Robes of silk and gold

I have collected Chinese and Straits Chinese robes since I was 12 :) I remember hoarding up my allowance to buy tiny pieces of embroidery, and when I was more financially independent, I moved on to actual intact robes. The amount of work on each robe is amazing. This is pretty well documented online so I won't spend too much time writing about it. The imperial robes are the stunners, each piece has gold thread couched dragons on them, and they take close to a year of work by a team of skilled seamstresses in the Imperial Workshops of Hangzhou or Nanjing in Imperial China. It is difficult to replicate such robes to the exact standards of workmanship today. Luckily for us, there have been good attempts. I am particularly inspired by Emperor (皇锦) in Shanghai and Beijing. Seeing what they did set me on the path to recreate using vintage or new glass beads with Imperial designs. Anyway, I sell the robes currently on eBay, also under my name of blueadamsingapore, go check it out! :)


Here are 2 robes that I have sold, one is a Peranakan wedding robe, the other a formal gown belonging to a high ranking Mandarin's wife with crane roundels. Both are very rare. I often use the designs of the robes for inspiration on my next piece of beaded beauty.