Young people fall in love with traditional Chinese culture because of cheongsam Chi-pao dress

Walking into a small French-style western-style building on Chifeng Road in Heping District, Tianjin, where land is at a premium, is like traveling back in time. The store displays gorgeous cheongsams one after another, like long shots in an old movie, freezing the waves of history and the glory of the times. This store is the Jiqingxiang Cheongsam and Dress Family, a time-honored brand with a history of more than 140 years.

In the nearby small foreign-style building, Zhang Ailing lived in her childhood, as well as young Zhang Xueliang and Miss Zhao Si… Ji Qingxiang’s shop is quietly hidden among the former residences of many celebrities. Today, the store not only provides customized services for exquisite cheongsams, but is also a display space for traditional Chinese intangible cultural heritage.

26-year-old Ji Yiqing is the fifth generation descendant of this century-old store. She gently pulled her hair into a bun and wore a dark printed cheongsam Chi-pao dress that outlined her slender waist. With every frown and smile, she looked like a woman walking out of a painting. Since one month before the Spring Festival, there have been many more customers in the store than usual. Ji Yiqing is busy and always communicates with the customers with a smile. She is never in a hurry to sell, preferring to quietly observe the personality and preferences of her customers, and combine her understanding of cheongsam Chi-pao dress culture to design an exclusive “second skin” for her customers.

In the small western-style building, the walls are covered with old photos, recording the development of this century-old store. Ji Yiqing told reporters that the first-generation founder of the store, Mr. Li Qing, founded Qingxiang Haobuzhuang in Dashilan, Beijing in 1880, and later generations moved the store to Tianjin. Today’s store name is Ji Qingxiang’s mother’s name. “My mother has been learning tailoring with my uncle and grandma in the factory since she was a child. When she was 18 years old, she applied for a business license.” Ji Yiqing knew that it was her mother who put the family’s mission on her shoulders. . Now, this mission naturally falls on young Xiaoji.

In Ji Yiqing’s childhood memories, ever since he could walk, he had been playing upstairs and downstairs in this small foreign-style building. She watched her mother carefully tailoring clothes for customers in the store from morning to night every day. Every stitch was filled with her mother’s understanding of the ancestral Ji’s tailoring techniques, and her perception of the beauty and charm of oriental women.

At a young age, she was also influenced by her ears and eyes, falling in love with the cheongsam, which symbolizes the unique image and charm of oriental women, and began to learn unique tailoring skills from her mother. Soon, her talent was revealed. When she was 9 years old, she successfully designed a cheongsam qipao dress for a famous TV host in Tianjin. “She liked it very much at the time, and I was also named the ‘youngest designer.'” For Ji Yiqing , the love for cheongsam, this craft and culture seems to have been engraved in his genes.

“Many young people now like to wear cheongsam.” What makes Ji Yiqing happy is that in recent years, the national trend has become more and more popular, and more and more young people have become interested in traditional Chinese culture. As the fifth generation inheritor of intangible cultural heritage clothing culture, she hopes to not only carry forward the “Ji’s special tailoring technique” passed down from generation to generation, but also to inject more youthful elements so that the younger generation around the world will fall in love with Chinese traditional clothing culture. , allowing more young people to experience the charm and essence of Chinese culture by putting on their own cheongsam.

She has studied abroad and also made a special trip to study the works of famous Western designers. She found that many foreigners are particularly fascinated by traditional Chinese costumes represented by cheongsam. “I want to combine some Western artistic elements with traditional Chinese costumes so that the past can serve the present and the foreign can serve China.”

In her design works, we can see a distinctive feature of Ji’s draping technique – highlighting the beauty of women’s curves, which places extremely high demands on the entire process of design, tailoring and production. First, it is necessary to measure the data of at least 27 points on the customer’s body from head to toe. Then, based on the customer’s occupation, conversation, temperament, appearance, skin color and many other factors, a design suitable for their identity and characteristics is carefully completed, and then three-dimensional cutting is used to sew it up. Every detail can finally make the clothes fit the owner perfectly.

Ji Yiqing told reporters that the style of cheongsam qipao dress is constantly changing with the changes of the times. Modern women are more confident and generous, and participate more extensively in various social affairs. These changes are also reflected in their clothing. A few decades ago, the cheongsam was very tight-fitting, requiring women to strictly control their figure in order to fit into the outfit. The stand-up collar of the cheongsam is also made to fit the neck very well, so that women cannot bow their heads and bend at will, and must maintain an upright posture at all times. “Today, the design of cheongsam must first consider the needs and comfort of the owner.” Ji Yiqing used the innovative cutting of sleeves as an example to illustrate, “It can’t just look good but cannot lift the arms. Our innovative cutting The method is to ensure that the guests’ hands can not only be lifted up, but also complete various actions easily, even playing the violin without any problem.”

Born in a family of artists, Ji Yiqing hopes that the clothing he designs is not just a piece of clothing, but a work of art infused with the spirit of craftsmanship.

Ji Yiqing said that every cheongsam she designs has its own story. Among the cheongsams that fill the three-story Western-style building, there are almost no two that are exactly the same. Ji Yiqing said: “I will add as many unique details as possible to the design of each piece of clothing. Inadvertently you will see surprises, which can be regarded as the finishing touch.” Her design style concept is low-key beauty. “It is more in line with the reserved and restrained spiritual temperament of our Chinese people.”

In Ji Yiqing’s eyes, “the cheongsam is not only an object, but also contains the cultural heritage of the Chinese people.” Today, as a member of the All-China Youth Federation and a member of the Standing Committee of the Tianjin Youth Federation, Ji Yiqing actively participates in various public welfare activities and introduces the intangible cultural heritage skills in cheongsam and Chinese traditions to more people through various methods such as going into the community and public welfare classes. cultural elements.

“Suzhou has Su-style cheongsam, Shanghai has Shanghai-style cheongsam, and Beijing has Beijing-style cheongsam. I want to create a Tianjin-style cheongsam with Tianjin characteristics.” Ji Yiqing said, hoping that more young people around the world can learn about China through beautiful cheongsam clothing. , fall in love with China.

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