Trend Watch: Matryoshka Dolls
This is the first a new series of posts about design themes. Enjoy!
Dalinda's Plonkas Matryoshka purse
Matryoshka dolls are those cute Russian nesting dolls that are both a traditional folk craft and a modern design theme. Allegedly inspired by a set of nesting figures from Japan (does everything cool come from Japan?!), a folk artist made the first set of Matryoshka dolls in the late 1800s, sparking a national trend. The popularity of the nesting dolls continued through the twentieth century, and today the dolls can be found in any number of incarnations: politicians, celebrities, animals and more. Many craft outlets now sell “blanks”: unpainted wooden nesting dolls for crafters to customize as desired.
MwendaSupplies Mini Fabric Sew On Buttons
Recently, the nesting doll theme has turned up in unlikely places: jewelry, tote bags, dishes, pillows and plushies. The cute, round shape of the dolls lends itself to reinterpretation across a number of media, especially cute accessories, housewares and plush. The popularity of the theme is surging, and is picking up media coverage as well. Jars of Cute has a feature on Matryoshka-themed items today.
August 12th, 2009 at 6:13 am
I think the trend trickled down from Chanel’s fall/winter collection for this year. It’s Paris/Moscow-inspired and they featured a the nesting dolls on a number of accessories…
August 13th, 2009 at 7:38 am
Just stumbled across your site and I love it! I really appreciate all the tutorials on increasing and stuffing and such. I want to get into amigurumi and these tuts are gonna help me start off on the right foot. Thanks!