How to Make Guy Togas
The toga was a robe-like garment worn in ancient Rome. Although many paintings of Roman life depict men going about their daily lives in togas, they were most often worn on formal occasions. Roman boys officially became men when they abandoned a striped toga for the plain, white toga virilis between the ages of 14 and 16. While they may seem elaborate, togas are exceedingly simple to make with nothing but some cloth and pins. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Fold the cloth in half along the width, leaving you with a long, thin strip. Twelve feet of cloth should be sufficient for most young to adult males, but if you are taller than average you may want a few extra feet. While the Romans most commonly wore white togas, you can use a different color if you like. If you want to to add more Roman flavor, try purple or dark red, which were colors reserved for the ancient nobility.
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Pin one end of the cloth to your waist, with the open end of the fold facing upward. Wear a pair of gym shorts or other similar garment underneath that you can secure to your waist with a string or belt, since it will hold the toga's weight.
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Wrap the cloth around your waist once and pin it near the original position again. The cloth should hang just below your knees.
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Drape the remaining cloth over your shoulder and down your back. Pin the end to your waist, or have a friend pin it for you if you have trouble reaching. The part you put over your shoulder should be loosely draped rather than pulled tightly like a sash if you want a more authentic look.
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Tips & Warnings
If you want to look even more authentic, use a white cloth and dye the open ends of your folded strip purple or red. These stripes were symbols of the wearer's nobility or political status.
Do not use a sheet to make a toga. It is considerably less expensive to buy the fabric from a store. Furthermore, the cloth used for a toga should be very long and narrow, which makes a sheet particularly unsuitable.
References
- Photo Credit Stockbyte/Stockbyte/Getty Images
