"Old Believer" Dresses

These are a series of dresses I found in a thrift store in Fairbanks, Alaska.  They are recently made "Old Believer" dresses.  Old Believers are a conservative offshoot of the Russian Orthodox Church that broke off from the main church after Peter the Great's reformation of the Orthodox rituals in 1700.  Large numbers of Old Believers emigrated from Russia during the 20th Century because of religious persecution from the Communist government.  Several small towns in Alaska are largely colonies of this group.  These dresses most probably are from one of these towns.  The traditional dress of  Old Believers is a modern adaptation of traditional Russian peasant dress.  Women's dress is based on the Sarafan.  These dresses include several unusual features that make them immediately identifiable as  modern Sarafans:   1. A high yoke in front with many gathers over the breast.  2. A flat back bodice piece or smocked back going down to the waist.  3. In many cases, there is a hidden slot in the front pleats of the dress for breastfeeding.  All these dresses are made of silk-like polyesters that resist wrinkles.  For more information on Old Believer Clothing and other dress of religious groups click here.

  This dress has the plastic pearls attached to it.

Two asymmetrical style Sarafan styles. 

Combination shirt (rubachka), and underskirt of polyester with punch needle embroidery at shoulders

  slot for nursing.  

    two similar dresses with irregular ruffled hems.  Possibly intended to be worn over an underskirt.

More traditional style Sarafans made for little girls.  They are intended to be worn over a gathered blouse like a jumper.

Sarafan made for an adult woman.  

Pattern of the black fabric of the dress (altered to white in Photoshop so the pattern shows up):

Woman's polyester sarafan

   Little girl's sarafan with built in blouse

  Little girl's sarafan with built in blouse

Little girl's sarafan with built in blouse

Little girl's sarafan with built in blouse, and collar with bugle beads. (it looks like the girl tore two rough "nursing" holes in the pleats of the front, perhaps for playing with dolls?)

Little girl's sarafan with built in blouse

  Little girl's sarafan in traditional style

Little girl's sarafan with built in blouse

  Little girl's sarafan with built in blouse

Woman's one piece outfit.

Girl's One piece blouse-sarafan