Blog #1: Traditional Asian Fashion
- graceww37
- Oct 1, 2016
- 5 min read
Traditional fashion is a huge deal among Asians. It represents their home country and many outfits are from ancestors that pass them down generation after generation. Usually a small ring, or a watch, some kind of jewelry bedazzles the whole outfit. Some countries go full out with their outfits from head to toe and an enormous amount of jewelry. Whereas some countries are more simple with a refreshing color for their whole outfit. But among all the colors that are worn, red is a color that is worn the most. It symbolizes good luck and believed to ward away the evil. Many traditional wedding outfits will have some kind of red in their outfit, if not, the whole outfit would be red.
CHINA
Traditional Chinese outfits are widely known for their appearances in movies, shows, or even at your local ChinaTown. These outfits play a very important role in the country's history and culture. Many people are distinguished by class, so depending on what your social class was, the outfits may be a little different. Nowadays, traditional Chinese outfits are more modernized but still worn traditionally for weddings or Chinese New Year to represent the culture.
The basic features of a traditional dress are cross-collar, wrapping right over the left, and having it tied with a sash and a form of blouse and a skirt or long gown. As time passed, the general pattern of a blouse was created then the long gown appeared. The "Mao suit" became popular for the men and "Cheongsam' became popular for the female.
Traditional clothes includes "Han Fu", "fu" meaning clothes in chinese and "han" because it was popularized during the Han Dynasty. It's usually in the form of a long gown, cross collar, loose wide sleeves and no buttons but a sash.
The Chinese Suit (Tang Zhuang) is a combination of the Manchu male jacket of the Qing Dynasty and the western style suit. It's usually straight collared with buttons down the front. The design and color are in traditional Chinese style but the tailoring is western.
The Cheongsam (Qi Pao) originated from the Manchu female clothes. It shows ff the beauty of a female body with a straight collar, strain on the waist, buttons and slits on both side of the dress. The materials are usually silk, cotton, and linen. This is the most popular Chinese attire in the world today.
Chinese Tunic Suit (Zhongshan Zhuang) also called the Yat-sen Suit, is a combination of the Chinese attire and western style suit. It has a turn-down collar and 4 pockets with flaps. It's also known as the Mao Suit by westerners because it was worn quite often by Chairman Mao Zedong. The country's leaders will still wear this today when attending important occasions because it is the main attire from the founding of the People
s Republic of China in 1949 till 1980's.
JAPAN
Japanese people usually wear what they call "Kimono," which translates to "thing to wear." Kimonos are often worn for festivals, special events, funerals, ceremonies, and coming-of-age ceremonies.
Kimonos are usually wrapped around the body, sometimes in multiple layers, and tied with an "obi" to keep the front in place. "Zori" are the shoes that are worn outfside along with kimonos. Accessories and ties are added also to fully complete the look. Traditionally, kimonos are passed down from mother to daughter.
Kimonos also match with seasons. Usually in the cooler months, silk, wool or synthetic fabrics are worn. Darker colors, multiple layers, and patterns are favored for warmth in these months.
"Yukata" are usually worn during the spring and summer months. They are light, colorful, and made from cotton. Floral designs, like cherry blossoms, are also a popular pattern for these warmer months.
Korea
Traditional Korean clothes are known as "Hanbok" which translates into "Korean clothing." These dresses are usually worn for special occasions, ceremonies, celebrations, or even as an everyday dress. They are often characterized by vibrant colors with simple lines.
Traditionally, kids usually have a first birthday celebration where they would wear "kkachi durumagi" meaning "a magpie's overcoat". Usually worn by young boys, the clothes are also called "obangjang durumagi" which means "and overcoat of 5 directions". Worn over a jacket (jeogori) and a vest (jokki), while the person could also wear a long vest (jeonbok) over it. Headgears for the young boys are also worn such as a peaked cloth hat (bokgeon) or a peaked cloth hat with a tiger print (hogeon). Whereas a young girl would wear a decorative headgear instead called "gulle".
Vietnam
Traditional Vietnamese clothing are known as "áo dài" that is most commonly worn by women. Áo means shirt and Dài means long. Together, it becomes a fitting silk tunic that is worn over pants. Vietnamese men can wear a brocade robe (áo gấm) which is a version of the áo dài but made of thicker fabric. The áo dài emphasizes the way a dress ties feminine beauty to Vietnamese nationalism that it is one of the few Vietnamese words that appear in the English-language dictionaries.
Áo dài is now supported by the Vietnamese government since its not longer a political controversial. These are often worn for weddings and other formal occasions like Tết (Lunar New Year). Often time it is actually required to wear ao dais. Females that work as a flight attendant, receptionists, bank staff, restaurant staff, or hotel workers are often seen wearing ao dais.
A saying goes ""The ao dai covers everything, but hides nothing" because the most popular style fits tightly around the persons upper torso, emphasizing the bust to show off curves. Also made out of thin fabric which may seem provocative at times. One dress may take several weeks to tailor because it must be invidually fitted. One dress also costs about $40 in Vietnam whereas it costs about $200 in America.
India
Traditional Indian clothing are for wide varieties depending on the ethnicity, climate, geography, and cultural traditions of each region of India. They also have a great diversity of weaves, fibers, colors, and materials. Depending on the region, color codes are followed. For example Hindu females wear white clothes to indicate mourning whereas Parsis and Christians wear white for weddings. India also has a wide variety of Indian embroidery.
Since women's clothing is closely associated with the local religion, climate, and culture, the north east usually wear a garment of cotton or silk that is draped around the body known as "Sari". They wear saris with a blouse called "choli" tops and long skirts called "lehenga" or "pavada" and a "dupatta" scarf to create an assemble called "gagra choli" or "salwar kameez"suits. Many south Indian women would just wear a sari. Kids would wear "pattu langa" Saris that are made from silk are considered the most elegant.
Progress: My first blog was specifically only to Asian countries and there has been so much creativity already. I tried to research about what and how each outfit is worn and when they are worn. Many countries have a slightly different outfit for each season and it's amazing how they can change for the weather but keep the traditional feel there. Some outfits are very loose and some are very fitted but they are all very colorful. In my next 2 blogs I hope to see the differences that Asian countries and other countries will have.
Reflection: It was really cool to see how every country is slightly different and has different styles. Some outfits are similar but they all have a different feel. It was also really interesting to know how colorful and creative traditional outfits can be. They have so many choices to choose from and make each and every outfit their own. Although red is the most popular color of choice, it was nice to see some other colors that aren't seen as much like green or orange. I hope one day I'll be able to try on a traditional outfit too and maybe even wear a traditional dress for my wedding.
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