Ethnic appreciation inspires stylish designs

The designer is passionate about his cultural heritage and sees it as a part of his role that he carries forward. "Western creators draw inspiration from their own cultural backgrounds or from Eastern elements for artistic creation. But I want to dig deep into our own culture," Wei said.

Skirts, for example, often represented the economic status of a family in ancient China, according to Wei. To research the history and design of an original pleated skirt, a complex and ornate piece of Bouyei attire, Wei spent a decade traveling to remote villages.

"Most of the time, we could only find a piece of fabric in one village and a section of pattern in another. It was like piecing together a puzzle," he said.

Even the elderly only remembered seeing their grandparents wearing these garments when they were young, but none had been preserved. After nearly 10 years of searching, Wei finally discovered a relatively complete pleated skirt.

He said touching a real pleated skirt is different from merely seeing one in books. To restore it, one must study its craftsmanship and dimensions, Wei explained.

Following traditional techniques such as plant dyeing and hand weaving, and drawing inspiration from the structure of Bouyei traditional clothing, Wei weaves patterns that show a "worshipping of the universe, praise for nature or care for humanity", just as his ancestors did when designing clothes.

He personally likes roxburgh rose, a wild plant whose juice has become popular in Guizhou.

"There is a metaphor that roxburgh rose implies not being humble. It exudes strong self-confidence. It also symbolizes enduring love," he said. "This wild fruit, like the Bouyei people, is born in the mountains with a resilient and confident spirit."

Wei said it's more meaningful to convey the culture of the Bouyei people through creative products than to just superficially apply ethnic elements.