Finding success with traditional dress
Print Edition
CHEN Dongmei still remembers her first fashion sketch at the age of 10. It was a mini dress finished with elegant bell sleeves. She then gave the drawing to her cousin, an apprentice tailor, to bring the design to life.
“It looked like the dress a princess would wear,” Chen recalls. Unbeknownst to her at the time, this simple sketch marked Chen’s first step into a career in fashion. From her days as a young girl with a keen interest in pretty outfits, Chen has emerged as one of the country’s premier designers of the traditional Chinese dress known as the qipao.
After opening her own workshop in the Jinqiao area of Pudong New Area, the soft-spoken woman has built a long list of clients, which includes many celebrities and stars.
Born during the 1970s in Zhengzhou, Henan Province, Chen says attractive, stylish outfits were rare in her childhood. The reality of her circumstances, however, did little to curb her nascent craving for couture.
“My mom always said the hardest thing was taking me shopping. Usually we spent the whole day strolling everywhere and got nothing. So I started to make my own designs,” she says.
After graduating from high school, Chen enrolled at Zhengzhou University of Light Industry, where she majored in fashion design. There she learned how to produce and develop clothing designs, and was also exposed to the ins and outs of the fashion industry.
For her first job, Chen joined a state-owned textile company. “It was a light job. Everyday I finished work and went home at 4pm. It was not the life I wanted to pursue, so I quit,” she says. In search of her passion, Chen went to Shenzheng, Guangdong Province before settling in Shanghai.
As Chen moved around, becoming a fashion designer was never her goal. Her life changed though after finding work in a garment company that manufactured qipao.
“I became obsessed with the enchanting cultural foundation of the qipao ... I have learnt Chinese painting for over 10 years. I wanted to make clothes that were steeped in Chinese culture,” Chen tells Shanghai Daily.
The qipao, a body-hugging one-piece dress sometimes referred to as a “Mandarin gown” in English was first worn by woman under Manchu rule during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). The initial version was looser fitting that its successors.
Today, many see the qipao as synonymous with Shanghai during the 1920s and 30s. At that time, the qipao represented the height of fashion for socialites and upper-class women.
Chen’s workshop is located in a nondescript, industrial area of Pudong. First-time visitors often get lost. After climbing to the second floor of a red-brick building which bears the name of an automobile parts company, stepping into Chen’s studio is like walking into another world. Surrounded by antique ornaments, folding screens, ethnic handicrafts and reams of dazzling cloth, Chen can often be found working on her dresses.
“I’m not very interested in finding a fancy place, which would only mean a higher rent. I’d rather save my money for better material,” she says.
Indeed, Chen’s garments often feature thoughtful touches, such as imported lace from France, delicate embroidery work and an ancient Chinese silk-weaving technique known as kesi.
“The most difficult part of making qipao is finding good suppliers and craftsmen. During the first few years, I traveled around China looking for suppliers. It also took me years to cultivate relationships with my tailors,” she says.
The qipao which Chen makes in her Pudong studio are all tailor-made. Each choice of color and cut is made with the individual needs of her customers in mind. To get everything right, Chen’s customers normally come in for at least three fittings before their dress is ready. Depending on a client’s schedule, it can take anywhere from two weeks to two months to finish one qipao. This painstaking process means that Chen can usually handle no more than 100 customers in a single year.
As for prices, her made-to-order pieces could run anywhere from 7,000 yuan (US$1,127) into the tens-of-thousands of yuan range.
“I am a perfectionist,” Chen explains simply. This, however, doesn’t mean she’s a slave to tradition. While she herself enjoys the old-fashioned aspects of the qipao, Chen isn’t averse to incorporating more modern features, like strapless shoulders, into her pieces.
“Time’s changing. Qipao fashion started in the 20th century. If we stick to the old styles and never develop, what do we need designers for?” she asks.
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