Dresses

Style of dress for the white Hmong or Dao Hmong
Males	Females
Shirts are made from soft felt, with long sleeves running down to the wrists. The body of the shirt runs down and covers the waist. In front there are two tabs of fabric that run down the full length of the shirt. On the back, the shirt is likely to have a beautiful embroidered design. A modern trend is to include a zipper along the edges of the shirt and down the front for ease and convenience. The pants would be of the Chinese "guay" style, tight at the waist and then tapering out. There may be a small pattern on them. A piece of red fabric is wrapped around the waist and over the pants. Another belt made of silver may also be worn over this for added flair.	Shirts are made from soft felt. The colors of choice have been dark blue or black, but these days more variations in color are beginning to be seen. The sleeves are long and have a beautiful design embroidered on them. In front there are two tabs of fabric that run down the full length of the shirt. A design is embroidered on them. White Hmong women (Hmong deur) would wrap a solid-white pleated skirt around them, leaving a split where the fabric meets at the front. This would be covered over by a squared section of beautifully embroidered fabric. A piece of red fabric would be wrapped around the waist, leaving one end hanging loose down the back to act as a tail-of-sorts. At present, the trend is to only wear white-colored dresses on very special occasions. One reason for this, of course, white's nasty tendency to show dirt and stains quite easily. The new hit is Chinese-style pants and a shirt rather than a dress. A long squared piece of fabric would be hung from the waist, down the front and back. Usually a beautiful piece of embroidery is added along with a red strip of fabric wrapped around the waist. As for the woman's head wrap, white Hmong like to wind their hair into a bun toward the front of the head and wrap it with an embroidered black cloth around the head. Depending on the importance of the occasion, other ornamentation may be added, such as rings, necklaces, bracelets, and earrings. These items would be made of silver and decorated with silver coins of varying sizes, both triangular and circular in shape. Even the shoulder bags women carry would be decked out in luxurious silver bobbles. The shoulder straps would be placed over both shoulders with the bag hanging off the back.
Historical dress for a Hmong male	Historical dress for a Hmong female
Current traditional dress for a Hmong male	Current traditional dress for a Hmong female
Style of dress for the black Hmong
Males	Females
The shirt should hang down to the waist and the sleeves to the wrists. The shirt divides into two pieces with the top layer overlapping the bottom one over the left breast. The thread and fabric is dyed using very strong eye-catching colors and an intricate pattern in embroidered on. The pants must match the shirt in color. They are quite baggy down to the ankles where they are tapered in. The crotch of the pants droops down below the knees. A red sash is wrapped around the waist to hold the pants in place. A beautiful pattern will be embroidered on the front of both borders of the cloth. A belt is often added on over the red sash for extra eye appeal.	At present, the green and black Hmong continue to introduce an ever-increasing array of beautiful colors into the spectrum for Hmong dress. The shirt must have long sleeves and be tucked into a dress. The hem of the shirt will either be embroidered or have a piece of colored fabric sewn on. The dress is dyed and then decorated with beautiful embroidery, with pleats running all the way around it. The skirt has a part line running down the front, which is covered by hanging a large, embroidered piece of rectangular fabric down the front. Next, a red sash is wrapped around the waist with one end tucked in and the other hanging down the back like a tail. A dress of this nature can be worn any time. In the past, women used to wrap their ankles with black pieces of fabric intricately stacked and staggered over one another. Nowadays, they have fallen out of style. Black Hmong like to wear their hair over the crown of their heads. Often wigs made of horse's tail are used to add more body to the bun. The bun is then covered with a black netted cloth, decorated with beautiful beads. The jewelry worn is just like that of the white Hmong.
Historical dress for a black Hmong male	Historical dress for a black Hmong female
Current traditional dress for a black Hmong male	Current traditional dress for a black Hmong female
Style of dress for the Gua Maba Hmong
Male	Female
The shirt should hang down to the waist and the sleeves to the wrists. The shirt divides into two pieces with the top layer overlapping the bottom one over the left breast. The thread and fabric is dyed using very strong eye-catching colors and an intricate pattern in embroidered on. The pants must match the shirt in color. They are quite baggy down to the ankles where they are tapered in. The crotch of the pants droops down below the knees. A red sash is wrapped around the waist to hold the pants in place. A beautiful pattern will be embroidered on the front of both borders of the cloth. A belt or cord is often added on over the red sash for extra eye appeal.	At present, the green and black Hmong continue to introduce an ever-increasing array of beautiful colors into the spectrum for Hmong dress. The shirt must have long sleeves and be tucked into a dress. The hem of the shirt will either be embroidered or have a piece of colored fabric sewn on. The dress is dyed and then decorated with beautiful embroidery, with pleats running all the way around it. The skirt has a part line running down the front, which is covered by hanging a large, embroidered piece of rectangular fabric down the front. Next, a red sash is wrapped around the waist with one end tucked in and the other hanging down the back like a tail. A dress of this nature can be worn any time. In the past, women used to wrap their ankles with black pieces of fabric intricately stacked and staggered over one another. Nowadays, they have fallen out of style. Black Hmong like to wear their hair over the crown of their heads. Often wigs made of horse's tail are used to add more body to the bun. The bun is then covered with a black netted cloth, decorated with beautiful beads. The jewelry worn is just like that of the white Hmong.

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