Beijing strips off to celebrate summer

Photos by Feng Yongbin and Zou Hong (picture above) / China Daily

Council of Fashion Designers of America Awards

Trend watch: Stylish kids

High-waisted skimpy shorts, reminiscent of 1980s fashion, have become ubiquitous in Beijing this season. They've reappeared not just in denim but bright solid colors, stripes and printed fabric - and are often seen paired with crop tops.

"There's a greater pervasiveness for dressing in a more sexual manner," Nels Frye, a Beijing street fashion blogger and editor-in-chief of Lifestyle magazine, says. "I've never seen so many bottoms and butt cheeks as in the last two weeks."

After another freezing Beijing winter, belly buttons and cleavages have re-emerged. Women who want to exude sexy, but with a bit more coverage, are wearing dressy lingerie with translucent blouses.

Ripped jeans are also back, as well as unisex athletic wear such as American-football jerseys and baseball T-shirts, says Svante Jerling, marketing director of P1, a Chinese social media group that tracks domestic street fashion trends.

Pink and baby blue are the hottest pastel colors this summer, according to P1's database, while more natural shades are the season's hair colors.

Men are beating the heat in their favorite golf shorts and board shorts, spotted in big floral, geometric and crisscross prints. And baseball caps worn backwards are never far away, for those who want to look cool even in 40 C weather.