Fashion

Many women here wear the full chador: A large, flowy black garment that is floor length, covers the head, has arms for the hands, and is open in front. It is held closed under the chin. I even saw someone today who wore gloves with her chador “so that no one will see her hands” Ame Pari told me. Here in the cutting edge northern part of Tehran, there are also many women who push every fashion limit placed on them by the government. And so we have the opposite extreme: loose, brightly covered wraps with a small belt, sexy shoes w/open toes, and my favorite; the hair. There is an acceptable amount of hair that can show in the front of the scarf. But the edge is to make a big bun and put a big flower or something underneath it so that the hair is very big, and then delicately perch the scarf over the bun, as far back as possible, so that the entire front part is uncovered. TONS of makeup is absolutely the norm. In the grocery store this evening, I found this sign reminding women to wear the head scarf, and this woman who is pushing every restriction to the limit.

Today I spent a bunch of time walking around the city with dad. I started doing some street photography, taking pictures with the camera hanging around my neck while walking around. I am still endlessly fascinated by the variations on the dress code. There is the full chador and the special head scarf that provides maximum coverage (often required at places of employment or for student uniforms). Then there is the slightly pushed back scarf. Dad says that in the old days, women were supposed to wear black or dark colors, and many still do. Then there are those who push this limitation, as well. And then there is of course the ubiquitous post-op nosejob. 

Full chador