Khaliji Women's 'Thobes' - Scroll down to see what's for sale now!
Arabian women's costumes are colorful, surprising in their variety, and distinguished by their complex, admirable embroidery and handwork. Women in many parts of the Gulf will don a colorful embroidered 'overdress', known as a thobe when attending special occasions such as women's wedding party. Women wear them over their party dresses for dancing.
In Arabic, the term thobe means 'long garment'. It is used to describe both the women's dancing gown as well as the long white garment worn by Saudi men. Specialized terms for the women's party thobe include thobe nashaal, thobe mukhattam, thobe mugassab (brocade), and thobe tulli (made of tulle).
When I teach classes in Gulf women's folk dance (Khaliji style), I'm often asked how long a thobe should be. Although the back panels are meant to drag on the floor, the front panel should fall at floor length (a little longer or shorter is OK). The sleeves should be long enough to reach your wrist. Longer sleeves are fine, since they are typically bunched up on your arm. Shorter sleeves are less than ideal, but can work since you should be wearing long-sleeves under your thobe. To learn more about traditional Arabian women's costume, I recommend Heather Colyer Ross's book The Art of Arabian Costume: A Saudi Arabian Profile. Players Press, 1993.
To see video clips of women from the Gulf dancing and singing in traditional thobes, visit my blog .
At the moment, I have the following thobes for sale. All were made in India. If you have any questions or would like a size and color I don't have in stock, e-mail me here. Also if your troupe would like to place an order for a set of matching thobes, please contact me and I'll put you in touch with my supplier.
Thobes currently available for sale: $185 each plus shipping.
Material Color - Embroidery Colors
Sorry, I'm currently out of stock. I'll be ordering more this winter. Please e-mail me if
you need a particular color and I can try to source it for you.
If you are interested in purchasing a thobe, simply send me an email. Specify the thobe(s) you're interested in along with your name and shipping address. I will reply with a shipping quote and payment instructions.
The images of the thobes below are similar to what I have now - same quality; though the details of the embroidery designs are different. The fabric is sturdy yet semi-transparent polyester georgette.
| Purple with Gold Embroidery | |
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Embroidery: High Density Price: $180.00
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Vertical Length: the distance from the middle of the neck opening (approximately where your shoulder would fall) to the bottom of the front panel. The front panel should reach the floor. The back will drag on the floor. |
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Horizontal Width: the distance from the outer edge of one sleeve to the other. You might think of this as the thobe's wing span. |
| Rich Fuschia Pink with Heavy Gold Embroidery | |
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Embroidery: High Density Price: $180.00
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* |
Vertical Length: the distance from the middle of the neck opening (approximately where your shoulder would fall) to the bottom of the front panel. The front panel should reach the floor. The back will drag on the floor. |
** |
Horizontal Width: the distance from the outer edge of one sleeve to the other. You might think of this as the thobe's wing span. |