STYLITES IN BEIJING

P1.cn Camerawomen

From a while back, this is a photo of a young lady who photographed me for P1.cn.  This is the titan of the street fashion world here in China, though it has a very different look and feel from Stylites. 

She was a very shy girl actually.

7 comments July 1st, 2008

Harmonious Couple

Both seeking work, Nikki and Snow live in Fengtai district, where, they say, there is nothing fun to do. Nikki says the best way of finding work and doing well in general is to make sure all of your thoughts and deeds are “harmonious” and do not upset anyone. In his opinion, for young people to succeed they must “become harmonized” (被和谐). He also commented that Korea has a much bigger influence on Chinese fashion and popular culture than the US and Europe, which he says offer more classic styles. Nikki runs a taobao shop that sells second-hand and vintage products from the West and Japan.

Add comment May 19th, 2008

Beijing-Loving Designers

Yokota and Kata prefer Beijing to Tokyo because of the relative absence of pressure and the good work opportunities.  They are the co-founders of LOSH, a design firm serving mainly Japanese firms.  The only thing that could make Beijing any better was Uniqlo and Muji, both of which just arrived in Xidan. 

4 comments May 15th, 2008

Teddy Pendant at Uniqlo - 小熊吊坠在优衣库

I ran into Jesse Chen, an IT salesman, at the first Beijing Uniqlo on its first day of business. He and his friends made several purchases and felt quite positive about this new shop at Xidan. Likening Uniqlo to Ikea, he commented that the quality seemed better than Zara, while the prices are significantly lower. As for domestic competitors, Baleno and some others might qualify, but he felt that no Chinese apparel retailer possesses the same ability to create a “culture” around its brand.

我在北京优衣库开业的第一天碰到了Jesse陈，一个做IT销售工作的男孩。他和朋友们在这个商店买了一些东西，感觉比较满意。他觉得优衣库的生意模式像宜家。他还说优衣库的衣服比Zara有“质感”，但是价格更低一些。谈到国内的竞争对手，班尼路等品牌也许能算是，但是他觉得中国的服装零售连锁品牌还没有一个像优衣库这样能够创造一种“文化”的。

His cute teddy bear pendant reveals that even as a grown man he retains a small child’s spirit.

他可爱的小熊吊坠泄露了一个成熟男人的小秘密，那就是可能他仍然保留着做为小孩子的年轻心态。

5 comments March 31st, 2008

Cheerful DIY Girl

A friendly girl, Li Fang studies accounting but her true passion is fashion and design. She creates and knits her own scarves and dresses and would like to expand her operations in the future.

1 comment February 27th, 2008

Young Actor at Xidan

I meet so many female acting students, it was nice to finally encounter a male one.  He has a sort of rugged urban style with a very modern jacket that seems even faintly athletic.

6 comments January 21st, 2008

Xidan- Pink Japanophile

Pink in a decidedly Japanese way, Fang Yuan also does hair at Xidan. She didn’t have a chance to speak before I was swarmed with male stylists criticizing my haircut.

Xidan strives to be Shibuya, the amazing epicenter of Japanese street style, but often achieves a rugged flavor of its own, more suited to Beijing. Before their encasement in drab Western business attire - China’s selection in formal clothing is quite boring and generally of low quality - Beijing young people get the chance to experiment with quirky looks from Japan and Korea. This rare style reservoir, where nearly every pedestrian makes some kind of effort to stand out, presents the challenge of sifting through overwhelming crowds and persuading those with the most tasteful or unique outfits to pose. In Xidan, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the number of people.  It is not really like this in the rest of Beijing, which is spread-out and does not feel as crowded as Manhattan or Hong Kong.

Unlike in more Eastern parts of the city, shoppers at Xidan often have no concept of what Stylites in Beijing could possibly be and I was accused more than once of being a wretch up to some foul tricks.

3 comments January 17th, 2008

Unique Scarf at Xidan

I’m not entirely sure if those are the best boots for this outfit, but I find the scarf and collar arrangement to be intriguing.

He was in a hurry, so I didn’t get to ask if he had made it himself.

3 comments January 16th, 2008

Darling Actress

Yet another theater student, Ms. Wang studies at a Language University in Tongzhou.  The nearby male hair stylists, hawking their business, applauded me for photographing her, describing her as a “true beauty”.  When I asked questions regarding her views of fashion she smiled shyly and her friends told me to make something up that sounded nice.  I’m trying to think of that should be.

3 comments January 15th, 2008

IT Triad Chief

Vice President of a digital technology company, Mr. Zhao stood out in the up-to-the-moment fashion world of Xidan, exuding a sort of 1920s Shanghai, a luxuriant world of glamour and vice.  His coat is made out some kind of dreadful polyester velveteen, but I must say that it looks pretty good here.

2 comments January 14th, 2008