Cheongsam_01

The Long-lost Neighbours

Cheongsam Rhapsody 

有些方向從沒想像涉獵,竟有緣遇上;有些東西差一步就推進堆填區,最後竟可能被送進歷史博物館或收藏家的藏館裡。如果説「慢時尚」的主義是慢,我認為應該是細味和隨緣。

有感像修補創作,從一個破洞開始,以衣物的氣質為藍本,往往會引發出意想不到的創意,有時是在回復原貌中加些點綴,有時可會悄悄地長出小花,或化作心形編織。

There are things that I never thought I would do, but ended up submerging myself in. There are things that are destined for the landfill, but ended up as exhibits in history museums or precious treasures to collectors. If “slow fashion” is all about being slow, I think we should compliment it by learning to savor life and go with the flow.

It’s like restoring a broken piece. It starts with a tear or a hole. But then imagination sparks (usually inspired by the unique characteristics of the fabric), and the simple act of restoration turns into adding something extra to the original design; sometimes it’s a flower, sometimes it’s a heart.

Wontonmeen的Pat:「喂喂,我最近收了一堆衫,不如你來看看!」

「這堆長衫是收買佬從基隆街推來的舊皮箱和木櫳裡找到的,裡面還有一張1956年的舊報紙和包裝袋等等的雜物⋯⋯可能他根本沒有在意裡面放了些什麼⋯⋯」

從兩大袋長衫,拿出男裝的大裁長棉襖也有毛皮夾裡的,腦裡隨即吹起大風雪,女裝由小裁偷襟到立裁修身,細密的手針和人手剪裁的狗牙縫邊,沒有奢華的鑲邊,推斷是由二十至六十年代的日常服,也見證著鈕扣拉鍊的進化,由真絲無袖到羊毛吊袖,反映著某女子大半生的春夏秋冬。

「各人住在各人的衣服裏」—— 張愛玲 〈更衣記〉

散文穿越二十至四十年代,細説著人文生活與衣飾間的互動和變奏,正正為住在這些舊長衫裡的主人提供了很貼切的時代背景。

「我們的裁縫卻是沒主張的。公眾的幻想往往不謀而合,產生一種不可思議的洪流。裁縫只有追隨的份兒。因為這緣故,中國的時裝更可以作民意的代表。」

“Hey, I’ve just collected a new pile of clothes. Why don’t you take a look!” said Pat from Wontonmeen.

“I found these cheongsam in the old suitcases and wooden shovels that the scavenger from Keelung Street brought to me with a platform truck. There was also some other stuff like an old newspaper from 1956 and packaging bags. I suspect he didn’t care what was inside those suitcases and shovels…”

Among the two large bags of cheongsam, there are a few long robes for men. Some are cotton-padded, while some are fur lined. Either way, they remind me of heavy snowstorms. There are also ladies clothes of various types. Some are made with the traditional Chinese xiao cai cloth-cutting technique, and some are made by draping. There’s delicate hand stitches and irregular sawtooth hem produced by pinking shears. Nothing luxurious. These items are most likely part of the daily wardrobe from the 1920s to the 1960s. Buttons and zippers. Sleeveless in silk. Woollen Cheongsam with three-quarter sleeves. These clothes not only reflect the evolution of fashion but also document the life of their owner.

“Each of us lives inside our own clothes.” A Chronicle of Changing Clothes by Eileen Chang.

Detailing the interaction between everyday life and clothing design during the 1920s to the 1940s, this short essay gives us a glimpse of the time and space where the owners of these cheongsam once lived.

“Our tailors take no initiative and can only follow the vast, unaccountable waves of communal fancy that become apparent from time to time. And it is for this reason that Chinese fashions can be more reliably read as representing the will of the people.”

能反映人文生活的日常服,特別是省卻嬌貴的衣裝是我的偏好,所以二十年代長衫「女穿男袍」的由來是我最有感覺的部分。在剪裁上,由男裝的大裁改良的小裁偷襟,利用「摺撥」和「燙拔」的巧妙技術偷出搭襟布份,是我最想鑽研的魔法!

「很開心喔!很久沒試過那麼開心喔!」課堂上聽見同學自言自語。

是的,每次準備做功課,戴上針頂拿起幼針,感受針線穿梭布織縫,心裡都會不期然冒起喜悅的感覺,慢慢地,一步一步令每個細節貼伏身體垂直飄逸,最重要的是遇上一位好老師,畢竟熱心和無私心地盡情分享是傳承的關鍵。

I have a liking for everyday clothes that best reflect life and culture; in particular, those that are without fancy details are the ones that I like the most. For that same reason, I am intrigued and inspired by the popularization of cheongsam among women in the 1920s and very much interested in exploring the xiao cai tailoring technique, which makes use of folding and ironing to shape, to create the perfect placket in cheongsam.

“I’m so happy! I haven’t been this happy for a long time!” A classmate of mine said to themselves.

Indeed, every time I put on a thimble and pick up a needle to work, I experience a surge of happiness. The needle and thread run through the fabric. Stitch by stitch the cheongsam comes into shape. The most important thing is that I have a teacher who shows me that only with passion and selfless devotion can traditions be passed down to the generations to come.

村上隆曾經説過,有著身為日本人的欲望或記憶的人,所想像出的美,無可避免的會有「醬油味」,所謂的醬油味,是一個地方、一個群體的文化本質。

「長衫」在香港沿用至今,是最地道的叫法,英文cheongsam比qipao更早被收入牛津字典裡;或許我們可從活現眼前的過去中想像一下屬於香港的慢時尚味道。

這些長衫,這個空間,就像是失散的鄰居,在這裡重逢。

Takashi Murakami once said that the imagination of beauty by people who desired to be Japanese is inevitably “soy sauce” in nature; for that he means the “soy sauce” is the cultural essence of a place and a group of people.

Nowadays, the word “cheongsam” is still widely used by Hong Kongers when referring to the special clothing and was included in the Oxford dictionary way earlier than the word “qipao”.  It is a vivid representation of the old times and a kind of slow-fashion that is unique to Hong Kong.

Like long-lost neighbors, cheongsam and this space are finally reunited here and now.


長衫狂想曲 Cheongsam Rhapsody

Date: From 19 November to 4 December 2022
Venue: Wontonmeen 
Click HERE to see the details

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