MEN’S COSTUME
Like the women’s costume each area of Cyprus had its own distinctive costume, with different characteristics in terms of colour, fabric and decoration. The most notable characteristic of the men’s costume is the ‘vraka’ adopted from Greece. The vraka is a pleated skirt usually made from cotton (called ‘dimito’). The ‘vrakes’ were dyed in all tones from dark to light blue and black. Depending on the age of the man and the area in which he lived, the man wore a different sized ‘vraka.’ In addition to the ‘vraka’ a shirt was worn, a dark cotton stripped one for every day use and a silk one for Sundays or festive occasions. The jacket was either with or without sleeves.
The costumes for everyday use had simple embroidery whereas the costumes that were for festivities usually had more elaborate embroidery. On the waist, a belt is worn. Farmers wore heavy boots and men from the cities wore lighter boots or regular shoes. Today the most common coloured vraka is black however in past times, Cypriot men did not only wear black ‘vrakes.’ During summer men wore lightweight, white ‘vrakes’ and throughout the remainder of the year, stiffer ‘vrakes’ in a blue colour. In the countryside the ‘vrakes’ were a dark blue and the black ‘vraka’ was only typically worn during festivities. Today the men’s costume consists of a white shirt, black vest with embroidery, a black vraka, black tights and high, long boots.