THE SARAFAND EVERYDAY DRESS: a tatreez pattern booklet
This Tatreez pattern booklet features historic and authentic designs from everyday dresses worn in Sarafand around the 1940s in Palestine.
It offers a glimpse into the fashion style of Sarafand village, located in the Ramla district of Palestine. The dresses from Sarafand, particularly between the 1930s and late 1940s, are distinctive and specific. Like other dresses from the Ramla region, they feature a square neck opening on the chest panel, known as the “qabbe.” These dresses are notable for their unique chest panel design, featuring a tile pattern called “rasmet balat,” where one pattern is repeated throughout, like tiles. Interestingly, the chest panel often contrasts sharply with the rest of the dress.
The embroidery on Sarafand dresses is intricate and finely detailed, with extremely small cross-stitches. However, apart from the chest panel, the rest of the dress is not fully embroidered. These dresses typically come in white cotton, though black cotton versions also exist. The patterns from Sarafand are unique, they include both newer designs introduced from DMC pattern books and older geometric patterns widely used across Palestine. On the back panel, you’ll often find three traditional designs: the Kohl Holder, Flower Pot, or Lupin Flower, all of which share similar features.
What’s especially unique about the Sarafand dress is the addition of decorative elements like flowers, flower pots, or birds in various colors, inspired by European designs. These embellishments appear on the shoulder plates and the top of the back panel, standing out distinctly from the traditional patterns.
Sarafand al-Ammar was a Palestinian Arab village located on the coastal plain of Palestine, about 5 km northwest of Ramla. The name Sarafand (Ṣarafand / صرفند) is the Arabic rendition of the Phoenician place name Ṣrpt, while “al-Ammar” means “the built, inhabited. Who would have imagined such exquisite craftsmanship coming from a village marked by so much tragedy? The village was depopulated and its inhabitants were forcibly displaced in May 1948.
The patterns featured in this 9-page booklet were carefully studied from a variety of dresses, preserving the artistic and cultural heritage of this village.This Tatreez pattern booklet features historic and authentic designs from everyday dresses worn in Sarafand around the 1940s in Palestine.
THE SARAFAND EVERYDAY DRESS: a tatreez pattern booklet
This Tatreez pattern booklet features historic and authentic designs from everyday dresses worn in Sarafand around the 1940s in Palestine.
It offers a glimpse into the fashion style of Sarafand village, located in the Ramla district of Palestine. The dresses from Sarafand, particularly between the 1930s and late 1940s, are distinctive and specific. Like other dresses from the Ramla region, they feature a square neck opening on the chest panel, known as the “qabbe.” These dresses are notable for their unique chest panel design, featuring a tile pattern called “rasmet balat,” where one pattern is repeated throughout, like tiles. Interestingly, the chest panel often contrasts sharply with the rest of the dress.
The embroidery on Sarafand dresses is intricate and finely detailed, with extremely small cross-stitches. However, apart from the chest panel, the rest of the dress is not fully embroidered. These dresses typically come in white cotton, though black cotton versions also exist. The patterns from Sarafand are unique, they include both newer designs introduced from DMC pattern books and older geometric patterns widely used across Palestine. On the back panel, you’ll often find three traditional designs: the Kohl Holder, Flower Pot, or Lupin Flower, all of which share similar features.
What’s especially unique about the Sarafand dress is the addition of decorative elements like flowers, flower pots, or birds in various colors, inspired by European designs. These embellishments appear on the shoulder plates and the top of the back panel, standing out distinctly from the traditional patterns.
Sarafand al-Ammar was a Palestinian Arab village located on the coastal plain of Palestine, about 5 km northwest of Ramla. The name Sarafand (Ṣarafand / صرفند) is the Arabic rendition of the Phoenician place name Ṣrpt, while “al-Ammar” means “the built, inhabited. Who would have imagined such exquisite craftsmanship coming from a village marked by so much tragedy? The village was depopulated and its inhabitants were forcibly displaced in May 1948.
The patterns featured in this 9-page booklet were carefully studied from a variety of dresses, preserving the artistic and cultural heritage of this village.This Tatreez pattern booklet features historic and authentic designs from everyday dresses worn in Sarafand around the 1940s in Palestine.