Kirivöö Belt
The kirivöö, the Estonian pick-up patterned belt: a narrow woven band of wool over a linen or wool ground, carrying rows of small crosses, rhombuses, triangles and diagonal figures worked by the pick-up technique. Each parish knew its own edge patterns, so that the belt could tell where a woman came from, and the belts were worn wrapped at the waist with folk dress, and given as gifts, love-pledges and protective charms. The Estonian National Museum holds belts from across the country, and studies of the small patterns at the belt edges continue to map the regional styles and their meanings.