National costume

Wow what a wish hey Mimipi, would u mind if i call ir Day Dreaming

lol....so right...when it's our little gang....it's always 'To be continued'! But Bala seems to be missing for some days now. If I'm not mistaken, you are Bengali....I'd love to learn how to drape the saree Bengali style. Hope you'll get back and let us know if you do wear the Bengali saree on a regular basis:)

Cupid I think I am! But sometimes it feels so good to do so, isn't it!!

Thanks Deepak! I find it difficult to run around a toddler in a sari (I did have an occassion to wear it last week...and be sure I won't do it again soon...lol). I love the sari and feel graceful in it....but practically it's difficult to manage if you have a job which requires running around. Hats off to the previous generations who still do all their work wearing the sari. I was also wondering if the case was the same in other countries....if people wear their traditional dress only for certain occassions. Kurta-Pajama is nice and comfortable. Why not wear it to work? Is it because it is associated with sleeping alone?:)

I so agree with you Apsara...it's been months since we had that spice in our discussions. I wonder if anyone wears the Gandhi topi anymore.

Deepak, would love to see you in kurta pajama, with Gandhi topi......ha ha ha.....what do you say SV, I wish Mithra was here, she would really add spice to this discussion...........

Oh yes...a sari is graceful and suits any figure. But it really is difficult to run around kids if one isn't used to wearing it all the time (I don't....I usually wear a north indian dress or pants and skirts). REally? Don't American's have a traditional costume? Something you wear for weddings....or when you meet someone important?

Though our national costume is the sari (for women), it is worn differently in different states....and we hardly seeanyone from our generation wearing it on a regular basis. I'm sure the tuxedo and the gown can be considered as traditional wear (?)

Most Americans wear t-shirts and jeans. And not every American gets married. And, horror of horrors, you Can get married in jeans if you want.We don't have a traditional costume that women can wear to show where their culture came from that All Americans wear. The closest we get to it is our Chinese Americans will wear traditional Chinese costume during New year. Our Orthodox religious people will wear their traditional clothes.

Yes, Apsara...I have been busy with the kids and my training. Yes, I love saris too but like you mentioned difficult to manage with kids. Even I prefer free flowing saris to the heavy ones. But I never had to wear saris all the time even after I was married...maybe my in-laws didn't insist on it because they knew I grew up abroad. I was mostly in salwars though (respecting the fact that they might not like me to be too modern). My son did a project on the national costumes of people of different countries and it had one on Israel too. I'm posting it here....lol...this is probably some 16th century costume and no one wears it anymore.

Hi Apsara what if u wear saree in Israel as they dont have any specific dress Once in a week on week lets try

You must be looking awesome, when you wear Sari!!

It's good to know that you do wear your traditional dress regularly. Here, I find most of us have shifted to western wear (mostly in the cities). Even down south, most of us have adopted the north indian salwar kameez as our regular wear....but the previous generation still stick to saris.

Right Apsara...the last time we saw cupid...he was a speck in the backdrop of a lake:)

cupid, how about sending your friends your picture in your traditional dress, Sv Mithra and I will love to see you.........what do you say SV

That's interesting....everyone from the US said jeans and T-shirt. I'm beginning to think it really is the national costume of the USA:)

Actually, I think you "hit the nail on the head." I think jeans and a t-shirt are probably the closest to a National Costume that we have. I was working at PetSmart one day and all day long, all I saw were jeans and a t-shirt. One woman had a suit on and that really stood out. But day after day, I see jeans and a t-shirt.

lol...I can imagine! My husband never wears a dhoti. The last I remember him wearing one was for the younger one's annaprasna (which was at home)...the time before that was for the older one's annaprasna....and it came undone at my aunt's place. He refuses to wear a dhoti for weddings...and the only wedding I've seen him in a dhoti was ours (no chance he could avoid it). He didn't wear one for my sister's wedding either!

I know how saris are not worn regularly today. Only when it's really necessary to wear one do the girls wear one (even in my generation). I grew up outside India..and I was always fascinated by the sari and always wanting to wear one....and I didn't miss an opportunity to wear one before I was married. I loved to drape it and move around in it...of course I didn't have to do much in it. But after kids, it's just too difficult to wear a sari and tend to young kids....I now, avoid it and stick to churidars or even skirts and tops for functions. It's only certain weddings that I cannot avoid wearing a sari..that I wear one...and those times...the kids are hubby's duty:)

lol..actually this discussion was meant for westerners (or ratehr foreigners) because I wanted to know if people in other countries wore their national costume regularly...and I also wanted to know what the costumes of the other countries were.

I dont think canada has one unless its hockey jersey's lol. but we are very multi-cultural, and there are other people from other parts of the world that wherre their nation attire here :)

Yes, I understand. Lots of people from the US and Canada seem to have the same response to the national costume question. No one can think of anything that can be termed as a national costume.

REally? I didn't know that? Could you write a bit on that please? could you put in pictures too? It's interesting that the men wear the traditional attire more than the women. Here in India, it's the opposite....women wear it more often than men...lol

Wow! That's a wonderful costume:) Though I knew many Filipinos when I was at Kuwait, I've never seen them wearing their traditional attire. So, I was never aware of the Barong Tagalog. Thank you for the pictures and the information.

Well, according to history... indian influence reached the Philippines through a very powerful empire... and indian trader also came to my country and left influences like clothes and food... even the Mango... which is very popular in my country has its roots in India... Here is the image of the baro at saya and the barong tagalog... there are a lot of variation...

If it's any consolation, most of us learn to drape the sari after many attempts...and like you with lots of pins. And some of us never learn because we don't use it on a regular basis. I was always fascinated by the sari and learnt to drape it even before I was married. One usually needs the help of one more person if one needs the sari to look neat or else the pleats stand out which we don't like:)We also get blouses that are like smaller T-shirts. I'm sure it would be available in the US. It's easier than getting one stitched (which is what most of us do)...though I do have one in black...that's just as easy as pulling on a T-shirt and don't have to bother too much with the fitting because it stretches like a T-shirt...and fits well.

I need atleast 3 pins when I wear a sari...and many more if I am going for a function and know I will be doing some running around with the little one. I think I had around 7-10 pins on me at my sister's wedding a couple of months back:) But I've learnt to hide them beautifully..lol

Thanks for letting me know that it wasn't just me... I must admit I was reassured. I know what those little shirts look like but I could not find one that fit me as I am not exactly a small woman. I am happy that pins are needed for all people... I thought I needed them only because I did not know how to put the sari on right. Hugs to you for your kindness in letting me know.

What is the national costume of the Phillipines? I'd love to know...if you can please post a picture too.

I'm basically from Kerala...but lived most of my life in the Middle East. I have worn the half sari too (out of choice and not compulsion...in fact, my father prefered the sari to a half sari). I find the half sari was more comfortable because I didn't have to worry about how the sari fell into place after I did some work. As far as my husband's case goes, it's very funny...because till we were married (8 years back), he always wore a lungi at home (for more than 15 years)...you would have thought someone with more than 15 years experience would be confident about wearing the lungi. But during our first year of marriage, my husband switched to shorts at home...and never wore a lungi. As far as expectations go, I don't think people expect women to wear the sari anymore. My in-laws never insisted and I never wore it after marriage (on a regular basis)....and most of the girls getting married now hardly know how to drape a sari.

After going through your comment I just could not resist thinking and visualizing about your husband. I agree with you that these days nobody expects ladies to wear sarees. The reason being is that in todays fast paced life when people are always on the move, saree is some sort of inconvenience especially if it means rushing and running around. However when it comes to functions saree still is the first choice for most ladies. The beauty of saree lies in drapery and many these days do not drape it around properly and make a mess of this gorgeous attire.

I wear sarongs and sometimes wrap them. I'm white american. I was shown how to wrap and tuck by an african friend. I have never had one fall off yet. I trust the wrap and tuck and the tie more than my countries traditional zip or button.

I sometimes make tunics from the sarong material too! I usually get a wrap skirt stitched and feel very comfortable in that. A sari is worn differently by people from different states. I'm sure that the sarong makes you more comfortable ...and it's more colourful too.

Yes, and i invented a few styles of my own, Everyone comments on how nice they look so i dont understand why more women dont wear them. Add some Avon jewerly and flip flops and your wardrobe is complete. Except in colder weather you will need regular shoes and leggings or long johns. Womens LJ also come in many colors.

I haven't tried sari yet but i was looking on ebay and they are very lovely. i may try 1 soon. I did however win a bunch of the velvet tops. Nice.

I find that most men do not wear the traditional attire on a regular basis. It's good to know that your wife does wear a sari at times even when there is no function. I used to wear a sari regularly (even at home) when my older son was around 2. But now, I find I can't run around the little one in on....hmmm...or is it because I don't have blouses that fit me anymore??lol

May be these ladies found the answer in the noodle strap blouses for that.

Maybe:) But I doubt if I will ever fall in that category. A sari is hard enough to manage without a noodle strap blouse which I have to look out for!

That was my point...most of us have forgotten how to drape a sari because we don't use it much. I, myself am more comfortable in a salwar kameez (which isn't even my traditional wear) and wear that and western outfits more often...especially when I have to run behind kids. I love wearing the sari though.

Oh yes...my grandmother and mother are used to it....and they do all the work the old fashioned way AND run behind kids in a sari. I did do it for a while with my older child...but find the younger one too active to be able to do it in a sari...I'm sure to trip and fall somewhere.

yes I would think that would be hard and to me wearing pants are more confortable also can move alot better more freedom of movement

I've seen the dress you are talking about and it looks so comfortable. Good to know that you would wear it on a regular basis and do stick to traditions in a different country ....atleast on special occassions. Here in India, we don't wear our national costume on a rgular basis only for special occassions.

Hi dear sound intresting

Oh, that wasn't something that I thought about...people having many nationalities in their blood. lol..the cave man days would be easy, eh? Saris do look nice...but it's difficult to get anything done wearing them because we are not used to wearing them on a daily basis. We've moved to more comfortable western clothes for regular wear.

Regular clothes are too restraining for me. I feel they restrict my mobility. Hate that feeling. I need to be free to move. I feel so free in sarongs. So many different ways to wear them too. I have invented a few of my own.