Tropicana Jan-Feb 2018 #116 A Start from the Heart

FASHION FEATURE
“While the
communist
revolution of 1949
paused the fashion
developments in
China for a while,
refugees brought
their clothing out
of the country.”
The common people might choose a flower
symbol. The peony – China’s national flower –
symbolises affluence and prosperity; the lotus,
purity and loveliness; the chrysanthemum,
longevity. Fish are also believed to bring
prosperity. All these were common designs for
the material of their garments.
When the qipao became popular in the
south, it was given the name cheongsam which
simply means long dress in Cantonese. The
qipao/cheongsam migrated south through
China in the 20th century. By the 1920s, it
was popular all over the country. It was also
changing and becoming more like the close
fitting, shorter version we recognize today.
But it always retained the main features of the
high mandarin collar and slitted skirt, and
usually the right side buttoning. In the south,
Shanghai became the cheongsam capital where
fashion designers promoted them and factories
mass-produced them.
While the communist revolution of 1949
paused the fashion developments in China for
a while, refugees brought their clothing out of
the country. The style soon became popular
in Hong Kong, Singapore and other Asian
countries, from where it reached Western
fashion designers. Around the modern world,
including in China, versions of the cheongsam
are now worn for high society occasions, for
party-going and for dressed-up events.
They are also often chosen as uniforms to
give an oriental flavor to services or events.
For example, the medal bearers of the 2008
Olympics in Beijing wore them, as did some
of the participating teams in the opening
ceremony. And we would not be surprised to
find those delightful female flight attendants,
on some of the eastern airlines, wearing them
as they check seat belts and serve food and
drink. Nor would we blink at a cheongsam-clad
waitress in a Chinese restaurant anywhere in
the world.
The cheongsam is now available in many
different versions and the average woman
can usually find a type that suits her best.
Different kinds of cheongsam can play up your
best features and play down those you’d prefer
to hide.
For example, you can show off your
beautiful shoulders and back with a cheongsam
halter neck collar and low backed dress.
Alternatively, you can choose between
TM | january/february 2018
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