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Habesha kemis

Traditional attire worn by Ethiopian or Eritrean women

Habesha kemis

Traditional attire worn by Ethiopian or Eritrean women

Habesha kemis

Habesha kemis ( lit. "Shirt" or "Dress") is the traditional attire of Habesha women.

The ankle length dress is usually worn by Ethiopian and Eritrean women at formal events, holidays and invitations, and comes in many regional varieties. It features intricate embroidery along the hems. It is made of cotton fabric, and typically comes in white, grey or beige shades. Many women also wrap a shawl called a netela around the formal dress.

The Habesha kemis influenced the design of the 20th century dashiki. The dashiki was born from a wax print pattern by Dutch designer Toon van de Mannaker for Netherlands-based Vlisco. Van de Mannaker's print pattern was inspired by the silk embroidered tunics worn by Christian Ethiopian noblewomen in the 19th century.

References

References

  1. ''Travel & leisure'' Volume 36 2006 "A woman with her hair in tight braids and wearing habesha kemis — a white ankle-length dress with intricate embroidery — came around to each of us with a silver kettle of warm water and a silver basin for washing our hands."
  2. Lisa L. Schoonover ''The Indigo Butterfly'' Page 114 2012 "The habasha kemis is a dress is made from traditionally using cotton and its generally grouped in the catogery of yahager lebse. Shiny threads called tilet are woven into the white fabric that creates an elegant effect. The hem of the dress is quite ornated by the tilet. “It takes about three weeks for them to make the dress. I had to special order it,” Sherine explains."
  3. "About Vlisco".
  4. Museum, Victoria and Albert. "Kamis {{!}} Unknown {{!}} V&A Explore The Collections". Victoria and Albert Museum: Explore the Collections.
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