If you don’t know yet how to dress up for your next costume party, you can turn a plain bedsheet into a DIY peplos and become a Greek woman from the Classical times or a glowing goddess.
For Halloween, Carnival or any good reason to throw a themed party, here’s a quick costume idea for you. Wear a DIY peplos… made with a bedsheet.
This costume idea comes from an old Italian magazine, and it’s definitely worth sharing. Despite the title of this insert (“The chiton in 4 steps”), this DIY peplos looks like those garments worn by Greek women up to 500 B.C., with a flap of fabric on the upper part of the body that was called “apoptygma“. That said, this costume is so easy that even if your sewing skills equal zero, you can give it a shot.
How to turn a bedsheet into a DIY peplos
All you need is a clean bedsheet and some safety pins to get ready. Fold about one-third of your bedsheet as seen in figure 1 and wrap it around your body as in figures 2 and 3. Then fix your peplos on your shoulders with some safety pins (figure 4) and close the open side with pins or a quick stitch.
If you’re a newbie like me but love to invest in a good sewing machine to start with a Singer – like the Singer 7258 – is a perfect choice for beginners.
How to accessorise your peplos like a Greek woman
Once your DIY peplos is ready and you’re happy with it, use a belt to mark your waist and hold your dress in place. See the detail in this statue of Athena, from the Athena and Marsyas group (450 B.C.), for a quick reference.
Ancient Greeks manufactured various types of footwear, both open and closed, for use outdoors and indoors. You can wear an ordinary pair of sandals, better with strings in natural shades of brown, and complete your look with a golden bracelet or cuff to give you a bit of status.
Greek-inspired hair and make-up
It seems like Greek women loved curly hair, made by rolling locks around a hot iron stick. Of course, technology is by your side, and you can curl your hair either with a curling wand or a curling tong, faster and safer. Let each lock cool down before releasing it, then tie them back (half ponytail will do) and let your hair fall forward on your shoulders. Secure it with hairspray.
If patience isn’t your greatest quality, “beach waves” will be a good substitute.
Greek women loved to wear make-up, especially after the contacts and trades with the Near East populations. Women were used to darken eyebrows, eyelashes and eyes. They used a cream to lighten their face and a red paste to colour their lips.
Opt for a very simple look by defining your eyes with a pencil eyeliner and a pitch black curling mascara, and wearing your favourite lipstick if you don’t want to use a red shade.
Now you’re ready to travel back in time to Ancient Greece.
Valentina Chirico aka Valens
Image sources: Ph. Kadir Avşar via Pexels Ph. Cup of Couple via Pexels Canva stock Ph. Adrenew Butko via Wikipedia Commons Originally from Instagram
