In today's era, imitation and following trends have been prevalent in China's fashion design industry for 20 years. Many designers still favor Western models and use imitation and trend-following as their primary methods. In the absorption and application of Hanfu elements, many designers simply imitate what they see with their eyes to cater to Western aesthetics, hoping to gain favor from the West. For example, in color design, heavy colors are considered by Western designers to best represent Chinese clothing culture. However, in the eyes of domestic designers, although red is the preferred color and undoubtedly has irreplaceable significance, it is not the entirety of Hanfu colors. The color selection of Hanfu is rich, such as the blending of different colors between Hanfu and Tang costumes. Therefore, blindly copying the Hanfu concept in Western designers' eyes and simply adding visible Hanfu elements is short-sighted and fails to highlight the designer's unique insights.
Another pain point is the scarcity of professional Hanfu design and tailoring talents. Unlike ordinary ready-to-wear design, Hanfu designers need a professional understanding of cultural elements such as “patterns” from various dynasties. Moreover, integrating Hanfu elements with the convenience required for modern life is another significant direction for Hanfu design that needs to be addressed by designers. The revival of Hanfu has only been a few years, and such specialized talents are scarce. On professional recruitment platforms, the salary for Hanfu designers is stable at around 20,000 RMB, but it still fails to meet the strong market demand.
As for how to distinguish between Hanfu, Korean-style clothing, and Japanese kimonos after pattern modifications, I don't think this is a big issue… Because generally speaking, a mature designer's work, regardless of what they design, should never be so similar to an existing well-known product that it cannot be identified; this is a baseline… Similarly, if a Hanfu designer cannot distinguish their designs from other ethnic costumes, such as kimonos and Korean-style clothing, which are extremely mature and have countless physical examples, then the designer's skill level is truly…
Regarding Théatre D'opéra Spatial, sourced from Baidu, netizens jokingly say: Is there anything AI can't do? Can AI really replace designers? From the perspective of Hanfu design, although the emergence of AI will have a certain impact on Hanfu designers and Hanfu design, it is impossible for AI to truly replace Hanfu designers in the current stage, and even for a long time in the future. From the AI-generated “Hanfu” that appears on the market and online, more than 90% of the clothing only possesses ancient style elements. Whether in terms of appearance or internal structure and form, they cannot truly be called Hanfu.
In recent years, with the development of the national trend economy and short video platforms, Hanfu has gradually won the favor of young people and consumers of other age groups. Hanfu designers have also become an increasingly popular career choice. How to become a Hanfu designer and how to start learning Hanfu design are common questions among many Hanfu enthusiasts and aspiring Hanfu designers. Therefore, Taoyao Hanfu Classroom will guide you through the basics of entering the world of Hanfu design.
A professional Hanfu design teaching platform—Xihanfu Design Classroom—our instructors are all experienced senior Hanfu designers who have served as designers and design department heads in well-known Hanfu stores such as Revisit Han-Tang, Lanruoting, and Qinghuanji. For more details, please check the course introduction on the homepage. From Hanfu design instruction to sharing workplace experience, our teachers will guide you from zero to becoming an excellent Hanfu designer! Even if you don't know Photoshop, it's no problem; we will start with the most basic drawing tools.
“Do you know why Hanfu is so popular? Because the girls who used to dress up as fairies with bed sheets while watching ancient dramas when they were little have grown up!” Wu Zhuyi, a master's degree holder in statistics from Columbia University. However, when introducing herself, she says, “I am a designer, a Hanfu designer.” On the 4th, in an interview, the 1993-born Wu Zhuyi laughed and said that she was once one of those girls who dressed up with bed sheets, and now, her love for Hanfu has turned into the driving force behind her entrepreneurship. As the founder of the brand “Yaoguang Hanfu Lab,” the non-fashion design major “overseas master's degree holder” has shone brightly in professional design exhibitions.
Xihanfu Classroom was founded by a group of seasoned Hanfu enthusiasts. Chief lecturer Keqimi, a veteran original artist and professional Hanfu designer, leads several professional costume designers and Hanfu designers in researching traditional techniques. Combining the reality of beginners, they have created a comprehensive and easy-to-learn Hanfu design and ready-to-wear design training camp. Practical exercises, professional designer feedback, live and recorded learning modes ensure that learners can create without worries, turning hobbies into careers.
In the process of designing Hanfu, Grandma Ying also personally got involved, communicating her ideas and creativity with the designer in the [Debut with Hanfu! Grandma] QQ group initiated by her granddaughter. The designer is a member of Generation Z, while Grandma is over eighty years old, but their communication in the group chat is seamless. Grandma often sends cute emojis to the designer, shares her favorite songs, and occasionally competes for and sends red envelopes, making her seem so trendy that the Hanfu designer even thought she was a peer.
However, the widely understood meaning of “ancient costume” has now become the costumes in ancient drama series, mainly used for filming. These costumes are often creatively modified for dramatic needs and lack fixed patterns, allowing designers complete freedom, just giving off an ancient vibe on the surface. Therefore, these ancient costumes are not Hanfu, and it is best not to try to understand Hanfu from ancient drama series to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings.