Long john or long gone?

By Li Ying Source:Global Times Published: 2011-12-5 19:40:22

 

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Long johns are comfortable and practical, but not very stylish. Would you wear them?

 

In the never-ending war between fashion and pragmatism, one battle that has yet to be won is whether long underwear or long johns (qiuku in Chinese) are acceptable or not. The Chinese used to traditionally wear long johns in the cold season. However, in recent years "to wear them or not" has become a dilemma which the younger generations are obsessed with during winter.

Over in South Korea, long johns got an official endorsement when President Lee Myung-bak exclaimed: "Wear long johns, save energy." Lee is a big fan of the item, so much so that he is now often referred to as the president of long johns. "Wearing long johns can help us lower the thermostat," Lee continued as he addressed his fellow citizens last month. "Initially I felt uncomfortable wearing them, but after a while, I got used to them."

However, can Lee's words encourage people within China to bravely put on the almost obsolete item?

One up to fashion

In 2008, the relationship between long johns and fashion triggered hot discussion in the public after Su Mang, chief editor of the Chinese version of the magazine Bazaar, claimed that wearing long johns was neither fashionable nor acceptable. "I never allow people around me to wear long johns," Su stated in a talk show with hostess Chen Luyu, who echoed Su's views. Su said that when she was on a trip to New York, she kindly reminded her colleagues not to wear woollen pants by warning them that foreigners would look down on those who were wrapped up in long johns in winter.

Many Chinese students studying overseas also shared their experience of wearing long johns in different countries. In a wildly read article on Douban, a Chinese social networking website, web user Cub 18 described a "culture shock" he encountered in America over long johns. Cub 18 said he failed to buy long johns in the U.S. because Americans generally do not need long johns as they live in warm houses, work in warm offices and travel to most places in warm cars.

Meanwhile, a Chinese student in Japan said that "I was mocked by my classmates as an O Ba San (Japanese granny), as young Japanese never wear them." In France, a Chinese girl was told by her French boyfriend that "only peasants in the 1950s would wear long johns."

Leaving aside foreigner's opinions, even those inside China are conscious of them. "I hate wearing them under my low-rise jeans, as the appearance of a section of cotton pants makes me look stupid," said Addison Lan, a 28-year-old playbook editor in Beijing. In her childhood, Lan regularly put on cotton or woollen pants when winter fell. Her hometown, Chengdu, Sichuan province, did not have adequate heaters and got quite cold in the winter. But since high school she became less keen on wearing long johns. "At that time, we created a game, 'Who is the last to wear long johns.' In this my classmates and I would roll up our long pants and expose a section of bear leg as evidence to win the game," she recalled. "The victor became the strongest and most stylish one."

After moving to Beijing, which is much colder, Lan's attitude toward long johns did not change, this time finding justification in the prevalence of heaters. When she is outside waiting at a bus stop in chilling winds, she simply suffers in silence.

Making a comeback

The argument that long johns are not fashionable has been challenged recently. When beautiful British actor Jude Law was photographed at the beginning of 2011 in a London airport in long johns, matching boots and jacket, the old-fashioned item started catching eyes. For designer Victoria Bartlett, long johns were "the essential layering piece to keep you warm." In an interview appearing in the New York Times earlier this year, she added that in light of incredibly biting weather in New York, it makes sense that long johns would be having a moment.

According to this article, long johns first became popular in Britain in the 19th century, aided by British company John Smedley, which continues to produce long johns to this day. They then supposedly acquired their intriguing name due to American boxer John L. Sullivan, who often wore long underwear inside his shorts during competitions.

What are the feelings of expats in China? "To be honest, I had never seen long johns before I came to China," a British student, Rashid Tabassum, told Global Times. "Here I see many Chinese wearing them, and I guess I may try them on someday, as the libraries in China are really cold," he added. We got a similar response from Gabrielle Jaffe, a journalist from Britain. She told us that she would "never be caught dead wearing them before I came to Beijing," but that the city is simply too cold not to. "The day I discovered Uniqlo's super thin but warm thermals, winter suddenly became less evil," she said.

On top of Uniqlo, a number of other major brands in the fashion industry have released their own designs of long johns. But in this age of image, will wearing something under your pants that is not particularly flattering ever truly take off?



Posted in: ARTS, Metro Beijing

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