Ukrainian Wedding Headpiece

 In the old days, a Ukrainian bride wore a crown of flowers and grasses, gathered just hours before the ceremony from nearby meadows and gardens. Over the years, other materials became available: flowers of silk, paper or wax, strips of tin, cut, punched or hammered into shapes, ribbons, braids, buttons, beads and sequins. This example started with yarn and buttons. In the back is an explosion of beads and sequins, ingeniously assembled into a bouquet of fantastical flowers. There were and  are so many regional variations from all over Ukraine but what they all have in common is a sense of joy and more than a dash of whimsy.