Welwyn Garden City Ukrainians celebrates Vyshyvanka Day

Held on the third Thursday in May, the day saw around 40 Ukrainians gather in Stanborough Park wearing embroidered shirts and dresses - called Vyshyvanka - to celebrate their traditions and culture.

Ukrainians celebrated Vyshyvanka Day in Welwyn Garden City (Image: Daria Diak)

During the event, artist and restorer Julia Machkovska taught the participants how to decorate clothing using the ancient Ukrainian technique 'Vybiyka', which involves transferring patterns from a carved wooden board to fabric.

Daria Diak, who organised the event, said: "Vyshyvanka is a talisman. Each region of our home country has its own style of embroidery, the color of the pattern, and the technique of applying the pattern.

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"Embroidery already existed in Ukraine in the fifth century BC and was a creation of the Scythian fine art.  A lot of patterns used in embroidery decorations can be traced back to the pagan era.

The Ukrainian community learnt how to decorate clothes using the traditional Vybiyka technique (Image: Daria Diak)

"It is important for us, Ukrainians, to preserve our culture, no matter how far we are from our home.

"It is our cultural and spiritual values that allow us to keep faith that no military aggression and terror will destroy Ukrainians as a nation.

"The Ukrainian community of Welwyn Garden City is very grateful to Cllr Michal Siewniak for his support and help, as well as Hertfordshire County Council."