Online Yi costume show staged in Chuxiong

Known as Yi Valentine’s Day, Saizhuang Jie, or the "costume competition festival", was held online in the Zhiju village of Yongren county, central Yunnan’s Chuxiong Yi autonomous prefecture on Feb 15 this year.

To display their best consumes, local Yi girls embroidered clothes with unique patterns. Originating from 666 AD, the festival usually falls on the 15th day of the first lunar month.

On that day, locals would put on their newly-embroidered clothes and go to the costume competition venue outside. When singing and dancing to the music, young people try to look for the right person to date. From generations to generations, the festival has become the biggest traditional festival in Zhiju.

This year, Yongren changed the way of holding the festival through the Internet. The live stream presented shows by online celebrities and folk artists.

Netizens wearing their ethnic costumes could participate in the activity by showing a short video on the app of Douyin, or the Chinese Tik Tok.

Since 2016, the festival has been a provincial event in Yunnan. Yongren embroidery has grown to be a costume brand that is favored by many home and abroad.

The cockscomb hat is typical of Yi women costume in Yongren. With vivid patterns and delicate needlework, the hat looks mostly red and black. In 2009, local Yi embroidery was titled as an intangible cultural heritage.

Reporting by Li Sida (Yunnan Daily app); Photos by Xinhua; Trans-editing by Mo Yingyi