From traditional skirt to interior textile. Creation of blankets inspired by yellow Muhu skirt

Abstract

The present thesis contains two components: theoretical and practical. The object of this research is the traditional yellow skirt from the Estonian island of Muhu. The research area of my project covers the field of weaving. The main objective of my Master thesis is to gain better understanding about how to work within a tradition and give a new perspective to the traditional Estonian weaving technique. The thesis includes the questions: what is the Muhu skirt? How to use tradition a different way than it has been used before? What happens when we look at an old technique with a new perspective? How can we preserve the principles of an old tradition? The theoretical part includes an analysis of Muhuskirt patterns, construction, colours and material and a comparison of Muhu skirts from different time periods. The practical part details the learning process and looks at bringing a new perspective to an old tradition. The aim of my practical work is to weave two blankets that are inspired by the yellow Muhu skirt.