Women's clothing in China

In China, women had different kinds of clothes in ancient times. Those clothes changed with the revolution of dynasties. For examples, in the 1920s, the Cheongsam was fashionable among socialites and upperclass women; during the 1960s, very austere clothes styles were prevalent; today, a wide variety of fashions are worn. Different provinces and regions of China also have different clothing styles.

In Qin and Han Dynasty, women usually wore loose clothes with long large sleeves. Under the long skirt was a pair of high-heeled clogs with some embroidery on them. There was usually a scarf called Jinguo (巾帼) wrapped on the arm of a noble woman while ordinary or poor women had no decoration on their arms. As time passed by, the coat tended to be shorter and the skirt became longer. Noble women even needed maids’ help to lift up the skirts to avoid the skirts being stained by the ground.

In Sui and Tang Dynasty, women’s clothes had the trend to be more open. Small-sleeves coats usually made of yarn, still long skirts, wide and long scarves were what they often wore. They could bare the part of body above their chests. This sort of cloth could show the beauty of women better. Another kind of clothes popular that time was something with big sleeves, short breasted shirts and long light skirts.

The attire of women during the Song Dynasty (960 - 1279) was distinguished from men's clothing by being fastened on the left, not on the right. Women wore long dresses or blouses that came down almost to the knee. They also wore skirts and jackets with short or long sleeves. When strolling about outside and along the road, women of wealthy means chose to wear square purple scarves around their shoulders.

Banbi (, lit. "half arm") also known as Banxiu () is a form of waistcoat or outerwear that was worn over ruqun, and had half-length sleeves. The style of its collar varies but it can be secured at the front either with ties or a metal button. According to the Chinese records, banbi clothing style was invented from the short jacket (短襦) that the Chinese wear. It was first designated as a waistcoat for palace maids but soon became popular amongst the commoners. In the "Legend of Huo Xiao Yu" (崔小玉传), written during Tang Dynasty, the main female character Huo Xiaoyu wears this style most of the time.

A beizi () is an item of traditional Chinese attire common to both men and women, similar to a cloak. Most popular during the Ming Dynasty, beizi also known as banbi during the Tang Dynasty) are believed to have been adopted from Central Asia during the Tang Dynasty through the Silk Road when cultural exchanges were frequent. However, it is also believed to have been derived from banbi during the Song Dynasty, where the sleeves and the garment lengthened.

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