1920s asian fashion is where the modern story starts. Women in big port cities took long, formal clothes and cut them into something they could walk and work in. Every era since has done the same trick with a new sound behind it. Here are six of them, and the one shape from each that still earns a place in your closet.
1920s asian fashion in Shanghai, Tokyo and Seoul
Start in Shanghai. It was one of the busiest ports in Asia, and its women turned an older long robe into a one-piece dress. People call it the qipao, or the cheongsam in Cantonese. The early ones hung loose and straight, with wide sleeves and a hem near the ankle. A high standing collar and knot buttons ran across the chest to one side. Over the next decade the cut grew slimmer and the sleeves grew shorter.
Tokyo had its own modern girl, and people shortened the phrase to moga. She wore a bob, a cloche hat and a straight dress that stopped near the knee. Most women still wore kimono every day, but the kimono changed too, with bolder prints and brighter colors. In Seoul, students and young working women wore the hanbok skirt shorter, often with Western shoes. That mix of old and new is what 1920s asian fashion meant on the street.
- A high standing collar on a plain blouse.
- Knot buttons or a side closure on a dress or a knit.
- A straight, easy line that skims instead of shaping.
- One bold print, worn with everything else quiet.
The 1960s: hems rise and pop art lands
Then the hem went up. 1960s pop fashion everywhere ran short, straight and graphic. In Hong Kong, the qipao was still daily wear for many women, cut close to the body, knee length, often with short sleeves. Over the next years, many swapped it for Western dresses. The mini reached Tokyo, Seoul and Hong Kong in the late sixties, and older relatives had plenty to say about it.
Pop art clothing came from the same years. Think flat blocks of color, big dots, bold stripes and everyday objects printed far too large. The trick that made it work was the shape underneath: a dress cut like a rectangle gives a loud print room to talk. Wear it the same way now. One graphic piece, flat shoes, nothing else patterned.
The 1980s: city pop and the Paris shock
Shoulders came next. 80s pop fashion went big up top and narrow below, with shine on anything that caught a stage light. In Japan, a booming economy gave the decade its own soundtrack. City pop was smooth, glossy pop about night drives, pools and skylines. City pop fashion dressed to match: a soft blazer with the sleeves pushed up, pleated high-waisted trousers, a pastel knit, sunglasses after dark.
The other 1980s pop fashion story happened on the runway. Early in the decade, a few Japanese designers showed in Paris with black, loose clothes full of raw edges, holes and uneven hems. It shocked plenty of critics. It also changed how the runway thought about black and about clothes that did not hug the body. For many people, that was the moment Asian fashion houses stopped following Paris and started leading it.
The 1990s: the Korean wave begins
Korea took its turn in the nineties. Korean pop grew loud and fast, with hip-hop and dance groups at the front. 90s pop fashion in Seoul meant baggy jeans worn low, oversized tops, sports jerseys and bucket hats. Groups often dressed to match, sometimes all in white. Late in the decade, Korean dramas and music caught on in China and across the region, and Chinese media gave the trend a name: the Korean wave.
If you search 90s pop stars outfits, you will see both sides of the decade. One side is the baggy denim. The other is a slip dress over a plain tee, or a crop top with a platform shoe. In Britain, brit pop fashion dressed down instead: parkas, track jackets, striped knits and straight jeans. Our guide to pop fashion through the decades covers the Western side of each era.
The 2000s: Y2K sparkle, the Asian way
The new century shrank the shine. 2000s pop fashion across Asia meant low-rise jeans, layered camis, tiny bags, butterfly clips and a mini skirt for every mood. Korean dramas now traveled across Asia and well beyond it. Fans copied a lead’s coat or a scarf, and the habit of dressing like your favorite screen moment spread with them.
Late in the decade, a new run of Korean groups made a look of their own. Think bright skinny jeans, high-top sneakers, sequins and matching stage sets. To wear the era now, keep the sparkle and fix the proportions. Bring the waist back up, make the crop a little longer, and let one piece shine instead of five.
Now: Asian designers and models on every runway
Today the runway runs both ways. South korean fashion designers show in Seoul twice a year, and many also show in Paris, Milan, London or New York. A young korean fashion designer can build a following online before a show ever happens. Japanese, Chinese and Southeast Asian names sit on the same schedules, and Asian fashion brands now sell far beyond Asia.
Models tell the same story. For a long time, an asian fashion model on a global runway was the exception. That changed this century, and models from Korea, China and Japan now walk the biggest shows. A korean fashion model is a familiar face in campaigns far from Seoul. The runway finally looks a little more like the people who wear the clothes.
Why we don’t name labels
Lists of the best korean clothes brands go around every year, and the names keep changing. Search “korean clothes brands popular” today and you get a different list from last spring. South korean fashion brands run from runway houses to tiny online studios, and a list rarely tells you which is which. It also says nothing about how a sleeve will fit your arm.
So we don’t name labels in our journal. We judge each piece instead: the cloth, the cut, the measurements, the one detail that makes you look twice. The best korean clothes brand for you is the one whose sizing matches yours. Our guide to korean fashion brands shows how to judge any korean fashion brand in a few minutes, ours included.
Six eras, one closet
Take one shape per outfit and the rest stays modern. A high collar nods to 1920s asian fashion without any costume. A single bold print does the sixties. A soft blazer with the sleeves pushed up is pure city pop. A slip dress over a tee covers the nineties, and one sequin top is all the 2000s you need.
We don’t sell vintage or traditional dress. Everything on our pages is new, picked by the owner in small batches from makers in Korea, Thailand, Vietnam and beyond. For the older stories, read about hanbok in traditional Korean clothes and chut thai in traditional Thai clothes. For what we carry now, start with Asian fashion or the dresses.
Questions, answered
What did women wear in 1920s Asian fashion?
It depended on the city. In Shanghai, many women wore the early qipao: loose and straight, with a high collar and knot buttons. In Tokyo, modern girls wore a bob and a short Western dress, while most women kept the kimono in bolder prints. In Seoul, students wore a shorter hanbok skirt. Port cities changed first, and the countryside changed more slowly.
What is city pop, and how do I wear the look?
City pop is smooth, glossy Japanese pop from the late seventies and the eighties. The look that goes with it is relaxed but polished. Try a soft blazer with the sleeves pushed up, pleated high-waisted trousers, a pastel knit or a striped tee, and sunglasses. The music found new fans online years later, which is why the look feels current again.
Is it respectful to wear a qipao or hanbok-style pieces?
Wearing a shape is different from wearing a costume. A high collar, a side closure or a wrap front has traveled between cultures for a century. A full qipao or hanbok is dress with its own occasions and meaning, so wear one with care, ideally when someone invites you to, and never as a party costume. We sell modern pieces, not traditional dress.
Which era is the easiest to wear now?
The eighties, minus the shoulder pads. A soft blazer, a pastel knit and a cropped trouser look current with no changes at all. The twenties come next, because a high collar on a plain top reads quiet and modern. The sixties need the most care, since one bold print is plenty and a second one turns the outfit into fancy dress.
Do you sell vintage clothing?
No. Everything on our pages is new. The owner picks every piece herself, in small batches, from makers in Korea, Thailand, Vietnam and other countries. What she looks for are the shapes these eras left behind: a high collar, a straight mini, a soft blazer, a satin slip, one piece with shine. New pieces go up every week.
Not made to blend in
New pieces go up every week, in small batches, and plenty of them echo an era or two. Leave your email and we will tell you when the next ones land.
