Martenitsa

Martenitza is a small piece of adornment, made of white and red yarn and worn from March 1 until around the end of March (or the first time an individual sees a stork, swallow or budding tree). The name of the holiday is Baba Marta. "Baba" is the Bulgarian word for "grandmother" and “Mart” is the Bulgarian word for the month of March.
Baba Marta is a Bulgarian tradition related to welcoming the upcoming spring. The month of March, according to Bulgarian folklore, marks the beginning of springtime. Therefore, the first day of March is a traditional holiday associated with sending off winter and welcoming spring. On the first day of March and few days afterwards, Bulgarians exchange and wear white and red tassels or small dolls called “Pizho and Penda”.
The red and white woven threads are not just meaningless decoration, but symbolize the wish for good health. While white as a color symbolizes purity and soul, red is a symbol of life and passion, thus some ethnologists have proposed that in its very origins the custom might have reminded people of the constant cycle of life and death, the balance of good and bad, of sorrow and happiness in human life. Given as an amulet in the period of spring, when nature gets “reborn” and starts blossoming again it was not only a reminder of that balance but also a wish for health, strength and happiness.
This is an old pagan tradition and remains almost unchanged today. The common belief is that by wearing the red and white colours of the martenitsa people ask Baba Marta for mercy. They hope that it will make winter pass faster and bring spring. Many people wear more than one martenitsa. They receive them as presents from relatives, close friends and colleagues. Martenitsa is usually worn pinned on the clothes, near the collar, or tied around the wrist. The tradition calls for wearing the martenitsa until the person sees a stork or a blooming tree. The stork is considered a harbinger of spring and as evidence that Baba Marta is in a good mood and is about to retire.
According to another legend Baba Marta has had two husbands: the one young and handsome, the other one – ugly and nagger. When she has been looking at the first one she was laughing and when she has been looking at the other one she was being angry and weeping. According some other beliefs she has had two brothers: Goliam(=big) Sechko (January) and Malak(= small) Sechko (February) and the April has been her sworn brother.