Inhabiting southwest China, the Miao ethnic group feel pride in their handmade artworks of embroidery, silver jewelry, and batik. Miao women always dress them up with huge silver rings and embroidered costumes during their holidays. Their unique aprons usually have an embroidered flower. The story below tells the origin of this embroidered apron.

A long time ago, a girl and her younger brother lived in a small village. Their parents deceased. The smart girl worked hard to manage their home perfectly. Their life were simple but comfortable. The girl even had some beautiful silver rings. With the view of educating her brother, the girl send him to a school close by.

The narrow-minded teacher envied intelligent women, especially those who were even brighter than men. Learning that the girl was smart and beautiful, the teacher wanted to go to humiliate her.

One day the teacher told the brother, “Tomorrow I will go to your home to have breakfast. Tell your sister to prepare for me a boiled radish that is red inside.” So the brother searched all over his home for a radish that is red inside. But to his disappointment, none of radishes he found were red inside. The younger brother had to ask his sister. The sister smiled, “Everyday we get ten new radishes with red inside. Why didn’t you find them? Just bring your teacher here tomorrow.”

The next day when the teacher arrived, he only saw a plate of sour vegetables on the table. He shouted at the brother, “Where is my boiled radish with red inside?” “Here comes what you want!”, the girl then brought a bowl of boiled eggs on the table. She broke one egg and said to the teacher, “Enjoy your boiled radish with wonderful white outside and red inside.” The teacher was speechless.

A few days later, the teacher told the younger brother again, ” Tomorrow I will go to your home for lunch. Tell your sister to prepare a dish called “The golden hook hanging from a jade plate’” The elder brother told his sister. The sister said, “No problem, just tell him to come here.” When the teacher arrived, the sister served him a big bowl with white bean curd and yellow bean sprouts. It just looked like golden hooks hanging from a jade plate.

The teacher went back home and said to himself, “The books I have read could fill 3 rooms, why can’t I beat that girl?” He thought over and over for three days. Then he went to tell the brother again, “Tomorrow I will go to your home to have dinner. Tell your sister to prepare some wine and a plate of salad with tiger’s ears and dragon’s claws.” The brother said to his sister, “The teacher is really difficult. Where can we get tiger’s ears and dragon’s claws?” The sister laughed, “We have plenty of these two things in our village. Don’t worry!” The next day when the teacher arrived, he was served with a big plate of baked tender leaves mixed with escallonia. The leaves looked exactly like dragon’s paws, while escallonia was like a tiger’s ear.

The teacher was angry this time, ” I must find a way to destroy the girl’s wisdom.” So one day, he drew a picture on a piece of paper, and gave it to the brother, “This beautiful picture is for your sister, as I really like the food she cooked for me. She can make herself an apron based on this picture.”

The girl studied the strange picture on the paper carefully, then she understood, “The bad guy wants to use this picture to block my heart and my wisdom. OK, I will sew a beautiful apron!”

The teacher was happy to know that the girl had sewn an apron based on that strange picture. So he went to see what’s going on in the girl’s home. The girl wore her new apron to meet the teacher. On her apron, there was a big colorful embroidered flower. The girl looked gorgeous with this apron and her silver rings. The teacher was puzzled, ” There is no flower in the picture I gave you. Why did you embroider a flower?” The girl answered, ” Look at it carefully, my teacher! It’s not a flower, but my heart. Your picture doesn’t block my heart, but show it lucidly.”

Since then a colorful apron with embroidered flower became an important decoration to Miao women’s ethnic clothing. Wearing their elaborately designed silver jewels and silver rings with their embroidered clothes, Miao women look indeed beautiful and elegant.

Clare L. loves writing about silver jewelry from Asia, especially silver rings. The Miao silver rings she specializes in are popular almost everywhere. Get in touch with the writer, check out the silver rings from China.

categories: Miao,Miao culture,Chinese culture,Apron,silver rings,silver necklaces,silver earrings,silver bracelets,silver pendants