When watching costume dramas, have you ever been curious about one thing? Weren’t the ancient people worried about getting the hems of their floor – length Hanfu dirty when wearing them on rainy days? Because many people might subconsciously think: It’s better not to wear Hanfu on rainy days. But the weather can change suddenly. Maybe you start out dressed beautifully under a clear blue sky, but then dark clouds roll in after you set off, and both your hair and the dress hems get soaked. It’s not a big deal for modern people, but what could the ancients do with their long – length clothes back then?

I. The Skirt Length of Daily – Wear Hanfu Isn’t Always Floor – Dragging

First of all, don’t be misled by the floor – dragging long dresses often shown in TV dramas. Even though there are floor – length styles in Hanfu, they mostly exist in formal gowns or semi – formal wear (dressy outfits), not in the daily casual wear (clothes for everyday use) of ordinary people.

In fact, in ancient times, not everyone was eligible to wear long, floor – length dresses. For ordinary commoners, they had to work daily. A floor – length dress would get in the way of their work and required too much fabric. They either couldn’t afford it or were reluctant to spend money on it, so they generally didn’t wear such long dresses, and they rarely wore light – colored clothes either.

For merchants, due to the influence of the policy that emphasized agriculture over commerce, although they were wealthy, their social status was low. There were clear regulations on the clothing styles for each social class, so merchants dared not wear long, floor – length dresses. Therefore, generally, only the women from official and wealthy families had the eligibility and the means to wear these long – hemmed dresses. The women from official and wealthy families would only wear floor – length dresses when attending important banquets, sacrificial ceremonies, and such.

In these occasions, the ground would be paved with wooden boards or bricks and stones and kept very clean. Also, they had maids by their side. Even if they encountered a dirty path, the maids would lift up the long hems of their dresses. Even at home, wealthy families kept their places spotlessly clean.

In ancient times, the longest length of people’s daily – wear clothes or skirts usually reached around the ankles. Let’s take a look at the skirt lengths of these cultural relics. One is a bit shorter and the other is a bit longer, but neither exceeds 90 (units, presumably centimeters). Calculating based on the height of Miss Huang Sheng (an affluent ancient young lady), who was about 160 centimeters tall, the length really only reached the ankles.

Let’s look at the cultural relics of horse – face skirts. Most of their skirt lengths don’t exceed 90 centimeters. Only a few, like those from the Qian Family Tomb, are over 100 centimeters. The variation in length is partly due to the height of the owners, and also because different skirt lengths are suitable for different occasions. (The total length of this skirt is 85 centimeters, the waist circumference is 105 centimeters, the red waistband is 12 centimeters wide, the hem width is 191 centimeters, and the width at the knee is 11.5 centimeters. It was an old collection in the Confucius Mansion and is in the style of a horse – face skirt. The main body of the skirt is made of light – green dark – pattern gauze, with patterns such as twining peonies, chrysanthemums, lotuses, flowing clouds, flowers, waves and cliffs, pythons, and phoenixes woven on it.)

Moreover, Hanfu doesn’t always consist of large – flounced skirts. There are also mid – length, knee – length (similar to modern – day pencil skirts) two – piece skirts, also known as “xuán qún” (旋裙, a kind of skirt with a split crotch).

Let’s take Miss Huang Sheng as an example again. Currently, the two – piece skirts made of printed luo fabric from the Huang Sheng Tomb in Fuzhou and those unearthed from the Zhou Family Tomb of the Southern Song Dynasty in De’an, Jiangxi. Considering Huang Sheng’s height of 160 centimeters, when wearing skirts that are 80 to 86 centimeters long, they would probably reach just below the calves. This length is almost similar to what we mentioned before. For people on the go, this length is not overly revealing and is very convenient.

Besides, in the past, there were also trousers, both open – crotch and closed – crotch ones. Although the skirt might touch the ground, the trousers might not. Women wore a wraparound skirt on the outside. Even on rainy days, they wouldn’t find themselves in an awkward situation. When applied to modern – day outfits, you can usually wear a two – piece skirt alone. It’s not only comfortable in summer but also on rainy days.

Ⅱ. So, are there mid – length or long skirts for men’s clothing?

Yes, there are mid – length and long skirts in men’s clothing. It’s called the “Yesan robe (曳撒袍)” and it looks like this ↓

Is this Hanfu? Why did the ancients wear mid – length and long skirts? In fact, trousers could be worn under the two – piece skirt or the Yesan robe. It wasn’t just worn alone. Due to the need for convenience, we can also dress like this to adapt to more life situations.

Ⅲ. What if the skirt hem gets dirty? How to wash it?

You don’t need to worry about this for the ancients. Wealthy families had no shortage of people to do the laundry, and ordinary folks wouldn’t wear skirts that were difficult to take care of in their daily lives. Even if it needed to be washed, you could do a partial wash or a full wash, and hand – wash it as you like. However, it should be noted that if you, in modern times, get your Hanfu dirty or other long – skirted clothes wet and dirty, roll up the skirt. Never step on it when it’s wet, as it’s very easy to damage, especially if it’s made of silk. Once wet, silk is extremely fragile. Later, you can wash it by machine or by hand, but be sure to protect it properly at the moment.

In fact, no matter what, Hanfu is not made of high – grade waterproof fabric after all, and it’s inevitable that it will get dirty.

What if you’re afraid of getting your Hanfu wet when it really rains? Pick up the skirt and run quickly! Run to a sheltered place, and then go home obediently to wash the clothes.