add on! Also, if there are local or diaspora artisans of other cultures whose traditional designs resemble that of these types of embroidered shirts, please feel free to add them as well!
