The wedding gown is made of silk or woolensilk, in thick shiny weaving. It unfolds wide, making flat and puffy pleats. Down to its hemline are sewed wide rounded chartza in gold color. Kampzela - the top of the dress- and hemline are also decorated with hartza. The colors of the wedding gowns were azure, pink, dark mauve, olive and rose. Over the dress, the tsoumpe is placed - a dressing with short and unusual sleeves which are puffy to the shoulders and tight to the lower arm, covering the back, ending down to the legs and touching the ground even, with well ironed folds. To the tight part of the sleeves there are beautiful decorations of chartza, matazogaitana and gold stripes. Amazingly beautiful also, is the needlework of the back of the tsoumpe. The top from the shoulders to waist is decorated with silk flowers and gold thread. Spaleta is the striking front mantilla in white, pink or yellow color with rounded grated fringes. The necessary ornaments of spaleta, are gold jewels: spiles, pontalia, karfovelonoi, stithovelones. The pontalia and spiles are framed with small chains, sometimes, decorated with small hanging gold hearts. Except from the neck jewels, the jewel ornament includes rings and earrings. The fesi (fez) is the most exquisite part of the bride’s costume. The brides wear it, in an oblique way and always on the left side in order to hold a part of the hair and cover the forehead. It is gold needled and beautifully decorated. It is made of black velvet fabric needled to the surface with goldthread flowers and other linear textures. The most beautiful jewel which decorates the fesi is the tremoula - a metal twig 10 cm long standing on the end of the fesi. On its top the metal twig has a flower with 2-3 golds, trimmed with diamond stones.
The groom is wearing a white beautiful needled shirt and on the top a geleki (vest) which is sometimes crossed and sometimes single, made from azure velvet. The back of the geleki is made of shiny silk in a purple, red or a dark green color with a fiora with wide leaves. He wears a vraka (trousers) from felt, which is needled to the bottom end and to the socks. Extras ornaments of the groom’s costume are zonari (belt), the fatsoleto or fesi with a black pompon and usually a neckerchief.
In everyday life the clothing is simple and usually monochrome: black in general or dark brown with dark scarves respectively. In the winter, women usually wear knitted capes over their dresses for the cold. The men clothing, on the other hand, does not include anything special. Men, most of the times, wear pants and shirts. More information regarding the clothing and costumes of Lefkada can be found in the bibliography of the Lefkadian Pantazis Kontomihis and in the web site of Go Lefkas
In Meganisi, just like in Lefkada, the art of needlework and textile exists, which grew in many of the mountainous settlements, mostly in Karya, where most of the manners and customs are still preserved. However, the style of Karya is not the only one in Meganisi. Textiles can be still made in loom, for instance (more information can be found in www.meganisitimes.gr, and on the video section - pages 3,5,7).
Regarding the style of Karya especially, the websitelefkada.gr mentions:
The famous karsanika needleworks, are a unique form of needlecraft, which arose in the past and still exisits nowadays. The technique grew in Karya but it was spread outside the island's borders and abroad. The majority of the textiles are exceptional with unusual patterns and artistry.
