Take Fashion Into Your Own Hands, Shanghai Style
In a world where Project Runway gives us inspirational insight to the flurry of fashion design and high street brands collaborate regularly with runway designers, fashion is no longer as inaccessible or mysterious as it once used to be.
Now, anyone with a sewing machine and enough talent or dreams can become fashion’s next big thing. Combine this with the desire, innate to every individual, to be unique and different; and a new trend is born - making your own clothes.
In Shanghai, one of the biggest cosmopolitan cities in the world, the trend of acquiring personalized garments is rampant and those hungry for fabric hunt for cloth in Shanghai’s Shi Liu Pu (十六铺) Market on Number 168 Dong Meng Road (东门路) near The Bund.
This remarkable cloth market is, granted a bit out of the way, but it is a must-see if you’re interested in making your own clothes. According to a sign at its entrance, it has even been listed as a “recommended site for tour groups” by the Shanghai Tourism Association.
An unimposing building from the outside, it is every cloth connoisseur’s dream within the walls of the four-storey air-conditioned building. Well lit, the building is - surprise surprise - a non-smoking one, an uncommon factor in Shanghai. There are many individual little stores selling all types of fabric from chiffon and cashmere, to silk and linen. There is cloth for bedspreads, curtains, and even less conventional fabrics like fur and leather.
All kinds of embellishments are sold as well like lace, ribbons, trimmings and buttons. Most of these fabrics and embellishments are leftover materials obtained from factories that supply them to overseas brands. To give you a clearer idea on the variety of material here, I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.
Gorgeous prints…
For fun floral dresses in sunny weather.
Funky geometrical prints for that essential day to night dress.
Checks for the boyfriend’s shirt or the boyish chic in you.
Plain cotton cloth for the minimalist.
Chinese-style embroidery…and traditional cheongsam silk.
To sidetrack a little: below are scarves that I took pictures of because they look so much like those Afghan scarves that are all the rage right now. (I saw something similar in H&M, probably selling for three times the price of this. Welcome to the real Chinese high street stores which never fail to bring, it all its grittiness and dust, pleasant surprises.)
Ubiquitous jean material.
Cloth for formal wear.
And… embellishments galore! It starts with a fairytale of feather, sequins, lace, and ribbon or varied colour and material…
… And continues to delight with more buttons than you could ever be bothered to count.
This room of buttons literally took my breath away!
Most stores also offer the service of letting you pick out cloth and tailoring the garment into whatever design you desire. They also have look books featuring styles for you to choose from if you’re more about lowering the price of the garment.
To show you the quality and style of their work, I have included a picture of a dress that I personally think wouldn’t look out of place in a Guess ad. Must be those polka dot shoes that we always see in their ads.
The storeowners are friendly, if you’re new to custom-making, just ask them for advice. Prices are also extremely reasonable: 1 meter of cotton cloth retails for approximately 20 RMB (RM10) and 1 meter of silk retails for approximately 50 RMB (RM 25). If you’re a good and relentless bargainer, you can no doubt minimize the (already miniscule) dent in your wallet.
In my foray into the world of DIY clothing, I purchased a beautiful flower print silk cloth for 40 RMB/meter with which I’m going to make a beautiful lightweight summer dress.
Funny, it makes me feel like I’ve already joined the ranks of serious fashionistas which only say yes to completely one-of-a-kind, unique garments.
