Transcript TRADITIONAL COSTUMES IN EUROPE

MELINAPAPASAVVA
B6
ENGLISH LESSON
2014-2015
 Wander here and there in Belgium! You’ll find the
French domination in the Belgian clothing. It is very
much true that Belgium is the European country
having the population of French, Dutch, Flemish and
Flanders who inhabited Belgium thousands of years
ago. But today, in all of the three territories i-e
Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels, you’ll hardly find
any Belgian wearing the traditional attire as by now,
the traditional dress of Belgium has become the
part of the Belgian folklore
 The Belgian male population love to wear Smocks and
Berets, the trends of which were picked by the
Belgians from the French during their period of
oppression upon them. On one side, the French
language has put a huge impact on the Belgians and on
the other, their clothing is mainly influenced by the
French styles. Till the twentieth century, the
youngsters in Belgium could usually be seen dressed
up with the long and traditional tunic shirts supported
by pant letters. Knee pants were a normal part of the
Belgian boys but with the passage of time, it became
the story of the past.
 Similarly, traditionally the
Belgian women used long
gowns to cover themselves.
But, these gowns were so
beautiful and sophisticated
that the most of the ethnic
women in Belgium had
adopted them. The Huntress
was very famous and
traditional costume for the
Belgian women
 as also today; the Belgian
women wear these as their
wedding attire. The dress has
ties which have been given a
trimming with colorful beads.
Fashion designers that
produce this Belgian costume
for today’s masses offer an
opportunity to choose your
own trims and make the
huntress dress with
detachable sleeves. The dress
is worn with a special chemise
which is usually white in
color.
 The traditional costumes of
Denmark vary from region to
region and date back about 250
years ago. Clothes were homemade
from wool or flax yarn. Many of
the colors of the fabric were made
with vegetable dyes
 Men’s clothing was made mainly of wool
and flax, too. However, their knee breeches
were made of leather. They also wore homeknitted white woolen stockings that reached
above their knees. Men wore several jerseys,
several long shirts and jackets. The buttons
were made of tin and the wealthier Danish
men wore silver buttons. They wore leather
boot tops and leather dress shoes with
buckles in the front.
 The Danish women normally used to dress up in their best
costume on Sunday and the most significant part of their
costume was the superb headdress. This headdress was
either in the form of a bonnet or a scarf. The traditional
skirts or petticoats were long, worn by the layer and
invariably covered by an apron of fine silk or
embroidered mull. The upper part of the body was covered
by a fabric jacket or blouse. A close-fitting bodice fastened
by hooks or laced at the front was worn in some regions.
Skirts, jackets and bodices were edged and decorated with
flat or patterned silk tape while light scarves were worn
around the neck to cover the shoulders and throat.
 The Lithuanian national or folk costume of the present
time was formed at the turn of the 19th century on the
basis of the festive or holiday dress, which tended to
differ considerably from parish to parish. At the turn of
the 20th century the Lithuanian national costume,
particularly women's dress, was considerably
influenced by urban traditions.
 Today national costumes are usually worn by the
participants of folk music and dance concerts,
religious processions, various public festivities.
 Men's dress differed from region to region less then that of women. The entire
outfit consisted of a shirt, trousers, vest, lightweight coat, greatcoat, sheepskin
coat, head dress and footwear. Men's shirts usually had long sleeves and were
made of thick linen or tow cloth. They usually had a stand-up collar of cotton
cloth embroidered in black and red cotton stitch. Up until the 20th century
trousers were made of homespun linen, wool on linen or on cotton, or wool.
They used to be of medium width. Trousers for everyday wear had a drawstring
while those for holiday use had a waistband. Dark or grey cloth of solid colour
was used to make winter trousers. Summer trousers were made of white or
white-on-blue checked cloth. In winter, spring and autumn or on longer trips
men wore greatcoats, lightweight coats and, later, jackets over the vest.
Greatcoats used to be double breasted and grey in colour. Strips of matted
woolen cloth in a contrasting colour, plaited narrow bands, cord or leather were
appliqued to the edging, cuffs, collar and pockets. Trousers and greatcoats were
girded with sashes around the waist. Many kinds of caps were worn by the
country men, but in warm weather Lithuanian men, young and old alike,
preferred straw hats.
 Women's dress was more colourful and
varied than that worn by men. The clothes
of a Lithuanian woman reflected her
industry, accomplishments and sense of
beauty. Women's costumes consisted of a
skirt, shirt, bodice and an apron. The outer
garments consisted of a greatcoat or a
sheepskin coat and a head-dress.