Chinese fashionInfluence in Western

China has an ancient history of 5000 years as a civilization .The special allure and charm of Chinese clothing has fascinated Western fashion designers and consumers. It all began in 114 BC when The Silk Route connected important paths of West and East by merchants, soldiers, monks from China, India, Persia and the Mediterranean countries. Afterwards the trade had escalated demand in Europe and later in America. After China became no more isolated , the end of 1970s, China started to trade with the whole world. Many world famous brands like Lacroix, Christian Dior, Versace, and Ralph Laurent use Chinese traditional women's dress elements in their designs. The specific aims of this project are to identify the influence of the Hanfu, Qipao, and Mao suit along with other Chinese dress characteristics, including accessories, hair styles, and makeup, on Western women's dress.

Another part of Chinese national garments which greatly contribute to the whole style of costumes is different accessories. The Chinese accessories which appealed attention in the whole world such as style hats, parasols, earrings, bracelets, pendants, and fans can beautify any dress.

Chinese hats have several different shapes. The most famous of them - a coolie hat, is a conical shaped hat with a chin strap. It is often used to protect the wearer from the sun and rain. The materials of a coolie hat could be straw, silk or other materials.

The hat with a round crown and upturned brim with a flaring edge originally comes from the Qing Dynasty. Its elements were used by modern designers such as Saint Laurent.

The Chinese oil paper umbrella or parasol is a type of a paper umbrella that originated from China. It is usually

made from  paper or silk with bamboo ribs. It was later adopted by Japan and Korea and also introduced to Western countries via

the Silk Road. It subsequently spread across Asia to Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Laos.

Earrings, bracelets, necklaces, and pendants are another example of Chinese accessories. They are usually made from jade, wood, lacquer, and cloisonné. Designs such as dragon, bat, and crane appear frequently to symbolize power, blessing and peace.

The Chinese style umbrella or parasol appeared in American Vogue 47 times.The use of parasols were seen in photographs of live models showing John Galiano's Chinese look for Dior in July 1997. The small parasol is decorated with Chinese style motifs, which adds a strong eastern effect to the ensemble.

A great number of different fabrics were used in Chinese garments including silk, cotton, hemp, chiffon, satin, and other natural fibers. Many of these fabrics were patterned with Chinese motifs such as birds, fine floral scrolls, asymmetrical designs were patterned on the cloth. Chinese fabrics have influenced Western fabric over an extended period of time.

The accessories such as jewelry, hats, fans, umbrellas and hair styles have a great effect on Chinese dress appearance. 

There were multiple peaks of their popularity, with the highest point in 1979. After that they were no longer

considered as exotic items. Some Chinese influential jewelry appeared in advertisements.

The fan became an essential accessory to women's dress. The fan took place from China and later appeared in Japan and other far eastern countries. The fan was adopted in Europe in the sixteenth century. It was not only a fashionable feminine ornament , but but also became a personal statement. Karl Lagerfeld, a famous fashion designer,who always wears sunglasses and carries a folding fan when he appears in fashion shows. Fans often worn by Western women add some exotic mood to the design .

Chinese influenced makeup refers to Peking Opera style make-up. The particularity of this makeup is very exaggerated Asian eyes

Several celebrities were photographed wearing Chinese influenced dresses. Famous fashion model Heidi Klum showed her gorgeous dragon gown in the issue of October 2004 . Among the eight celebrities who were wearing Chinese influenced evening dresses, Gong Li and Nicole Kidman both walked the red carpet wearing Ford‟s dragon dress and Michael Obama in a chiffon and velvet gown by Jason Wu.

Linda and Esther Chang , the daughters of Korean immigrants who came to the U.S. in 1981 and opened up a store called Forever 21 in Highland Park, California.Both sisters joined the family business after attending Ivy League schools and helped turn the company in to the country’s 122 biggest company. Linda runs the marketing department and Esther looks over graphics and store displays.

Fashion Awards, comprised of fashion retailers, journalists, and more than 450 designers, awarded Richard Chai (menswear), Jason Wu (women’s wear) and Alexander Wang (accessories) as best new designers of the year.

China has carried out well-knownInternational Fashion Fair, such as China FashionWeek 2013, MODE Shanghai in 2013, held in Shanghai,and the spring-summer session the week of Hong Kong Fashion Week for Spring / Summer 2014, which held in Hong Kong. Now the word "Chinese"which had often been used to refer tolow product quality, gradually loses itsnegative value.