Ric rac (sometimes spelled rickrack) is a zigzag ribbon used as trimming decor in clothing and other textiles. Used as way to finish an edge of fabric,
pre-sewing machine, it has remained a chosen decorative trim to bring color and pizzazz to twirling dresses, traditional regalia, and performance costume.
In Europe, in the late 1880s, ric rac was called wavy braid and was used to decorate collars and cuffs and as a crocheted lace trim for clothing. It was durable and held up as a design element amid harsh washing with lyes and wooden paddles. By the 20th century, Americans were importing it as a trim for dresses, lingerie, aprons, and bedding.
In the 1930s and ‘40s rural homemakers and seamstresses in America used ric rac to adorn dresses made from the sacks in which flour and feed was shipped. The trim helped fancy up such dresses to appear storebought rather than makeshift.
Our design team, Julie Ray Creative, noticed in our extensive photo archive of the festival that ric rac is a common design element on costumes worn by performers sharing traditional music and dances from Mexico, Poland, Bulgaria, Colombia, and Indigenous America.
So the colorful, festive zig-zag became a design element in this year’s TMY graphics, signage, and marketing efforts!