The fabric of culture

It once took a skilled craftsman eight hours to handweave approximately 80 centimeters to one meter of gauze. After the duo's improvements, around eight meters of fabric can be woven in the same amount of time.

Shao, who was born in 1954 into a family of craftsmen in Hangzhou, grew up in a weaving workshop. Since his grandfather learned the weaving technique at the end of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), the family has been practicing the craft for over 150 years. In 1984, he expanded his family's small workshop into the Fuxing Silk Factory.

Before meeting Zhang, who used to study finance as his major, Shao's business wasn't profitable and sometimes even ran at a loss.

Originally from Beijing, Zhang had never come into contact with the craft before moving to Hangzhou. He still remembers the first time he stepped into Shao's factory, it was dark, damp, and had a peculiar smell.

Zhang suggested halting the production and switching to other, more economically viable, silk types. Shao decided to make him a set of hangluo clothes, which completely blew Zhang's mind.