Monday 25 April 2011

Clothing: Indian

Sari

A sari or saree is a strip of unstitched cloth, ranging from four to nine metres in length that is draped over the body in various styles.

The most common style is for the sari to be wrapped around the waist, with one end then draped over the shoulder baring the midriff. The sari is usually worn over a petticoat (लहंगा lahaṅgā or "lehenga" in the north, langa/pavada/pavadai in the south, chaniyo, parkar in the west, and shaya in eastern India), with a blouse known as a choli or ravika forming the upper garment. The choli has short sleeves and a low neck and is usually cropped. Cholis may be backless or of a halter neck style. These are usually more dressy with plenty of embellishments such as mirrors or embroidery, and may be worn on special occasions.

The most common style is for the sari to be wrapped around the waist, with the loose end of the drape to be worn over the shoulder, baring the stomach. However, the sari can be draped in several different styles, though some styles do require a sari of a particular length or form. The French cultural anthropologist and sari researcher Chantal Boulanger categorized sari drapes in many families. Some of them are kodagu, gujarati and mahrashtrian.

Kurta


Another Indian traditional attire is the kurta. The wearer can be male or female. But, males mostly wear this both as casual wear and as formal dress.
It is a loose shirt falling either just above or somewhere below the knees of the wearer, and is worn by both men and women. They were traditionally worn with loose-fitting paijama (kurta-paijama), loose-fitting salwars, tight-fitting churidars, or wrapped-around dhotis; but are now also worn with jeans.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Content source (edited by author):
Sari - Wikipedia
Kurta - Wikipedia

Sunday 24 April 2011

Clothing: Chinese

Cheongsam



The traditional Chinese female attire is called the cheongsam. It is also known as the qípáo (旗袍) in Mandarin Chinese. The Chinese women wear the cheongsam, a one-piece dress with a high collar, diagonally closed with small clips or toggles (fabric clasps). It sometimes can have slits at the side, as is made with a soft fabric such as silk. The cheongsam is especially popular around the time of the Chinese New Year and other formal gatherings (the fourth and fifth women from the right in the picture above). Older well-respected women wear a samfoo, which looks like pajamas with a separate loose fitting top fastened by toggles and ankle length, or above the ankle, pants.

Samfu


The traditional Chinese male attire is called samfu. It is basically a male equivalent of the female's cheongsam.The samfu consists of a short/long sleeved shirt and light-weight trousers. This attire is rarely worn amongst modern men nowadays though.

Changshan



Changshan are traditionally worn in pictures, weddings, and other more formal historically Chinese events. A black changshan, along with a rounded black hat, was, and sometimes still is, the burial attire for Chinese men. Changshan are not often worn today in Malaysia or mainland China, except during traditional Chinese celebrations but, with the revival of some traditional clothing in urban mainland China, the Shanghainese style functions as a stylish party dress.

Here is a little fun fact and history tidbit on the names given for these attires:

The English loanword cheongsam and changshan comes from chèuhngsàam, the Cantonese pronunciation of the Shanghainese term zǎnze or zansae (長衫, 'long shirt/dress'), which was originally used in olden days.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Content source (edited by author):
Cheongsam - Wikipedia
Changsan - Wikipedia