Hong Kong’s cheongsam tradition can be traced back to the transformation of women’s wear that took place in the late Qing period. Although imperial edicts had been issued in the early Qing dynasty forbidding Manchu women from imitating the loose-cut and wide-sleeved dresses traditionally worn by their Han counterparts, these orders were generally ignored after the mid-Qing period as the power of the court declined and a keen pursuit of extravagance took hold in society at large. By the late Qing, the dresses of Manchu and Han women alike had become increasingly ornate, while their silhouettes were also growing more slender as a result of Western influences.

After the 1911 Revolution, traditional female dresses were considered cumbersome and old-fashioned. A simpler form of blouse-and-skirt ensemble known as wenming xinzhuang, or ‘new civilised outfit’, came into vogue in Shanghai and Guangzhou. After the May Fourth Movement, it became fashionable for female students to wear men’s robes, which soon incorporated more ladylike features. By the late 1920s, these feminine dresses were often seen in major cities in the mainland, sported especially by film stars.

In those days, cheongsams were mainly worn by schoolteachers, students, ladies of wealthy families, actresses, singers and prostitutes in Hong Kong, while the blouse-and-trousers outfit remained the staple attire of most local women. The cheongsams of this period had an angular silhouette and were often adorned with trimmings and ‘flower buttons’.