At Megalo Livadi, on the south-western shore of Serifos, the rusted loading bridge of the old iron mines still stands over the water. The island earned its living from the ground long before anyone crossed for its beaches, and a certain plainness has stayed in the place: dry-stone walls, a working harbour, tavernas that have never needed to impress. The answer to what to wear in Serifos lies in that plainness. A small wardrobe of natural linen, chosen for the climb, the swim and the long evening table, is more at home here than anything elaborate.

Serifos sits in the western Cyclades, on the ferry routes that leave from Piraeus; crossing times vary with the vessel and the season, and the schedule is worth checking before the day. Boats arrive at Livadi, a wide bay with a long beach and a line of tavernas along the water. Above it, on a steep ridge, Chora rises in white steps towards the remains of its kastro. Between the two there is a road, a bus in season and an old stepped path for those who prefer to walk. Taxis are few, and outside high summer they are worth arranging ahead. That walk up, or the wait for a ride, is the first thing the wardrobe has to answer.

For the climb and an afternoon in the lanes of Chora, a man needs a shirt that lets air move and something on the legs that will not cling on the steps. The Laos Short Sleeve Linen Shirt in Light Blue, worn open at the neck over PP linen shorts in White, handles the middle of the day without effort. Women will find the Linen Ladies Set in Mint Green easy on the same steps, with sandals that grip, because the lanes are polished stone and steeper than they look from the harbour.

The beaches are the reason many visitors make the crossing. Psili Ammos, on the east coast, is a shallow sweep of pale sand with a taverna behind it; Ganema and Kalo Ampeli lie further around the coast, the latter at the end of a rough track. Wherever the day leads, the order for men stays the same: PP swim shorts for the water, in Oatmeal or Sapphire Blue, and a dry linen shirt for the table afterwards. A morning in the sea and a late lunch on the sand then belong to one natural wardrobe.

Evenings in Chora are the island's social hour. The small square at the top of the town fills after sunset, and dinner is taken on terraces that look out over the Aegean, with Sifnos on the horizon to the south-east. Here a man can move into something with more presence: the Cuba Linen Shirt in Grey with PP Casual Linen Trousers in Sapphire Blue reads correctly at any table on the island. For women, the Amelia linen dress shirt in Oyster has the same quiet authority, and a light wrap, carried over the arm, covers the shoulders when the wind lifts off the ridge.

October changes the island in ways worth knowing. The sea keeps much of its summer warmth, the light softens and the crowds of August are long gone. Some tavernas and rooms close as the month goes on, so a little planning helps. Evenings can turn cool after dark, especially on the exposed ridge, and this is where a long sleeve earns its place: the Bliss Linen Shirt in Vanille, rolled at the forearm during the day and lowered at night, covers both temperatures without a second layer.

Serifos also carries one of the older stories of the Greek world. In myth it is the island where Perseus grew up, and where he returned with the head of Medusa to turn King Polydectes and his court to stone. Local telling likes to point at the grey boulders of the interior as the evidence. Whatever one makes of that, the landscape is genuinely mineral: rust-coloured earth near the old workings, bare granite, very little shade. Natural fibres sit well against it, in colour and in feel. Oatmeal, Vanille and pale blue look as if they belong to the hillside rather than to the suitcase.

Linen comes from the stem of the flax plant. It is cool to the hand and lets air pass through the weave, and on an island this open to the sun those qualities are practical rather than abstract: they decide whether the walk up to Chora at four in the afternoon is a pleasure or an ordeal.

From the deck of the boat back to Piraeus, Chora is a white line along the ridge and the loading bridge at Megalo Livadi is long out of sight. What stays is the memory of a week spent in very few clothes, all of them chosen well.

Further across the Cyclades: What to Wear in Sifnos  ·  What to Wear in Milos  ·  What to Wear in Mykonos