Soutache (, ), also known as Russia braid, is a narrow flat decorative

braid A braid (also referred to as a plait; ) is a complex structure or pattern formed by interlacing three or more strands of flexible material such as textile yarns, wire, or hair. The simplest and most common version is a flat, solid, three-strand ...

, a type of

galloon Galloon (sometimes spelled galon in British English) is a heavily-decorated woven or braided trim, typically made of, or featuring, gold or silver thread, which may be woven or embroidered. Galloon trim is used in the trim of military and poli ...

, used in the trimming of drapery or clothing. Soutache is created by weaving a decorative thread around and between two parallel cords and completely covering the cores; this produces a piece of trim with a braided or herringbone pattern. Often woven of metallic bullion thread, silk, or a blend of silk and wool, soutache began to be made of

rayon Rayon, also called viscose and commercialised in some countries as sabra silk or cactus silk, is a semi-synthetic fiber made from natural sources of regenerated cellulose fiber, cellulose, such as wood and related agricultural products. It has t ...

and other synthetic fibers in the 20th century.

Uses

Soutache is used in

passementerie Passementerie (, ) or passementarie is the art of making elaborate trimmings or edgings (in French, ) of applied braid, gold or silver cord, embroidery, colored silk, or beads for clothing or furnishings. Styles of passementerie include the tass ...

to add decorations to textiles. In clothing soutache is used to conceal seams or add embroidered decorations. Tracing braid is narrow soutache trim used for decorating uniforms. In military uniforms, edgings or loops of soutache in different widths and colors are used to indicate rank, particularly in hats. In athletic uniforms, a contrasting soutache is sometimes used to trim the placket and outline numbers or players' names. The term is also used in

bookbinding Bookbinding is the process of building a book, usually in codex format, from an ordered stack of paper sheets with one's hands and tools, or in modern publishing, by a series of automated processes. Firstly, one binds the sheets of papers alon ...

, where a narrow soutache is applied at the top and bottom of a book back to reinforce the spine and provide a barrier to keep dust out of the binding. Soutache is incorporated into standalone accessories like jewelry, typically with beads.

Use on uniforms

In the ''Specifications for the Uniform of the United States Army'' from 1917, there is a detailed description of the differing rows of soutache braid on the sleeve of full dress and special evening dress coats. A colonel would have a knot formed from five rows of 1/8" gold or gilt, a lieutenant colonel four rows, a major three, a captain two, and a first lieutenant would have one row. For an overcoat, 1/8" of black soutache would be used. In France in 1889, gold and silver soutache appeared on the

kepi The kepi ( ) is a cap with a flat circular top and a peak, or visor. In English, the term is a loanword from , itself a re-spelled version of the , a diminutive form of , meaning . In Europe, the kepi is most commonly associated with French ...

(French military caps) and

dolmans A dolman is either a military shirt, or a jacket decorated with braiding, first worn by Hungarian hussars. The word is of Turkish origin, and after being adopted into Hungarian, has propagated to other languages. The garment was worn by peasants ...

of different military officials: the Chief of the Post would have one row of silver soutache, while the Director of the Telegraph would have five rows.

History

Soutache originated in France in the 15th century, and was used to trim clothing for the

aristocracy Aristocracy (; ) is a form of government that places power in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocracy (class), aristocrats. Across Europe, the aristocracy exercised immense Economy, economic, Politics, political, and soc ...

and create jewelry. By the 17th century, it joined other trimmings such as ribbon and lace that were key elements of the fashions of the upper class, in France and beyond. Soutache braid began to be used on uniforms in France under Napoleon in the early 19th century. It was also used on Ottoman military and bureaucratic dress during the 19th century, and this use spread to other countries under Ottoman rule in the

Levant The Levant ( ) is the subregion that borders the Eastern Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean sea to the west, and forms the core of West Asia and the political term, Middle East, ''Middle East''. In its narrowest sense, which is in use toda ...

and North Africa. With the Industrial Revolution and the increased availability of less expensive clothing and decorative trims, soutache began to be found on ready to wear clothing, making it within the reach of a wider range of people. Soutache came into its own with more elaborate Victorian clothing. An attachment known as an underbraider was made available for domestic sewing machines. This would feed soutache directly under the needle on the reverse side of the fabric so that designs could be stitched by machine. Manuals and reference books from the middle of the twentieth century indicate that it was very popular at that time, for example

References

Citations

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* {{sewing Notions (sewing) Embroidery Decorative ropework