Portrait of a Lady - Part 2 (Cheongsam or Qipao)

Another post that will be full of pictures and images. In the previous part, we looked at the Western culture of wearing hosiery and gloves can bring out the feminine aspect of a lady. Now we will look at the Eastern influence or what garment can help to turn an average girl into an alluring lady. 

Cheongsam (Qipao)

There is nothing more sexy and feminine than a fitting piece of cheongsam or qipao that can accentuate the asset and beauty of a woman. The cheongsam, also known as the qipao, is a type of feminine body-hugging dress with distinctive Chinese features of Manchu origin. It was known as the mandarin gown during the 1920s and 1930s, popularised by Chinese socialites and upper-class women in Shanghai. You can watch the Youtube video below to see how cheongsam just add on that grace and beauty to the lady in the MTV.

Many view the Eastern thinking and culture as conservative in their dress and fashion sense but the cheongsam seems to be otherwise. The most important aspect of the cheongsam is that it must be fitting to the body and must not be too loose. The proportion must be matching so that the cheongsam can highlight the key assets of the lady's figure, her bust and hip, the mark of fertility and feminism. On top of that, the cheongsam also give prominence to the slim waistline to a lady, showing that despite of her voluptuous assets, she is also mindful of her figure. See the picture below to see how the cheongsam just emphasize all those hallmarks of a curvaceous and sexually attractive lady...

Besides the body hugging attributes of the cheongsam, another important feature to these cheongsam are slits  at sides of the gown. I believe that the original slits are not that high but as influenced by time and fashion, the slits cut became higher and higher, reaching up the the thigh and hip. Those high-slit cuts reaching top of the thigh and hip just added another dimension of attractiveness to this garment. The length of the traditional cheongsam usually cover the lady's leg to between the knee cap and ankle. This adds a layer of modesty to the lady and those high-cut slits, which is used to allow mobility in the ladies, expose the other feature of a lady's allurement, her well-figured hip and also her beautiful legs as shown in the pictures below.

With so much flesh exposed on the legs, as what every fine and modest lady should do, it is always important cover them up with a nice pair of sheer pantyhose, be nude, suntan or coffee colour, or even just a nice pair of nude coloured tights to do the trick. As for those who want to leave the men wanting for more, a nice pair of stay-on stockings or stockings with garter belt will just turn up the heat especially when you "expose them accidently"... You can see the effects of pantyhose together with a colour matching cheongsam in the pictures below. It just tease you by "covering up sufficiently but leaving the rest to your imagination" effect...

I feel that in order to complete portrait of a lady, we should put in the essence of the different garments to bring out the best. As we had seen previously, adding a pair of opera gloves can add elegance and class to a lady based on the gown she is wearing. Now, pairing opera gloves together with cheongsam has a different feel. A mix of tradition and class, sophisticated yet graceful. A woman wearing a cheongsam is already quite posh, by putting on a nice pair of satin opera gloves, it is not just about fashion, it is adding that finishing touch to the complete the stature of a lady as you can see from the pictures below.

Now, combining all the three garments that I talked about, cheongsam, pantyhose and satin opera gloves together. That is just divine... However, It is quite hard to find pictures of a lady in all three, or at least, I believe in some of the photos, the lady might be wearing nude pantyhose but it is not obvious. This is the best I can offer, Anna Williams from the Tekken game series. See that fiery red cheongsam together with a nice matching red opera gloves and sheer black pantyhose with a nice pair of red heels. That is a distinction of a lady. For the next post, I will talk about heels. Stay tune. 😀