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портянки (portyanki)

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The Russian army wore portyanki (footcloths) up until the ministry of defence abolished them in 2008. There's an interesting article about them here, the author of which apparently wore portyanki for 695 days in the army.¹

How to put on footcloths:

spread the piece of cloth (40cm x 90cm) flat on the floor;
put the foot closer to the edge of the cloth to wrap the edge around the big toe (the left foot should be closer to the left edge – and the right foot – to the right) ;
take the side of the rag and wrap it tight around the foot;
take the back of the rag and wrap it tightly around the leg;
pull the edge to adjust tightness and bend it behind the rest of the cloth;
put your boots on.

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^{1 Russiapedia. Of Russian origin: Portyanki.}

Properly tying a portyanki takes a lot of practice, and improperly tying them can result in some serious blisters and foot sores. Learning how to properly and quickly tie a portyanki was the first thing a rookie in the Russian army had to learn at the beginning of his military career.

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