The gákti is deep-blue wool broadcloth banded at hem, cuff, shoulder and collar with narrow strips of red, yellow and green. The bands are not decoration. Cut, collar, trim, belt and headwear together name a region and a family; square belt buttons mean married, round mean unmarried.

Duodji is the craft around the garment — pewter thread couched on reindeer leather, plaited bands, the risku brooch. When Astrid Båhl designed the Sámi flag in 1986 she took its colours from the costume, not the reverse. This system reads the garment the same way: bands carry meaning, edges hold them, nothing floats.