1910s Chinese Kanjian Vest 民初坎肩

The kanjian, a sleeveless jacket or a vest, was commonly worn over the wide sleeved dajinshan (large lapel top, the most common top worn by Han Chinese women in the 19th century) to keep one warm. Its utilitarian nature didn’t preclude embellishment—many surviving examples are bedecked in embroidery and silk ribbons. My version is based on examples from the 1900s to the 1910s, right at the tumultuous end of the Qing dynasty (1644-1911), embellished with custom silk jacquard ribbon woven for me by UK weaver Papilionaceous, based on an existing silk ribbon from a late Qing garment.

My version of the kanjian is made, not entirely accurately, from a checked lightweight suiting wool, with a contrasting pink cotton lining. Silk damask would have been a more period-accurate choice for the fashion fabric, but I wanted a hard-wearing fabric for daily use. The fact that it comes with a pocket on the inner underlap, like many extants do, is an added bonus!