How to Dress Smart in Iran

Marie Javins is a New York based writer, Macintosh hobbyist, and comic book colorist who travelled overland by truck from Katmandu to Damascus with a group of females this year. In Iran, they experienced, first-hand, the traditional dress code for women. Marie writes...

Before visiting Iran, I did my culturally correct clothing research and found out about the chador, the "traditional" Iranian dress for women. It is a long, black cloak worn over clothing that covers a female's body completely, leaving only her hands and face visible. I thought that I might have to wear one of these cover-alls, too, and you can be sure that the idea made me a little uneasy. Yet, as a guest about to enter a foreign culture, I fully understood the importance of dressing appropriately.

Luckily my tour leader understood my dilemma. She simply instructed me to wear baggy, neutral-colored clothes, socks and a headscarf. Her advice was sound (albeit very lacking in style).

Completely outclassed by the local women...

I arrived in Iran in a loose-fitting shalwar kameez (long roomy tunic and pants) only to find myself hideously outclassed by the Iranian women who dress with a great sense of style. Modern Iranian women dress a lot like modern American women, with one important difference. In public, they must always wear a long coat over their regular clothes and are required to cover their heads with a scarf. It is the law. The coat and scarf need not be black -- the more adventurous fashion plates wear muted greens and beiges and even earthy reds. Their coat buttons can be decorative and it is perfectly acceptable for women to allow wisps of hair to frame their faces. Many females carry briefcases to and from work as they click down the sidewalks in high heels.

Beginning to understand the dress code...

So, on my second day in Iran, in the tourist city of Bam, I began making changes. I switched from my shalwar kameez to Levi's covered by a stylish long coat that I'd purchased in a local market. From the back, my hair covered by my headscarf, some of my fellow travelers said that I looked like a local. Other travelers thought I looked like a Mennonite, possibly because I had chosen a black coat instead of one of the many other colors available. The important fact is that I was considered properly dressed.

Passing along clothing tips...

If other Journeywoman plan to travel to Iran, I recommend you make do with loose-fitting, modest clothing and a scarf until you get there. Then, you can observe the local women, find a market, and have the fun of purchasing an appropriate coat for around twenty American dollars. These coats are never fitted -- they are very straight and don't reveal even a hint of the body shape beneath. They should be long enough to reach your mid-shin and will probably have shoulder pads to make your new boxy look more complete. Like Iranian women, you can wear whatever you want underneath, including jeans or black nylons. You should not reveal bare legs or ankles, and if you wear pants, remember to wear socks.

Finally, always keep your hair covered. Your scarf can be folded into a triangle and then knotted under your chin. It is not necessary to master complicated knots or folds, as the under-the-chin method is very simple and, at the moment, very fashionable in Iran. (However, I must confess that by the end of ten days in the country, the novelty of wearing a headcovering had definitely worn off. The women in our group ripped the scarves off the very second we crossed the Turkish border).

Clothing postscripts...

P.S. Many current guidebooks and travel agencies still instruct women travelers to wear the chador. Be assured that it is unnecessary, except in mosques, where you can usually borrow or rent one.

P.P.S. Be aware that in the countryside, the women dress more conservatively than their cosmopolitan counterparts.

P.P.S. In hot weather, you can kick up your heels and cheat by not wearing a shirt under your long coat. No one will ever know!

Women's words to think about...

The bus to Teheran was a deluxe bus but there was no air-conditioning nor did the windows open. As the sun rose so did the temperature inside the bus, and I suffered in my jacket and scarf. On the back of the ticket was printed "Please observe regulations as to the Islamic covering", which seemed unfair under the circumstances.

In Shiraz, Iran, I became friendly with a man staying at the same hotel as me and accepted his offer to drive me to see Persepolis, the six-century capital of Persia. Once we got into his car his nervousness showed that he knew the risk that he was taking -- Islamic law forbids an unchaperoned woman to be with a man who isn't a relative.

(Source: Wendy Dixon, A Lonely Journey, More Women Travel, Rough Guides)

Source: http://www.journeywoman.com/traveltales/dresses_smart.html

Dress does vary somewhat:
In Tehran we saw young women in sandals with painted toe-nails! Jeans are de rigeur among the young. The flowing, all enveloping shawl is undergoing change. Some women wear ones that are made of lace, others are dotted or have flower sprigs in varying dark shades. The headscarf is going ever further back on the head. Many women complained to my wife about the necessity to wear hejab. There is an increase in the number wearing simply a coat over the trousers in the Syrian/Jordanian fashion. One woman we spoke to said that in her home town she would have to wear the black cloak but elsewhere she could be more relaxed and just wear the coat. In Tehran some of the outfits look just like trouser suits. A number of older women are also knotting the long shawl under their bust to give more use of their arms for lifting and carrying. It all appears to be in a state of flux.

Source: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/letters/meast/ira_pc.htm#Mov               

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