Ukraine

Embroidery is one of the most important crafts in Ukrainian material culture and folk art. It is traditionally practiced in all regions of the country, and was historically used to identify a person’s place of origin, and even imbue garments with good luck. Girls were taught to embroider from a young age and were expected to have mastered the craft by the time they were old enough to marry. Women took images they saw in the natural world and translated them into embroidery to create intimately personal designs that were rooted in place and culture.

The embroidered shirt (vyshyvanka) is one of the most recognizable symbols of Ukrainian identity. While historically worn for special occasions, modern vyshyvanka has become part of everyday fashion, and many Ukrainians choose to wear it as a physical representation of their heritage and culture. This garment is so important that it has its own national holiday - every year, the country celebrates Vyshyvanka Day on the third Thursday of May.

There is not one single "Ukrainian" style of embroidery. Ukraine is a large country with different biomes, ethnic groups, and cultural influences within its borders. All of these factors are reflected in the local embroidery of each region, which vary drastically while still being undeniably Ukrainian.

Nyzynka - Hutsul Region

One of the most unique styles of embroidery in Ukraine comes from the Hutsul people, an ethnic group native to the Carpathian mountains of southwestern Ukraine and northern Romania. Within Ukraine, Hutsul territory (or Hutsulshchyna) includes parts of Ivano-Frankivsk, Uzhhorod, and Chernivtsi oblasts.

Hutsul embroidery utilizes a dark and striking palette, generally featuring black as the main color. Most designs are made up of dense geometric patterns with little to no negative space. The most common symbol in Hutsul embroidery is the rhombus, a shape which represents a sown field, symbolizing fertility and abundance. Rhombi are used as the basis for a variety of symbols found in Hutsul embroidery.

First, the outline of the design is laid out in black or burgundy thread using a stitch called nyzykna or nyz, a type of counted-thread stitch made on the wrong side of the fabric. Nyzynka creates clean diagonal lines, which may have influenced the region's preference for geometric over organic symbols. Once the outline is finished, the fabric is flipped over to the front and negative space is filled in with other colors and types of stitches. The process results in an extremely detailed yet visually balanced design that showcases Hutsul culture's attention to craftsmanship.

Merezhka - Poltava

Poltava oblast in North-Central Ukraine is known for monochrome white-on-white embroidery. Instead of color, the style focuses on creating visual interest through texture and details. The designs can seem subtle from afar, but complexities become apparent when looked at closely. One of the common ways to create texture is the drawn-thread technique merezhka. Merezhka means 'little net' and refers to the net-like appearance of the final product. Lacework is not traditional in Ukraine, but openwork techniques like merezhka create a similar delicate effect. It is important to note that while Poltava is known for merezhka work, it is not the only region to utilize it and similar openwork styles.

The process starts with cutting and drawing two or more horizontal threads from the fabric. Embroidery thread (almost always the same color as the fabric) is then used to bind the vertical threads together. This can be done in a variety of ways, creating open and closed 'pixels' of different shapes and sizes. These are the basic units of merezhka, allowing artists to create patterns by building up rows of positive and negative ‘pixels.’ Merezhka can be used to decorate hems or built up to create a complex pattern. It is often used in tandem with other whitework stitches to add texture and visual interest to a design.

Cross-Stitch - Luhansk

Unlike nyzynka and merezhka, cross-stitch was not traditionally part of Ukrainian embroidery. It was introduced fairly recently, likely during the 18th century from Western and Central Europe. It has since become one of the most popular stitches throughout the country for its ability to execute a variety of designs. In Luhansk oblast in eastern Ukraine, cross-stitch is used to create elegant floral patterns. Luhansk-style embroidery uses a conservative color palette, each piece embroidered with either red and black or red and blue. As in Poltava, merezhka and whitework are also common. Designs tend to be small, with a focus on delicate cross-stitched details. A unique design feature is adding embroidery along the seams of shirt sleeves, which add an extra element not visible when facing someone head-on. 

Eastern Polissia

The historical region of Polissia stretches across much of northern Ukraine and is characterized by vast forests and post-glacial swamps. In a similar way to the mountainous Carpathian region in the southwest, the geography of Polissia made industrialization difficult and kept the region relatively sparsely populated. An effect of this is that the region has resisted influence from other cultures and preserved its traditions, which is reflected in its local embroidery.

Eastern Polissia is the part of the region east of the Dneiper and includes the northern areas of the Chernihiv, Sumy, and Kyiv oblasts. The region is known for a style of embroidery that uses geometric shapes, negative space, and a limited color palette to create harmonious designs. The color palette of Eastern Polissian embroidery is red, black, and white - a combination that is surprisingly difficult to find in Ukraine. Red and black are arguably the most popular colors in Ukrainian embroidery, and whitework is likewise widespread throughout the central and eastern areas of the country. However, white embroidery is usually done alongside colored elements, and using all three colors in the same design is traditionally rare and thought to be exclusive to this region.

Backstitch and cross stitch are used for outlines and details, and counted flat stitches like hlad and nastyluvania are used to fill in larger areas of color. Traditionally, linen was not completely bleached and remained an off-white color. This allowed white thread to contrast against the darker cloth. Common motifs used include rhombi, stars, leaves, and flowers, all represented in a geometric style.

The Rushnyk

An object that unites all Ukrainians, regardless of region, is the rushnyk. The term rushnyk is often translated into English as 'towel,' however, this seriously simplifies its importance as a sacred item. In homes, they are draped over icons or family photos as a sign of reverence and protection for the depicted saint or loved one. They are also actively used during major life events: to clean newborn babies, seal marriage vows, and lower coffins into graves.

Rushnyky are usually at least one meter long, made of white linen, and ornamented with embroidery or woven elements. The style of decoration varies, but the basic structure of the rushnyk stays consistent across Ukraine. The middle of the fabric can remain blank or be ornamented, depending on the region. The most important areas of the rushnyk are the ends, which are always decorated identically, making the whole object symmetrical. Red is by far the most popular color for embroidery on rushnyky as it is the most sacred color in Ukrainian culture, representing the sun, life, and fertility.

In 2008, Orysia Hewka, then director of the Ukrainian Educational and Cultural Center in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania, oversaw the creation of the Rushnyk of Hope. The piece is a 14 foot long rushnyk featuring embroidered squares made by over 100 Ukrainian-American and Ukrainian-Canadian artists, showcasing the diversity of craftsmanship within Ukrainian embroidery and the strong ties maintained by the diaspora in North America. In 2025, the Rushnyk of Hope was put on display for the Glencairn Museum’s Rushnyky: Sacred Ukrainian Textiles exhibition. Hewka was interviewed for the exposition by WHYY.  On her choice of a rushnyk for the project, Hewka said, “Rushnyk is a covering of prayer, a covering over us for our families.”