"'How can a boy make a living with needle and thread?' 'Embroidery has always been a skill mastered by women.' These were the doubts I heard when I just graduated. But I was certain my interest was here," said Xia Lulu, a "post-90s" embroidery artisan from Lintong district, Xi'an city, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province.

As an inheritor of traditional Guanzhong folk embroidery, Xia is working to infuse it with innovative elements.

Recently, he has been working on a piece of embroidery themed on lion dance in his studio. His studio is filled with his artworks, among which a large embroidered crab symbolizing wealth coming from all directions particularly catches the eye.

Xia Lulu shows one of his embroidery works, February 2025. (Photo/Li Yifan)

Coming from a family with five generations practicing Guanzhong folk embroidery, he believes it is his responsibility and aspiration to come up with new works that align with a contemporary aesthetic appeal and make more people fall in love with embroidery.

He studied fashion design at Xi'an Polytechnic University. After graduation, he returned to his village to immerse himself in embroidery. The delicate art involves design, pattern cutting, material selection, and stitching, testing both one's patience and precision. "I pour all my energy into it, transforming designs into stunning embroidery. Each stitch brings me closer to the moment of the breathtaking completion."

Apart from traditional embroidered tiger-head shoes and hats, he has rolled out new items such as elephant shoes and goldfish shoes, which have become a hit among new parents. Meanwhile, items like embroidered tissue boxes themed on the Chinese zodiacs, handbags and sandbags are popular among young customers.

Photo shows Xia Lulu's embroidery works. (Photo/Li Yifan)

He has explored over a hundred villages nearby these years, visiting local artisans and collecting vintage embroidered pieces to learn the craft. "I was frequently rejected at first, but many of the elderly artisans were moved by my sincerity. I took photos for them and together we discussed embroidery techniques," he said. "I also invited skilled and healthy elderly artisans to join my team."

Now there are 26 female elderly embroidery artists on his team. Zhang Conglian, a 69-year-old member of the team, said, "I've been embroidering my whole life. Whenever there's a celebration in my neighborhood, I gift my neighbor my embroidered creations. Xia supplies materials and creates new designs for us to work on at home. It keeps me busy and boosts my income."

She added that the idea of her embroidered pieces traveling beyond the village and reaching faraway places fills her with motivation.

Xia Lulu works on an embroidery work, February 2025. (Photo/Li Yifan)

"I hope we not only embroider the ancient regional characteristics of Guanzhong, but also capture the unspoken rural charm through the dense stitches," said Xia. In the future, he plans to organize the embroidery materials collected from villages into a book and open a Guanzhong folk embroidery museum to display the works created by him and his team, telling the stories of generations of embroidery artisans.