Guide to dressing properly in Ancient Greece
Fabric: Wool or linen fabric. Stuff like cotton or silk would’ve been hard to get. Not impossible, but hard to get.
Colors: The average person likely would’ve had the means to dye their clothes brown, yellow, or blue from easily available plants and rocks (not deep royal blue that was harder to make). Red or pink dye was available but more time consuming and expensive because it was made from specific insects. Green dye was made from minerals like malachite so was possible but definitely less common. Unless you’re pretending to be a very rich noble you will not be wearing purple. You may also bleach your fabric white but this wouldn’t be super common. White clothes show their dirt and wear more than patterned ones.
Patterns: Basic geometric patterns are a safe bet. If you don’t want to buy your fabric from a reenactor’s shop and want to make it yourself this paper has some research on Homeric era weaving you’ll likely find useful. Plain solid colors will also likely be safe.
Belts: A belt will go around your waist and be useful for holding your clothes together and possibly tying your purse to depending on what look you’re going for. It could be anything from a cord tied around the waist to a leather belt to an elaborately decorated and embroidered accessory. Some modern belts built for this same purpose would likely pass. At bare minimum you could just tie a strip of leather or a cord around yourself and call it a day.
Shoes: Both sandals and boots would’ve been used depending on the climate and the kind of work a person would be doing. If you want to put in bare minimum effort wear some brown slip on boots or some leather sandals you tie yourself. If you want to be really accurate or plan to be in a situation where you’ll be scrutinized heavily you’ll likely have to have some custom made for you. If you’re going to be in an area with snow you may want to invest in a good pair of wooden clogs to keep the leather of your shoes from getting wet. If you’re in a situation where you’d like to wear socks they did have socks but they likely would’ve been made from matted animal hair and not yarn.
Basic clothing styles: Almost all clothing would’ve been a pinned sheet of fabric in this time period.
Most basic is the chiton which was worn by both women and men. However, if you’re looking to pass as a woman you’ll likely want the fabric to go down to your ankles while if you’re looking to pass as a man it’ll only go down to your knees. For men it can also only be pinned over one shoulder, leaving part of the chest exposed.
For men, a tunic can also be used as demonstrated in the charts below. To make a chiton, fold the top quarter to third of your fabric down and then fold it in half, pinning it over your shoulders and down the side of your body. A tunic is basically just a piece of fabric with a hole for your head that would be pinned down the side, as demonstrated below.
A peplos is quite similar to a chiton but only worn by women and made with a tube of fabric rather than a sheet.
A common type of traveling cloak for men would be the chlamys, which is a piece of fabric or a blanket pinned over one shoulder
If you want to cover up and/or stylize even further a himation was a garment worn by both women and men which was basically a large loose piece of fabric that could be stylized based on the wearer’s preferences. It’s also good for protecting you from the weather, be that sun or cold.
Hair and makeup: Don’t use the skin or hair care products that the locals offer you because there’s a good chance that they’ve been putting toxic chemicals in it.
For those dressing as men, if you’re traveling in the early Homeric period growing out your beard could be beneficial for fitting in. Otherwise in general short uniform haircuts with a clean shaven face should be enough for you in most circumstances.
For those dressing as women, long hair is preferred and you could absolutely do your research on complex hairstyles requiring pins and sewing needles but a fishtail braid and a thin cord or a headscarf will probably be enough. For your makeup, thick eyebrows, eyeliner, pale skin, and red lips are generally attractive in Ancient Greece but preferences can vary based on time period so be prepared to change your plans based on what the locals are doing.
Pins: Pins and ties will hold basically all of your clothes together so have a lot of them. Plan on losing some. Regular metal straight pins and brooches will do well but if you’re worried about getting poked they also had a version of safety pins back then so get some of these or think of an explanation for your personal safety pins if someone asks
Dressing for cold weather: Most of Greece is hot and dry so lightweight clothes and straw sun hats will serve you well in most circumstances but there are colder areas up in the mountains and freak cold fronts to prepare for.
Generally, wear wool and wear layers. Capes, wool caps, and blankets are your friend. As previously stated in this guide, wooden shoes or platforms can help with keeping your leather boots dry and also gives you some grip on ice and wet surfaces. If your legs get cold, a common practice was to wrap strips of wool cloth around your legs and pin them in place. You can also wrap your feet or stuff loose fabric or wool in your shoes if you don’t have felted socks. Unless you’re visiting after 400AD pants/trousers won’t be super common in the region so expect some odd looks if you plan to wear them. If you want to wear a scarf, a solid fabric wool one would likely be more common than a knitted one.
That’s what I’ve got for ya. Good luck with your time traveling! Don’t catch smallpox!
