The idea of combining Chinese and Western elements
The lights in the studio were on all night long.
For the next week, Ling Xiuqing almost completely locked herself in this small building.
She sorted the piles of orders into categories and then began a frantic creation. Her speed was so fast that the few female workers she hired could not keep up with her pace and could only do some auxiliary work such as threading the needle and ironing.
It was as if they had witnessed the birth of miracles with their own eyes.
The scratched silver fox fur coat of Mrs. Li was embroidered with a bunch of "winter plum blossoms" blooming in the snow by Ah Xiu using the finest silver and white silk threads on the damaged parts. Not only is there no visible flaw, but it also adds a bit of elegance and nobleness to the original.
Miss Wang dropped a ruby brooch, and she used red silk thread and the seed embroidery technique to "re-inlay" a lifelike "ladybug". It was exquisite and cute, and had more design sense than the original gem.
There was also an antique embroidery with a thread break, which she restored perfectly using long-lost needlework. Even the museum experts who had sent the embroidery were amazed and expressed their amazement.
Every defective product that passes through her hands seems to be cast under a spell and "reborn" in a more stunning and artistic manner.
Among the wealthy, the title of "Master Axiu" has evolved from a gimmick into a guarantee of quality and artistry. Her rules are no longer questioned; instead, they've become a status symbol—being able to hire Master Axiu is something to brag about.
However, Ling Xiuqing's ambition goes far beyond being a top "restorer".
Restoration is dancing within someone else's framework.
What she wants is to create her own stage.
Late that night, after completing the last mending order, she did not rest, but took out a brand new piece of indigo cloth bought from Shop 16.
The fabric is rough and has a raw, handmade feel.
Then she took out a piece of silver-gray silk gauze that was as smooth as water.
She placed the two fabrics, which had completely different textures, styles and values, side by side and fell into deep thought.
In her previous life, as the heir of the Ling Family Embroidery Shop, she had learned and witnessed the pinnacle of traditional Chinese embroidery. She effortlessly mastered the elegance of Suzhou embroidery and the splendor of Sichuan embroidery. But she also knew clearly that in this era, in Shanghai, the most prosperous and modern city in the Far East, the tide had long since turned.
Western aesthetics are impacting this ancient land with unprecedented force. Women are beginning to take off their elaborate ruqun and wear cheongsams and dresses that accentuate their figure, while men are proud to wear suits and ties.
Han Shaoheng's initial eagerness to transform his embroidery shop into a machine-woven textile factory was certainly motivated by greed, but also by a desire to adapt to the "trend of the times." However, he was shortsighted, focusing solely on the efficiency of the machines while ignoring the artistry that is the core of embroidery.
He doesn't understand that the real trend is not about blindly following, but about leading.
The key to leadership lies in "integration".
A bold and clear idea gradually emerged in Ling Xiuqing's mind.
What she wants to do is not only to revive traditional embroidery, but also to create a brand new style - a "new embroidery fashion" that perfectly combines the charm of oriental classics with western modern tailoring.
She picked up a pencil and sketched quickly on a piece of white paper.
She drew the silhouette of a Western-style evening gown, with clean, flowing lines, a high waist, and a full skirt—the most popular style in Paris at the time.
However, she left large areas of space blank at the chest and hem of the dress.
Then, she changed to a brush, dipped it in ink, and in the blank space, she painted a bunch of quiet orchids and a few fluttering butterflies using the freehand brushwork of traditional Chinese ink painting.
In the design drawing, the neat tailoring of the Western style and the ethereal artistic conception of the East form a strange and harmonious resonance.
This is the tone she set for her brand!
In the following days, she devoted herself completely to the design and production of this first original work.
Instead of expensive brocade, she boldly chose indigo homespun as the main body of the dress. The simple texture of the homespun added a unique, down-to-earth feel to the luxurious Western silhouette.
On top of that piece of indigo, she used the silver-gray silk gauze and an extremely complex double-sided different-color embroidery technique to perfectly replicate the ink and wash orchid sketch.
When the last stitch was placed and the whole dress was completed, even she herself was deeply shocked by the work before her.
This dress embodies the elegance and sophistication of a Western evening gown, while also imbued with the poetic and ethereal beauty of oriental ink painting. It is not a simple mashup of two styles, but a reborn, entirely new aesthetic creation.
Ling Xiuqing gently stroked this work that embodied all her hard work in past and present lives, with an unprecedented light flashing in her eyes.
She knew that this dress would be her official battle robe to announce her return as the king to the whole of Shanghai.
And now, she needs a stage big enough to show it.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
