Hanfu: Craftsmanship behind the beautiful trend

（chinadaily.com.cn）

Han cultural activities have frequently been organized by hanfu aficionados in recent years to promote the traditional culture and clothes of Han people.[Photos provided to China Daily]

This summer, have you been amazed by women wearing hanfu, or Han-style clothing, at subway stations, shopping malls, pedestrian streets or scenic areas? Hanfu has enjoyed a public revival in recent years, especially among young people.

In 2018, the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League of China set the third day of the third month of the Chinese lunar calendar, traditionally the birthday of the Chinese people's mythological ancestor the Yellow Emperor, as the annual Traditional Chinese Garment Day. Since then, the beauty of hanfu has gained more and more recognition and acceptance by common people.

Generally, hanfu refers to traditional Chinese garments worn by the Han ethnic group before the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Historically, Han Chinese clothing has also influenced some of its neighboring cultural costumes, including the Japanese kimono, Korean hanbok, and clothing of Mongolia, Vietnam and Bhutan.

Hanfu appears elegant and gorgeous, and not only due to the thousands of years of culture behind its beautiful design. This traditional dress also stands out because of its remarkable craftsmanship and aesthetics, from fabric to ornamentation. Hanfu embraces more than 30 examples of China's intangible cultural heritage as well as Chinese arts and crafts under preservation.

Su embroidery works on display at the National Art Museum of China in Beijing, July 19, 2019. [Photo/Xinhua]

Su embroidery

Suxiu, or Su embroidery, is a style of traditional Chinese craft found in the areas around Suzhou, Jiangsu province, and has a history of some 2,000 years.

Requiring consummate craftsmanship, the embroidery is noteworthy for its beautiful patterns, elegant colors and variety of stitches.

Su embroidery usually depicts nature and the environment, such as flowers, birds, animals and carefully sculpted gardens, and it often decorates fans, sachets and clothing. The art form was listed as national intangible cultural heritage in 2006.

Filigree and inlay works on display at the Cultural Palace of Nationalities in Beijing, Aug 28, 2019. [Photo/Xinhua]

Filigree and inlay technique

Filigree and inlay is a traditional palace craft applied to gold and silver, usually to create jewelry and ornaments.

The skill actually combines two techniques: filigreeing and inlaying. Filigreeing relies on nipping, plaiting, filling, jointing, piling and other handiwork to fashion various shapes out of very fine gold and silver threads. Inlay means to work gold or silver pieces into different shapes, patterns or containers.

The craft was listed as national intangible cultural heritage in 2008.

A model shows a Han-style clothing using kesi weaving technique during a fashion show in Shanghai, Aug 30, 2019. [Photo/Xinhua]

Kesi weaving technique

Kesi is a silk weaving technique prized for creating elaborate silk tapestries with intricate cut designs resembling carved artwork, and it has its origins in the Yangtze River Delta city of Suzhou. The technique mainly entails using old wood machines and bamboo-made shuttles and plectrums to weave multicolored silk threads into a colorful fabric. The technique, listed as national intangible cultural heritage in 2006, is always seen on fans.

Sericulture and silk craftsmanship

Sericulture and silk craftsmanship of China, centered in Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces near Shanghai municipality and Chengdu in Sichuan province, reflect a traditional handicraft with a long history.

Silk-making, traditionally an important role for women in the economy of rural regions, involves planting mulberry trees, raising silkworms, unreeling silk, making thread, and designing and weaving fabric.

Sericulture and silk craftsmanship of China were inscribed on UNESCO's list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2009. The craft can be seen in the material used for hanfu.

An inheritor demonstrates the traditional cotton-weaving technique at the Tianjin Art Museum in Tianjin, June 5, 2019. [Photo/Xinhua]

Traditional cotton-weaving technique

Since cotton arrived in China from India in the seventh century, China's textile industry has focused on spinning cotton instead of bast fiber, a woody fiber mainly derived from plants. The traditional cotton-weaving technique, listed as national intangible cultural heritage in 2008, can be seen in the material used to make hanfu.

Characters in the TV drama Story of Yanxi Palace wear velvet flowers. [Photo/Mtime]

Velvet flower-making technique

The velvet flower-making technique, which originated in the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC), became a royal tribute during the Tang Dynasty (618-907), and entered common people's lives during the late Ming (1368-1644) and early Qing dynasties. Made of silk and copper wires, velvet flowers were popular in ancient times for their long-lasting "blossoms". The craft's Chinese name, ronghua, a homophone for the word "glory", is considered auspicious.

The velvet flower-making technique was listed as intangible cultural heritage of Jiangsu province in 2006.

The ancient Chinese painting Ladies with Head-pinned Flowers shows ladies wearing silk flowers as head ornaments. [Photo/Artron.net]

Silk flower-making technique

Silk flowers, flower-shaped head ornaments made of silk, are a traditional craft in Beijing. The craft originated in the Tang Dynasty and became popular due to its resemblance to real flowers. It was listed as national intangible cultural heritage in 2008.

Hanfu represents not only an aesthetic for living, but also a continuation of traditional Chinese culture. Nowadays, more and more fashion designs look to hanfu for inspiration, producing chic examples of hanfu for a new era.