Written by Gioia Zhang

In recent years，oriental beauty has been increasingly favored by designers all over the world. Dudou is considered as one of the most classic elements on both domestic and international fashion show stages.

In 2015, Taiwan’s leading lingerie brand, Wacoal, held a grand 45th Anniversary feast in Taipei (the capital of Taiwan). They made a special display of antique Dudou that have been collected over the years.

Beginning with six sets of antique Dudous，the event then featured ten sets of creative Dudous. Wacoal used modern technology of papercut, 3D print, and LED to present ancient Dudous to audience.

In the same year, a fashion designer brought Chinese style to the London Fashion Week. He combined traditional Chinese embroidery with western-style tailoring. This changed westerners’ impression of the Chinese Dudou. Styling it on a western male model showed another interpretation of the Chinese Dudou to the world.

In the 2015 Shenzhen Fashion Week of Original Design, fashion designer Sun Haitao designed a collection of creative children’s clothing using the element of Dudou.

https://v.qq.com/x/cover/dsse9apufg03h8x/b017607nki9.html

Not only on the stage, but also in the deep alleys of Beijing there are Dudou brands. One example is Pillowbook, a lingerie brand studio. It differs from the traditional design of the souvenir shop which have large red embroidered pattern. Pillowbook uses simple lines. The use of traditional pane element on the neckline design shows us a different Chinese style. This brand creates their product exclusively with silk cloth. They pack their products with rice paper and there is a handwritten washing label and a rope tie. The Dudou of Pillowbook can be worn both inside and outside. The designer Irene looks forward to adding more modern elements to Dudou and integrating them naturally into daily life.

Different people have different interpretations of traditional Chinese lingerie. We hope that more and more people would be willing to spend time in appreciating those beautiful handcrafted products and Chinese culture. At the same time, it would be great if more and more designers give Dudou new interpretations to preserve and spread the artistic and skillful design over the world.

About Interact China

—————————————————————————————————————————–

“A Social Enterprise in E-commerce Promoting Oriental Aesthetic Worldwide” 

Aileen & Norman co-founded Interact China in 2004 with specialization in fine Oriental Aesthetic products handmade by ethnic minorities & Han Chinese. Having direct partnerships with artisans, designers, craft masters and tailors, along with 10 years solid experience in e-commerce via InteractChina.com, we position well to bridge talented artisans in the East with the rest of the world, and bring you direct finely selected products that are of good quality and aesthetic taste.

So far we carry 3000+ goods covering Ladies Fashion, Kungfu Clothing, Home Furnishings, Babies & Kids, Painting Arts, Textile Arts, Carving Arts, Tribal Jewelry Art, Wall Masks and Musical Instruments. Our team speak English, French, German, Spanish and Italian, and serve customers worldwide with passion and hearts.

—————————————————————————————————————————–

P.S. We Need People with Similar Passion to Join Our Blogging Team!

If you have passion to write about Oriental Aesthetic in Fashion, Home Decor, Art & Crafts, Culture, Music, Books, and Charity, please contact us at bloggers@interactchina.com, we would love to hear from you!

Written by Gioia Zhang

The craft of multi-layer-sole cloth shoes was a remarkable achievement in Chinese shoe making history, carrying tremendous history, culture and craft value. It has been listed on China’s second intangible cultural heritage list since 2008. The shoe sole is made of many layers of cloth stitched together under fine processes.

The earliest shoes with sewn soles began in the Zhou dynasty. According to archeological research, these stitched soles were first used in the army because of the requirement for abrasion-resistant shoes. Then, these shoes with sewn soles become popular among the public. This was the first time that friction theory was used in shoe design in China.

In the Qing dynasty, sewn sole shoes evolved into multi-layer-sole shoes which is famous around the world. There is a set of strict procedures for the making of multi-layer-sole shoes. The shoes are good at heat releasing in summer, and can keep feet warm in winter. The modern multi-layer-sole shoes are quite different from the traditional ones. Whether in design or in material, modern multi-layer shoes align with the current aesthetic trend of returning to nature.

NeiLianSheng Women’s Shoes Series with Big Fish and Begonia Design

(NeiLianSheng is a brand)

NeiLianSheng’s Watermelon Round-Opening Sewn Shoes

NeiLianSheng’s Colorful Women’s Shoes

NeiLianSheng’s Brocade Wedding Shoes

NeiLianSheng’s Indigo Printed Square-Opening Women’s Shoes

NeiLianSheng’s Floral Women’s Shoes

NeiLianSheng’s Handmade Monk Sandals

NeiLianSheng’s Imperial Guards’ Working Shoes

About Interact China

—————————————————————————————————————————–

“A Social Enterprise in E-commerce Promoting Oriental Aesthetic Worldwide” 

Aileen & Norman co-founded Interact China in 2004 with specialization in fine Oriental Aesthetic products handmade by ethnic minorities & Han Chinese. Having direct partnerships with artisans, designers, craft masters and tailors, along with 10 years solid experience in e-commerce via InteractChina.com, we position well to bridge talented artisans in the East with the rest of the world, and bring you direct finely selected products that are of good quality and aesthetic taste.

So far we carry 3000+ goods covering Ladies Fashion, Kungfu Clothing, Home Furnishings, Babies & Kids, Painting Arts, Textile Arts, Carving Arts, Tribal Jewelry Art, Wall Masks and Musical Instruments. Our team speak English, French, German, Spanish and Italian, and serve customers worldwide with passion and hearts.

—————————————————————————————————————————–

P.S. We Need People with Similar Passion to Join Our Blogging Team!

If you have passion to write about Oriental Aesthetic in Fashion, Home Decor, Art & Crafts, Culture, Music, Books, and Charity, please contact us at bloggers@interactchina.com, we would love to hear from you!

Written by Gioia Zhang

The vast and fertile land of China gives birth to multi-ethnic cultures. Footwear also shows astonishing changes with civilizations from different geographical circumstances.

Manchu Black Tribute Flower Shoes with Double Beams · The Late Qing Dynasty and Early Period of the Republic of China

Manchu women wore flag shoes, and Manchu men wore boots. Most of the flag shoes were embedded with double beams, but some were sewed in cloud patterns with brocade, called “cloud shoes”. Manchu women’s shoes were divided into flat sole types and high sole types. Some of the high-sole shoes had the design of a “horse hoof”.

Tibetan Thigh Wool Boots with Red and Black Embroidery · Contemporary

There are many kinds of Tibetan boots, which can be roughly divided into 3 types: cow leather boots, corduroy boots, and woolen cotton boots. However, there is no difference between men and women’s boots. They were only different in height and thickness.

Dong Tribe’s Warped Head Shoes with Double Chain Stitch Embroidery · Contemporary.

Dong Tribe’s Warped Head Shoes with Horsetail Embroidery · Contemporary

The Dong tribe’s embroidered warped head shoes, also called “hook shoes,” had a pointed end like a ship’s bow or an ox’s horn, a symbol that payed respect to nature and animals. Many Chinese ethnic groups make symmetrical shoes. This simplifies the shoe-making process, and also reduces the difference in abrasion between the two sides caused by constant wearing.

Ewenki Tribe’s Dog Skin Boots · Contemporary

Before the late Qing dynasty, the Ewenki people made all their clothes from animal skin, as they lived in a cold region and made use of animal husbandry. Their hide boots were warm, portable, and resilient. Walking with Ewenkian hide boots in snow and in mountains made only tiny sounds, which was helpful for hunting.

Ewenki Tribe’s Dog Skin Boots · Contemporary

Ewenki people wear dog skin boots all year round. Generally the summer’s boots are hairless. In winter, people put wula grass, one of the three treasures of Dongbei province, in their shoes to keep their feet warm.

Embroidered Shoes of Tu Ethnic Group in Qinghai Province · Contemporary

Thigh Boots of Tu Ethnic Group in Qinghai Province · Contemporary

Tu embroidery features delicate stitches, vibrant colors, compact woven structures, and is easy to preserve. Patterns on these shoes are mainly made by simple stiches using bright colors, and show the unique artistic attraction of the Tu people’s embroidery. Rainbow-patterned decoration is usually on Tu women’s clothing, and therefore the ethnic area in Qinghai province is known as the “rainbow town”.

Embroidered Shoes and Hand-sewn Soles of Maowen Qiang Ethnic Group in Sichuan Province · Contemporary

The cloud shoes, often with embroidered soles, are homemade cotton shoes which the Qiang people wear on holidays. The shoes represent love in Qiang’s traditions.

Fish Leather Shoes of the Hezhen Ethnic Group · Contemporary

The Hezhen ethnic group lives along the Songhua River, earning their livelihoods by fishing and hunting. Using fish skin to make clothing, including jackets, pants, bags, and shoes, is the Hezhen ethnic group’s distinct traditional skill.

Embroidered Shoes of Bai Ethnic Group · Contemporary

Ladies from the Bai tribe also have handmade shoe traditions.

Black Sateen Embroidered Women’s Socks from Baoan Ethnic Group · Contemporary

The Baoan ethnic group’s traditional “shoe-socks,” also known as “worship shoes,” are usually taken off in mosques. Since the bottom of the socks are the hells are shown during worship service, the Baoan people sewed exquisite flower patterns to the bottom of the heel of the “shoe-socks.”

As we can see, there are countless achievements of Chinese handcrafted art.

About Interact China

—————————————————————————————————————————–

“A Social Enterprise in E-commerce Promoting Oriental Aesthetic Worldwide” 

Aileen & Norman co-founded Interact China in 2004 with specialization in fine Oriental Aesthetic products handmade by ethnic minorities & Han Chinese. Having direct partnerships with artisans, designers, craft masters and tailors, along with 10 years solid experience in e-commerce via InteractChina.com, we position well to bridge talented artisans in the East with the rest of the world, and bring you direct finely selected products that are of good quality and aesthetic taste.

So far we carry 3000+ goods covering Ladies Fashion, Kungfu Clothing, Home Furnishings, Babies & Kids, Painting Arts, Textile Arts, Carving Arts, Tribal Jewelry Art, Wall Masks and Musical Instruments. Our team speak English, French, German, Spanish and Italian, and serve customers worldwide with passion and hearts.

—————————————————————————————————————————–

P.S. We Need People with Similar Passion to Join Our Blogging Team!

If you have passion to write about Oriental Aesthetic in Fashion, Home Decor, Art & Crafts, Culture, Music, Books, and Charity, please contact us at bloggers@interactchina.com, we would love to hear from you!

Written by Gioia Zhang

In northern China, children often wear animal shoes. These animal shoes are a traditional type of embroidery made using the applique technique, where cotton, linen, and other materials are stitched into a variety of patterns.

Women found that children’s shoes were particularly vulnerable to breaking, so they cut clothes into many animal prints and sewed them on the shoes. This not only increased the wear resistance of children’s shoes but also made them have a very interesting aesthetic.

Tiger Head Baby Boots · Republic of China

Tiger Head Baby Shoes · Republic of China

Chinese people devote a particular care to wearing shoes. They traditionally believed that wearing tiger head or lion head shoes could dispel evil spirits and bring peace, as tigers and lions are the kings of animals.

Children’s Lion Shoes · Republic of China

 Baby’s Lion Shoes · Republic of China

Baby’s Plain-stitched Lion Pattern Pantyhose · Republic of China

Baby’s Pig Shoes · Republic of China

 These pig shoes carry parents’ best wishes for their babies to be healthy and grow strong, as pigs both eat well and sleep well.

Baby’s Dragon Boots · Republic of China

The dragon, an auspicious totem in Chinese culture, is a popular design in Chinese clothing and adornments.

Baby’s Cat Shoes · Republic of China

Baby’s Rabbit Shoes · Republic of China

Sewing animals on her children’s shoes not only shows a women’s gratitude for nature, but also expresses good wishes for her children’s feature, hoping they grow up to resemble these lovely spiritual animals.

About Interact China

—————————————————————————————————————————–

“A Social Enterprise in E-commerce Promoting Oriental Aesthetic Worldwide” 

Aileen & Norman co-founded Interact China in 2004 with specialization in fine Oriental Aesthetic products handmade by ethnic minorities & Han Chinese. Having direct partnerships with artisans, designers, craft masters and tailors, along with 10 years solid experience in e-commerce via InteractChina.com, we position well to bridge talented artisans in the East with the rest of the world, and bring you direct finely selected products that are of good quality and aesthetic taste.

So far we carry 3000+ goods covering Ladies Fashion, Kungfu Clothing, Home Furnishings, Babies & Kids, Painting Arts, Textile Arts, Carving Arts, Tribal Jewelry Art, Wall Masks and Musical Instruments. Our team speak English, French, German, Spanish and Italian, and serve customers worldwide with passion and hearts.

—————————————————————————————————————————–

P.S. We Need People with Similar Passion to Join Our Blogging Team!

If you have passion to write about Oriental Aesthetic in Fashion, Home Decor, Art & Crafts, Culture, Music, Books, and Charity, please contact us at bloggers@interactchina.com, we would love to hear from you!

Written by Gioia Zhang

Handcrafted embroidery is one of China’s finest skills. It has a long history, and has become a respected tradition. This skill was significantly developed in the Qing dynasty. There were a number of traditional methods of stitching. The Suzhou, Hunan, Shu, and Yue types of stitches were known as the four most famous Chinese stitches. These four embroidery methods had a great influence on the embroidered shoes in the Qing dynasty.

 Orange Embroidered Shoes for Bithday Celebration

Pink Embroidered Bow Shoes

Black Sole Embroidered Shoes

According to historical research, the Chinese foot binding tradition began at the end of the Five Dynasties period. It became popular during the Ming dynasty, the Qing dynasty, and the period of the Republic of China. The foot binding practice reached its peak in the Qing dynasty. Han Chinese women from every social class were expected to bind their feet. Little feet were widely appreciated in that time.

Flower Embroidered Bow Shoes

Pink Embroidered Shoes

Purple Flower Embroidered Shoes

Black Bats and Flowers Embroidered Bow Shoes

Red Butterflies Embroidered Bow Shoes

The history of bound-feet shoes, also called “bow shoes”, is said to be a history of blood and tears for the Han Chinese women. These fancy looking shoes reflected the harsh foot binding ideology that was prevalent in China’s feudal society.

Pink floral high heels

Blue Bottom Floral Bow Shoes

Red and Gold Thread Embroidered Bow Shoes

Floral Embroidered High-Heeled Bow Shoes

Manchu women, however, didn’t have the foot-binding habit. Therefore their shoes were much larger than the Han Chinese women’s shoes.

Blue Satin Manchu Embroidered Shoes with Plum Blossoms

Manchu Women’s Light Pink Embroidered Shoes with Eight Immortals Design

Red Silk Cotton-Padded Shoes with Golden Fish Design

Because of the weather and other geographical causes, Manchu women wore shoes with thick soles, commonly known as “horse hoof shoes”. However, as they became older the height of their soles reduced gradually, and sometimes they even wore flat shoes.

Yellow Silk Embroidered “Horse Hoof Shoes”

Manchu Purple Embroidered High Heeled Shoes with Animal Design

Greensilk Satin Crested Thick-Soled Shoes

Embroidered “Horse Hoof Shoes” with Lake Blue Silk Strings of Beads

Yellow Satin Floral Embroidered “Horse Hoof Shoes”

Blue Satin Embroidered Horse Hoof Shoes with Design of Covert Eight Immortals

Blue Satin Ingot-Shaped Cotton Padded Shoes

Manchu Women’s White Satin Horse Hoof Shoes

Lake Blue Satin Embroidered Ingot-Shaped Shoes with Character Designs

Blue Satin Ingot-Shaped Cotton Padded Shoes

Red Floral Ingot-Shaped Cotton Padded Shoes

The Manchu women’s shoes became more exquisite and luxurious after hundreds of years of development. These shoes are a landmark of the Qing dynasty’s footwear. People from all over the world have been amazed at the extraordinariness of Qing footwear.

About Interact China

—————————————————————————————————————————–

“A Social Enterprise in E-commerce Promoting Oriental Aesthetic Worldwide” 

Aileen & Norman co-founded Interact China in 2004 with specialization in fine Oriental Aesthetic products handmade by ethnic minorities & Han Chinese. Having direct partnerships with artisans, designers, craft masters and tailors, along with 10 years solid experience in e-commerce via InteractChina.com, we position well to bridge talented artisans in the East with the rest of the world, and bring you direct finely selected products that are of good quality and aesthetic taste.

So far we carry 3000+ goods covering Ladies Fashion, Kungfu Clothing, Home Furnishings, Babies & Kids, Painting Arts, Textile Arts, Carving Arts, Tribal Jewelry Art, Wall Masks and Musical Instruments. Our team speak English, French, German, Spanish and Italian, and serve customers worldwide with passion and hearts.

—————————————————————————————————————————–

P.S. We Need People with Similar Passion to Join Our Blogging Team!

If you have passion to write about Oriental Aesthetic in Fashion, Home Decor, Art & Crafts, Culture, Music, Books, and Charity, please contact us at bloggers@interactchina.com, we would love to hear from you!

Written by Gioia Zhang

Upturned toecap shoes are the most typical kind of ancient Chinese shoe. Yet if we look at the global history of shoes, we find that an upturned toecap is a common feature of ancient shoes from many different cultures. Shoes with upturned toecaps began in the Qin Dynasty. During the Spring and Autumn Period, these shoes were highly valued by people. In the Tang dynasty, people made many colorful upturned toecap shoes.

 Red Shoes · The Shang Dynasty

Flower Brocade Shoes · The Tang Dynasty

Upturned Blue Silk Shoes

Upturned Damask Shoes

Upturned Toecap Style in the Tang Dynasty

Pointed shoes and “three-inch lotus” shoes originated in the Five Dynasties period and developed into “tip of the small feet” shoes in the Song dynasty.

Upturned Pointed Shoes · The Ming Dynasty

After the Qing dynasty, women generally wore shoes with thick soles, which were called “lotus” shoes and round head shoes. Except for boots, Men wore similar styles of shoes to what people wear today. A new trend of “flat shoes” was formed in the Qing dynasty. However, ethnic groups in southwest and northwest China still make and wear beautiful upturned toecap shoes.

Upturned Embroidered Shoes · The Yi Ethic Group in China

 Zi Zhong shoes, a pair of knee high boat boots from a Tibetan monk in old days

Why were ancient shoes upturned? There are 4 reasons:

1. Ancient Chinese wore long coats and long dresses. These upturned toecap shoes could provide some support for those long clothes to prevent people from slipping and falling.
2. Upturned toecap shoes could better prevent people from accidentally hitting dangerous objects, and protect them from some acute injuries.
3. The upturned part is made with soles that are resilient. This design could extend the useful life of the shoes.
4. Upturned toecap shoes share the same features as the apexes of ancient buildings. It could be explained that this design was to show respect to gods and supernatural beings.

About Interact China

—————————————————————————————————————————–

“A Social Enterprise in E-commerce Promoting Oriental Aesthetic Worldwide” 

Aileen & Norman co-founded Interact China in 2004 with specialization in fine Oriental Aesthetic products handmade by ethnic minorities & Han Chinese. Having direct partnerships with artisans, designers, craft masters and tailors, along with 10 years solid experience in e-commerce via InteractChina.com, we position well to bridge talented artisans in the East with the rest of the world, and bring you direct finely selected products that are of good quality and aesthetic taste.

So far we carry 3000+ goods covering Ladies Fashion, Kungfu Clothing, Home Furnishings, Babies & Kids, Painting Arts, Textile Arts, Carving Arts, Tribal Jewelry Art, Wall Masks and Musical Instruments. Our team speak English, French, German, Spanish and Italian, and serve customers worldwide with passion and hearts.

—————————————————————————————————————————–

P.S. We Need People with Similar Passion to Join Our Blogging Team!

If you have passion to write about Oriental Aesthetic in Fashion, Home Decor, Art & Crafts, Culture, Music, Books, and Charity, please contact us at bloggers@interactchina.com, we would love to hear from you!

Written by Gioia Zhang

It has been deduced that the earliest Chinese footwear was made of a hide called “foot-binding skin” or “hide socks”. Chinese ancestors learned not only to use animal skin to keep their feet warm, but also to use small leather straps and hairy hide to wrap their feet in for protection during their struggles against nature.

After a long time, the hide socks shaped like “Baozi” (a type of steamed, filled bun or bread-like item in various Chinese cuisines), evolved into leather shoes shaped like “Shao Mai” (a type of traditional Chinese dumpling), and are still popular today.

In modern times, the wula shoes of Northern China also retain the shape of the original Chinese shoes.

The present-day fish shoes of the Nanai people from Northern China are also inspired by the original Chinese shoes.

It was a great leap for the original hide shoes when they evolved into more complicated straw shows. China has at least seven thousand years of history using the leaves and stems of plants as raw materials to weave clothing and accessories.

Straw sandals were popular in every region of ancient China. This is because it was extremely convenient to obtain the raw materials in order to make them, and they felt light and comfortable to wear.

Children’s Reed Woven Sandals

Linen Shoes

Linen can be made into thread by weaving and by spinning. As social production systems advanced, people found that clothes could be made more delicate, softer, and more resilient with the use of wild linens. The Chinese made a variety of woven shoes and shoe accessories.

  Woven Shoes · The Eastern Jin Dynasty

Woven Shoes · The Eastern Jin Dynasty

Bulrush Shoes· Tang Dynasty

In this chapter, from hide shoes and woven straw shoes, to textile shoes, we see how Chinese people have presented the world with their splendid shoe culture, using only materials from nature.

About Interact China

—————————————————————————————————————————–

“A Social Enterprise in E-commerce Promoting Oriental Aesthetic Worldwide” 

Aileen & Norman co-founded Interact China in 2004 with specialization in fine Oriental Aesthetic products handmade by ethnic minorities & Han Chinese. Having direct partnerships with artisans, designers, craft masters and tailors, along with 10 years solid experience in e-commerce via InteractChina.com, we position well to bridge talented artisans in the East with the rest of the world, and bring you direct finely selected products that are of good quality and aesthetic taste.

So far we carry 3000+ goods covering Ladies Fashion, Kungfu Clothing, Home Furnishings, Babies & Kids, Painting Arts, Textile Arts, Carving Arts, Tribal Jewelry Art, Wall Masks and Musical Instruments. Our team speak English, French, German, Spanish and Italian, and serve customers worldwide with passion and hearts.

—————————————————————————————————————————–

P.S. We Need People with Similar Passion to Join Our Blogging Team!

If you have passion to write about Oriental Aesthetic in Fashion, Home Decor, Art & Crafts, Culture, Music, Books, and Charity, please contact us at bloggers@interactchina.com, we would love to hear from you!