Costumes: Epirus - Konitsa

These costumes are still worn by the villagers and they represent significant stages of their life.

An old Epirot market town, Konitsa was renowned throughout the area for the commercial activities of its inhabitants. Many of them emigrated, bringing back money on their return as well as more modern life-styles. Quite early the women began to cover their traditional blouses with long bourgeois style dresses, but retained their typical Epirot sigounia and flokates.

A sleeveless woven wool pinafore dress, gathered at the waist and embroidered round the hem, was worn as a petticoat for extra warmth. The material for the main dress, which was sewn by tailors, was generally oriental silk, but it could be a fine bought woolen cloth or cotton-silk mixture with stripes, and later velvet. The bodice, cuffs and hem were also trimmed with velvet bands. The sigouni was stitched and embroidered in red and gold by local tailors. The apron is made of silk, with colorful silk decoration. One or two rows of gold coins adorned the bodice. They tied a dark-colored silk or woolen scarf with a crocheted trim around the head. On chilly days, the women wore a floukata, which was sewn from a thick black woven cloth and likewise embroidered by a tailor, using strips of red felt and silk ribbons.

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