Silk & carpet

Silk, which has brought fame to China, can be readily found in a dazzling array of colors, patterns and textures. While large State-owned stores like the Beijing Yuanlong Silk Corporation, Ltd.can be trusted for quality and offer ready-made clothes as well as a complete array of fabric, private markets like Xishui and Yabaolu sell all kinds of silk clothing from shirts, underwear and trousers, to pajamas and bedspreads at negotiable prices.

Most vendors at the markets are self-employed and speak some English. All the products are marked in Western sizes, but sizes are often deceiving, try on for size. Chinese long gowns are considered the most elegant garment most suitable for women's figures. Silk gowns can be a truly long-lasting and useful item to purchase in China for yourself or as gifts for those special people back home.

Carpets, modern and antique, for use as tapestries or rugs, are plentiful and available at bargain prices. Carpet-making came to Beijing in the Qing Dynasty when Tibetan lamas were summoned to the capital to set up a carpet training shop at Baoguosi ( Temple of Safeguarding the Country) to produce carpets for the imperial palaces. By the end of the Qing Dynasty, Beijing carpets had gained fame both at home and abroad, and were awarded a first prize at the World Fair of 1903.

Beijing carpets mainly employ the traditional designs, suck as dragon and phoenix, longevity characters, flowers, pine trees, cranes,lions, goats, bats, tigers, wheels, conch shells, parasols, lutes, chess pieces and Chinese paintings. These carpets are brightly coloured, soft and durable. They are made in all different sizes, from room-sized carpets to chair-sized ones. There are some wall carpets with new designs, such as landscapes, paintings, figures and famous places in China.