What is a Modern Hanfu? 2020 China’s Fashion Guide

Posted by Wealii James on February 22nd, 2020

The modern hanfu is on the basis of Western-style clothing, formed by integrating the basic elements of traditional hanfu outfit. The new hanfu is split into several varieties based on its features that can be part of the form characteristics, patterns, or aesthetic.

If you take the word “Hanfu” back to its roots, it simply was the Chinese word for “Han People’s Clothing.” Later on, it evolved to mean specifically, traditional Chinese clothing. As they came into popularity in the ancient period, manufacturers began producing these pieces of hanfu with many cutting methods, and they’d cut various lines of fabric, sew them together. It’s usually a very loose design that meant they wouldn’t have to have multiple sizes and fits. Eventually, hanfu style developed and people began wearing on a large scale, integrated into their everyday style.

Hanfu designers improved their craft to such an extent that it became an art form and not simply as apparel. Traditional hanfu became more valuable and more collectible as pieces of art. That’s not to say that an appreciation of the hanfu today has to be all about historical artifacts.

The New Hanfu is Back in Fashion

“Many westerners will say the hanfu is somehow non-changing and is simply traditional attire,” says Lee, who did her doctorate work at Peking University in Chinese art history. “But it has changed historically. That’s why it was such a fundamentally important garment during the Han and Tang period because it was fashion; it was constantly changing.”

The Inspiration for Modern Hanfu Style

Lots of China’s kids spent their childhoods watching ancient costumes dramas and kungfu films many times. They adored the cool actors and martial arts masters on TV, as well as handcrafted hanfu costumes and other beautiful, traditional goods.

When the children grew up, and some of them became fashion designers. And they realized that numerous people across the globe use and love hanfu-like garments, and even though most don’t know where it comes from.

However, in modern life, only a few people wear hanfu everyday, and a lot of people don’t even know how to wear hanfu.

It became special clothes for modern Chinese people and got avoided because it took more time to wear one compare to modern garments.

It’s hard for the public to understand what it means and how did hanfu has evolved into today. So these passionate reformers decided to take the historical roots of traditional Chinese clothing and use it as inspiration for modern hanfu. They quickly made a try, hope to create a new style focused on the contemporary woman.

The modern woman is a work of art, strong, soft, beautiful, and versatile. She has many roles, wears many dresses, and has many dreams. She is a boss, a mom, an artist, a CEO, a teacher, and the cornerstone of her community, no matter how big or small. These are what they have in mind when the grown children decide to design the modern styles for today’s modern woman.

Features of Modern Hanfu Dress

Rather than the 2D plane design of traditional hanfu, modern hanfu has the western modern 3D design. Modern hanfu embraces more close-fitting tailoring, and this allows each piece to fall uniquely on each unique body type. Fashion designers believe beauty is in the distinctive attributes of each woman, and it strives for each piece to highlight those beautiful qualities.

Of course, elements of hanfu are indispensable, for instance, retro patterns, cross-collar and silk embroidery, echoing the historical traditions of the piece. These are also denoted through motifs and placement, fabric choice, type of decoration and color. Hanfu’s elements take lessons it’s learned in the past and apply them to the needs of today, which keeps changing and shifting, adapting to what’s new, and bringing its own flair and style to present life.