Ch-pao, the Merging of Chinese and Western Dress Cultures

The Chi-pao is a traditional Chinese dress with many variations in terms of style. Generally， it features a stand-up collar and sideway button placket， perfectly closed by exquisite， knotted buttons， forming a unique style. Its flexible， soft outlines highlight the female body curve romantically and elegantly. Dressed in a Chi-pao， a woman looks extremely charming while walking gracefully.

Face Powder， Silk Stockings and Perm Curls that Match the Old Shanghai Chi-pao

Nice clothes also need to be paired with hairstyles and shoes to complement each other and set the perfect image. Ladies of the late Qing Dynasty wore the Chi-pao with the towering Great-Wing hairstyle and exquisitely crafted flowerpot bottom shoes. Their faces were accented with natural rouge made of roses， setting off the ancient elegance， modesty， and sophistication of the individual. In the Republic of China， a fashionable reformative Chi-pao combining East and West required complementing hairstyles and other accouterments for a charming effect.

Perm Curls Is the Fashionable Hairstyle for Women

In the early 1920s， when the Chi-pao was an emerging fashion， simplicity was celebrated. There was a saying to describe the daily dress of women at that time： “Compared with the fragrant jasmine and showy peach， the beauty is as pure as the gardenia.” At that time， the women dressed in Chi-pao were elegant， simple， and refreshing as the gardenia. Such beauty， neither as fragrant as jasmine nor as showy as peach blossoms， was dignified and appropriate.

In ancient times， Chinese people used to follow the principle that “the hair and skin of the body are given by the parents and should not be easily defaced，” and both men and women kept their black hair long. In the 1920s， with the change in times， many traditional ideas were also altered， with men cutting off their long braids and women wearing short hair. At that time， a saying went： “Women should also seek freedom and have the right to cut their hair to follow the trend. Guess what happened this year？ They would never need gold hair pins anymore.” The popularity of short hair reflected the desire of women to be liberated.

The schoolgirls of the 1920s were pioneers in the liberalization of women’s thoughts： short hair flush with the ears， in some cases， also with neat bangs and with a hairpin. A Chi-pao， made of plain fabric， delivered a refreshing and unpretentious look. Of course， at that time， the Chi-pao was not only worn with short hair but was also worn with braids. Unmarried girls typically plaited their long black hair into one or two braids tied with bowknots or held with a headband. Tied braids with bowknots hung on the chest looked from afar like two butterflies resting. This hairstyle was called “two butterflies.”

With increasing cultural influence， the Chi-pao was further Westernized and improved. Hair perms became mainstream. Many old photographs of Shanghai featured classic images of women in a modified Chi-pao with neatly permed wavy hair. In old Shanghai， a barbershop called Baile near the Paramount Ballroom opened in 1933 and once had a booming business with up to 60 employees. It specialized in perms and was the first barbershop in Shanghai to offer chemical perms for women. Baile barbershop offered various perms， including large and small curls and long and short waves. Many celebrities visited Baile to wave their hair. The actresses Chen Yanyan， Zhou Manhua， and the singer Li Minghui， were regular customers here. The Shanghai girls seeking beauty came in droves to get their hair permed， even though it was time-consuming.

One hairstyle popular in Hollywood in the 1920s and 1930s was the wavelike hairstyle， shown as uneven size and very orderly waves surrounding the forehead and cheeks. This style was known as “hand-pushed waves.” Such hairstyle was suitable for both long and short hair， and it was not just curly and stylized. The bangs on the forehead were quite rippled， and each “ripple” flowed with the shine of the hair， which was very common in the photos of Hollywood actresses in that era. Such hairstyles also influenced the aesthetics of Shanghai women at that time. Stars and celebrities took up hand-pushed wave curls， such as Zhou Xuan， Hu Die， and Zhao Si， who have left photos of such classic hairstyles.

The “hand-pushed waves” hairstyle， originally paired with blonde hair and blue eyes in the Western style， was not abrupt when combined with the black hair and black eyes on the Eastern faces. However， it reflected another unique charm， just like the Chi-pao， combining Chinese and Western styles. The match of the Chi-pao and the “hand-pushed waves” can be described as an amorous feeling. The Chi-pao became more charming against the curly hair. Such a combination created a moving image so deeply imprinted in the memory of that era that whenever the beautiful women of old Shanghai are mentioned， the fixed image of the Chi-pao with hand-pushed waves would come to people’s minds.

In the 1940s， people preferred to have hair behind the hairline higher when perming so that the hair looked more delicate and stylish. As there were no hair styling products at that time， cotton was placed inside the hair to prevent it from collapsing.

Stylish Items to Pair with the Chi-pao

In the 1930s and 1940s， fashion items were in full flood of invention to pair with the Chi-pao， including Western-style coats， jackets， hats， high heels， silk stockings， pearl necklaces， and watches， emphasizing femininity. Women wore long pearl necklaces around the high collar of the Chi-pao， especially when wearing a Chi-pao with a dark color. This made the pearl necklace the finishing touch and gave a" noble feeling. Regarding the pairing of the Chi-pao with pearl necklaces， some said it was influenced by the dressing style of Chanel， who preferred to wear pearl necklaces on top of her sophisticated and elegant clothes. Some also said it was because the mild pearls closely resembled the gentle temperament of the Chinese women. Paired together， they formed a Chinese style of noble magnificence.

High heels are also essential accessories of the Chi-pao， reminiscent of flowerpot shoes. These can accentuate the excellent proportions of a female figure. The flowerpot bottom can only elevate a person， while high heels raise the height while holding up the heel. This further stimulates a more upright posture， as when tiptoeing， the wearer naturally lifts their chest and tucks their abdomen. In this case， the curve from the back to the waist will be more obvious， which is perfectly suitable for wearing an improved Chi-pao that highlights the beauty of the figure.

Silk stockings are one more thing that makes women dream between Chi-paos and high heels. This accessory， invented in the 1930s， first originated from Spanish stockings in the 16th century — a kind of knitted socks. In 1937， after one American invented the nylon fiber， the thin and perfectly fitting silk stockings were created， which were warmly welcomed and later introduced to China.

When stockings were first introduced to China， they were not just worn by women and were the standard items for gentlemen and celebrities. Generally， the silk stockings for women were long. Before silk stockings were introduced， Chinese women wore long stockings in their Chi-pao， made of cotton and linen， to avoid direct exposure of the thighs when wearing the split Chi-pao. The light and delicate silk stockings were favored by women and replaced the original cotton and linen stockings. The original intention of wearing stockings was to conceal the faintly exposed thighs under the split Chi-pao. The thighs worn with the stockings had a hazy sense of beauty instead， which inadvertently added a bit of sexiness.

Make-up Richly Adorned or Plainly Dressed， with the Chi-pao

Given the new Chi-pao styles with new hairstyles， there would be make-up to complement as well. The make-up of the Republic of China period， whether thick or thin， had the basic pursuit of natural beauty， which differed from the previous Qing Dynasty. In the Qing Dynasty， it was common to apply a thin layer of honey on the face as a base， apply the powder made of natural materials with a silk scarf or fingers， and smear the two cheeks with rouge. Their eyebrows were slim and curved， and their lips were as small as cherries. Some would also apply a full upper lip with a little bit of red in the middle of the lower lip. This somewhat exaggerated make-up in the Qing Dynasty disappeared in the 1920s--1940s. For a standard image of beauty at that time， there must be fair skin， pink cheeks， black hair， and rosy lips， and the make-up and skincare methods of that period were all aimed at achieving these ideals.

The fair skin required the application of facial cream and powder to be fragrant and whitening， and a touch of rosy blush was applied to the cheeks to make one look radiant and charming. Moisturizing conditioner and Vaseline were necessary for hair care， and the lipsticks were usually bright red. At that time， there were not many lipstick colors to choose from. Women who loved fashion used the newly introduced nail polish， eye shadow， eye liner， and perfume.

In ancient China， a small-cherry-like mouth was admired， and in the past， the lips were deliberately rouged to make them look small. However， in the 1920s--1940s， people started to admire the natural beauty of make-up and the shapes of the lips were based on the natural lip profiles， while the eyebrows were based on a slim and curved shape. To achieve the effect of slim and curved eyebrows， they would sometimes pluck their eyebrows first and then draw them in a desirable shape.

Others would apply an herb called “Rhizoma Drynariae” and ground it into a powder to the eyebrows with a small brush. Ordinary families could not afford this powder， so they devised cheaper ways of drawing eyebrows： scrapings from burnt matches mashed in a bowl; making a black powder to draw on their eyebrows.

In the 1920s--1940s， when the Chi-pao was in vogue， most girls from ordinary families still dressed in the original Chi-pao with simple textures and colors. The fashionable Chi-pao styles with all the stylish accessories， including make-up and hairstyles， were on full display by celebrities and wealthy ladies.

Chi-pao， the Merging of Chinese

and Western Dress Cultures

Yi Yang

China Intercontinental Press

April 2023

128.00 （CNY）

Yi Yang

Yi Yang graduated from the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology， majoring in fashion design， is a member of the China Fashion Designers Association and was invited to participate in the fashion design of 2014 APEC. Her design works have been published in fashion magazines.