tsalagirose

So ... here's the deal. I am Cherokee, and refuse to wear the "tear dress" - not really authentic. :) For about 3 years, I had a one piece buckskin dress with some floral beading (minimal of course, to stay traditional). My ex husband destroyed that and so this year I set about making a new outfit.

So, what I have now is a suede fringed one piece dress with a southern type border trim above the fringe, a turquoise glass and bead necklace with a small feather attached to the bottom pendant, high topped moccasins with fir trim (not custom made, but beautiful), and I'm planning on doing the traditional red arrow paint next to the eyes (red for my Aniwodi clan).

Any suggestions for last minute additions? I'm obviously not going to dance until next year when it is beaded and I have my belts and bags and fans, but I'm very excited to have a new dress to go with.

superndngyrl

Post photos!

__________________
The only time its too late to start dancing is when you're dead.

Czechy

Yep! A new outfit always makes you feel good!
You may also want a spare cloth dress for the days when its raining or very hot. Have fun making your new outfit and show us pictures when you are done!

timmy tiger

Okay, I'm confused here. What do you mean the "Tear" dress is not really Authentic? By what standard and based on what?

Are you talking Easter Cherokee or Western Cherokee traditional here?

Suede and fur topped moccasins? How are they traditional? And by what means?

And I have never heard anything about a Cherokee woman painting her face, that's a Warrior's sign.

2lineCarrandMorgan

Hi TT there are threads on the tear dress being kind of a new part of some ppl outfits i dont rember what its saidall the way,but its said to have come on to the seen around i think the 40 or 50es

also lots of ppl for moey concernes need to build slowly and boots cover the feet of the dancer not just everon can manage to come to powwow with a perfiftoutfit

__________________
its said by,Deganewidah
I am Deganewidah, and with the Five Nations confederate lords I plant the tree of the Great Peace. . . . Roots have spread out from the Tree . . . and the name of these Roots is the Great White Roots of Peace. If any man or any nation outside the Five Nations shall show a desire to obey the laws of the Great Peace . . . they may trace the Roots to their source . . . and they shall be welcomed to take shelter beneath the Tree. . . .
for my Dad

then again somtimes i see a woman in the trees she only looks at me and i can only look at her i m what she is now....i thank her as i see her... then somedays i see her as she was and that i will never be,and still we look at each other,
hello my Mother my sister today i saw you more than befor ,now i know i have a need more to walk with you here than ever i knew befor. Thank you

.
“Something is at work in all of us,”
Peter Kinew


Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass..It's about learning to dance in
the rain.
for the wolf

timmy tiger

Hi 2Line, yeah I've seen many of the threads and replied in a couple of them too. The dress actually came on the scene around the 1970's during the Miss Indian USA pagent. However, the dress was actually designed by member's of the Western Cherokee with the permission and approval of the Tribal Counsel, as I understand it and this story has been verified through tribal members of both the Eastern and Western Cherokee.

Another thing is that Pow wow's are not Cherokee Traditions, I can't speak for the OK Cherokee's. But for the Eastern Cherokee pow wow's did not even come there until around 1968-1970, I have personally talked and know some of the people who were involved with bringing the first pow wow to Cherokee, NC. This is why I asked these questions. Pow wow's are not Eastern Cherokee tradition to begin with. And there are threads, as you stated, explaining the "Traditional" dress of an Eastern Cherokee at a pow wow on here as well.

Actually the style is one of the most inexpensive that you will find. Most of it is clothe and the mocc's are pucker toe. Again, there is a thread here again about the new dress of the Eastern Cherokee and the woman who started it lives on the res.

neling4

Is this the thread you mean timmy? This is the one started by Okwataga:

Cherokee style Tear Dress no longer for Eastern band

timmy tiger

Yep, Neling4--that would be the thread. Okwataga IS Eastern Cherokee and lives on the res, so she should know.LOL

2lineCarrandMorgan

so we all argee that if the lady in this thread want to make her dress away from the tear dress she is in her perfit rightwith out needing to get by you TT?

__________________
its said by,Deganewidah
I am Deganewidah, and with the Five Nations confederate lords I plant the tree of the Great Peace. . . . Roots have spread out from the Tree . . . and the name of these Roots is the Great White Roots of Peace. If any man or any nation outside the Five Nations shall show a desire to obey the laws of the Great Peace . . . they may trace the Roots to their source . . . and they shall be welcomed to take shelter beneath the Tree. . . .
for my Dad

then again somtimes i see a woman in the trees she only looks at me and i can only look at her i m what she is now....i thank her as i see her... then somedays i see her as she was and that i will never be,and still we look at each other,
hello my Mother my sister today i saw you more than befor ,now i know i have a need more to walk with you here than ever i knew befor. Thank you

.
“Something is at work in all of us,”
Peter Kinew


Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass..It's about learning to dance in
the rain.
for the wolf

timmy tiger

HUH?

My questions had nothing to do with the dress--it was with her statement of "authentic".

Wojapi4Me

The best thing to do is to contact someone who has already made an outfit described in the above thread. Okwataga would be a good reference...saw hers last night and it's keen.

The outfit style itself is pretty simple, but very effective.
If you can't get ahold of Okwataga on here, contact the Museum of the Cherokee Indian in Cherokee, NC for more information on that style of dress.

Good luck.

__________________
If pro is the opposite of con, then wouldn't progress be the opposite of...lol

timmy tiger

Thank you Wojapi4me.

And if you are talking Western Cherokee, contact the Western Museum in Tahlequah (Spelling), that's what I would suggest to anyone up front anyway.

neling4

Okwataga is extremely knowledgeable and very nice. She helped me with mine and was very patient with all my questions. I just finished it and am about to take a photo of it for her to see.

timmy tiger