Croatian dolls

Today I am looking at the range of dolls distributed by Narodna Radinost wearing the folk costumes of Croatia. The two 8" cloth dolls shown here wear a costume from the Dalmatian coast of Croatia which is often associated with the Konavle region. It is a folk costume commonly seen on the general range of souvenir dolls from Croatia although the Narodna Radinost dolls do not have the white head scarf those dolls often do.  

Both dolls wear a small red pill box hat with gold thread as worn by single women. Married women wear the white head dress seen the print by Vladimir Kirin below. The dolls wear a white chemise which has embroidered panels on the chest and sleeves. The colours are usually red,yellow,green and blue and the chest panel has a yellow tassel. A black bolero is worn trimmed with  gold braid and the belt around the waist can be red or pink. The back of the chemise is pleated and an apron is worn which is also embroidered.

White stockings are worn and the shoes are red and can be leather or made from a dense red material.

I don't own many of these Croatian dolls. The early ones are hard to find and the white of the dress is often dirty and has yellowed over time.

V Kirin Narodne Nosnje Jugoslavije Zagreb