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Fri/Sat/Sun September 15~17, 2017

Debra Lidebra_lidan@163.com

ACTIVE on runways in New York, London and Milan in recent years, Shenzhen-based fashion designer Xie Haip-ing has wowed audiences with costumes featuring Chinese elements such as blue and white pottery, Chinese characters and Chinese knots.

Never complacent towards his work, Xie perceives himself to always be starting from “ground zero” and attempting to re-ignite the spark of his imagination, even after taking a courtesy bow at the end of a successful and glamorous show.

“People will forget you if you cannot come up with something good and new after two or three years,” he told the Shenzhen Daily.

The Shaanxi native, born in 1970, is busy preparing for the release of his 2018 spring/summer series on Milan Fashion Week this September. The series draw inspiration from traditional Chinese painting, featuring ink-on-paper masterpieces such as “Along the River During the Qingming Festival” by Zhang Zeduan ( 1085-1145) in design and adopting silk fabrics processed to give the look and feel of being antique.

“I have always hoped to raise a cultural awareness in my countrymen and get the world to understand our culture more deeply. Personally I love to delve into our traditions and re-create the elements in my design.”

Graduating with a bachelor’s degree in fashion design from a college in his hometown, Xie learned draping in Belgium and went on to launch his namesake brand “Haiping Xie” in 2013 on top of a mass-market brand “Suo Er.”

In his opinion, a good designer has to be original and able to bring the essence of runway designs into the mass-market.

Sometimes compared to Issey Miyake by his fans, Xie said although Miyake is a rare talent and master in fashion design, he personally feels more akin to Alexander McQueen. “I am a super fan of McQueen. He was so creative and pure, treating design as his life. I wish I could be a designer like him.”

Beyond being a keen and creative designer, Xie also has a sharp eye for industry and economic trends. He shares his take on the current conditions in the fashion world.

Xie Haiping: Embracing original Chinese design Runway shows by Haiping Xie.Runway shows by Haiping Xie.

Internet & online shoppingWith the improving of IPR

protection, good original designs can get across com-mercial brands and directly reach out to consumers through the Internet. The real potential of original designs has yet to manifest itself.

LogosGoing “no-logo,” as spearheaded

by Muji, is in itself a branding strategy. In this commercial era overfl owing with logos, this is a trend befi tting the ideology embraced by the millennials. Young people, especially those in their 20s, do not feel it nec-essary to wear a big-name brand to prove their value. They value their own individuality and personal experience.

Being originalThe domestic apparel market lacks confi -

dence in original designs, leading to brands and designers competing fi ercely to churn out homogeneous products. Xie hopes to change that by launching an incubator-style platform called Heyi for young original designers.

FutureThe fashion industry is huge in China

and up to par with international standards. Domestic brands have the potential to become big globally. Shenzhen, representing the best of China’s fashion industry, will be the next global fashion metropolis.

Xie HaipingXie Haiping

The iPhone X includes animojiAPPLE demonstrated a new type of emoji Tuesday at its press event unveiling the new iPhone 8 and iPhone X.

The iPhone X includes a new facial camera system that allows for practical applications like unlocking your phone (and payments) with your face. It’s also used for something that looks fun and maybe a little creepy — it can track your facial expressions and use them to animate your favorite emojis.

The existence of animoji was leaked last week, but the stories couldn’t capture the experience of watching Apple’s Craig Federighi on stage, contorting his face to animate fox and poo emojis — or seeing an alien version of CEO Tim Cook commanding him, “Take me to your leader.”

You can also record an audio message to go with your animoji, whose movements will be synchronized with the sound. For some reason, the fi rst demo of this technology involved an emoji whispering, “Where are you?”

While the demo was a little odd, this does seem like a nice way to add a personal touch to your messages, especially if there are a handful of emojis that you use so often that your friends are getting tired of them. (SD-Agencies)

YES, dried fruits — including dried apricots, dried cranberries, raisins, dried dates, dried fi gs and prunes — pack a big punch of nutrients for their shrunken size.

Nutrients and fi ber are more concentrated when water is removed from fruit. For comparison, a half cup of dried apricot halves has 4.7 grams of fi ber, but the same amount of fresh apricot slices has 1.6 grams of fi ber. Dried fruit is also a rich source of antioxidants and the B vitamin folate.

One large epidemiological study involving more than 13,000 individuals found that dried fruit eaters have better nutrient intakes — and weigh less — compared with those who don’t consume it.

However, it’s important to keep in mind that the natural sugars in dried fruit are also more concen-trated, which isn’t necessarily cause for concern for the general population and may even be helpful for athletes needing quick fuel. But it can be an issue for those carefully watching their sugars, carbs or calories. For example, a cup of grapes has 23 grams of sugar and 104 calories, but a cup of raisins has 116 grams of sugar. And it has 520 calories — fi ve times the amount.

Overall, dried fruit can be a nutritious, conve-nient and portable snack, especially when mixed with nuts and eaten as trail mix. But if sugars, carbs or calories are of concern, be sure to count out your portion of dried fruit, as it can be easy to mindlessly nibble on it.

Also, limit dried fruits that contain added sugar (cranberries are a frequent culprit) or are coated in sugar, such as dried pineapple rings or other candied fruit. Finally, if you are sensitive to sulfi tes or have asthma, choose organic brands of dried fruit that do not contain sulfur dioxide, a preservative.

(SD-Agencies)

Is dried fruit healthy?