SS27 trend: Chinamaxxing and the rise of 'new Chinese style'

At the beginning of the year, 'You've met me at a very Chinese time in my life.' was a popular catchphrase as consumers videoed themselves wearing house slippers indoors, embracing traditional Chinese skincare routines, swapping out iced drinks for warm water with goji berries or red dates, and trying Qigong or Tai Chi.

On TikTok, adopting these sorts of cultural Chinese habits is known as ‘Chinamaxxing’ and according to a recent article in Time Magazine, “The trend reflects a growing fascination with China as the country opens up and rises in soft power.”

Chinese-inspired clothing also became popular, especially traditional details, such as short, unfolded, stand-up Mandarin collars and ‘pankou’ - frog button closures.

The SS27 collections proved that Chinese detailing will continue to be popular through the forthcoming year. Designers further modernized runway looks by stripping away the reds and golds historically associated with Tang jackets and qipao dresses and rendering styles in monotones and neutral shades, completely re-coding Eastern aesthetics and establishing ‘New Chinese Style' as an ultra-modern, wearable luxury.

Ao Yes SS27 by Wang and Yansong Liu

A cream-colored, short-sleeve blouse with a soft red and green floral pattern featuring a mandarin collar and an asymmetric bow; drawstring-waist pants in a matching color, and a slim black leather belt with a square metallic buckle and red sneakers.

Elie Saab SS27

An olive-drab cropped jacket with a mandarin collar and white-and-green floral embroidery and an asymmetric pastel-green botanical print maxi skirt with a high leg slit, featuring diagonal panels of soft pink lace trim and ruffles.

Hui SS27 by Zhao Huizhou

A sage green satin top with dropped-shoulder cap sleeves, a mandarin collar and frog closures, layered over a sheer underlayer, paired with a pink and green botanical-print wrap mini skirt with a knot detail. Accessories included matching ballet slippers and a red ribbon/coin headband.

Kim Shui SS27

A pale gold floral jacquard cheongsam-inspired top and miniskirt set, paired with a dramatic matching split-sleeve cape, pastel thigh-high stockings, and metallic ankle-strap heels.

Onori SS27 by Sharifa Al Hashemi

A pale yellow, sleeveless midi dress with a high mandarin-style collar, 3D floral embroidery on the side, and long flowing fringe detail along the asymmetrical hem

Mame Kurogouchi SS27

A white embroidered tunic-style top with traditional knot closures, layered under a black caplet with decorative embroidery, paired with matching white eyelet-embroidered wide-leg trousers, a black bucket bag, and black platform sandals.

Alberta Ferretti SS27 Lorenzo Serafini

An oversized, deconstructed pajama-style suit crafted from crinkled champagne-colored satin, featuring wide, relaxed kimono-style sleeves detailed with delicate dark piping along the edges, paired with matching loose-fitting, cropped trousers.

Susan Fang SS27

A white, high-slit qipao-style midi dress crafted from textured lace. It featured puff cap sleeves, a high mandarin-inspired collar, ruffle trimmings along the edges, and a thin black ribbon tie at the neckline. It was styled with mint-green floral earrings, a clear beaded handle bag, and bright green textured 3D-printed slip-on sandals from the collection's collaboration with Crocs.

Ralph Lauren SS27

An ivory jacquard cutaway jacket with a Mandarin collar paired with low-slung, fluid navy blue trousers with a fabric waist tie. Accessories included duster earrings, navy clutch bag and suede flats with bow trim.

Christian Cowan SS27

An off-white, cropped denim-style jacket with a structured black high collar and cord frog closures. It was paired unbuttoned with low-rise, tailored black pants and black patent pumps.

The Garment SS27 by Charlotte Eskildsen

A softly structured, off-white mandarin collar jacket featuring frog closures (pankou), paired with relaxed, wide-leg fluid pants accessorized with a textured clutch bag and a silk scarf with fringe and brown woven mesh flats.