With that comment she slips out and slides onto her bicycle to join the river of commuters flowing through the city. Occasionally, men wear them, too, to weddings or religious holidays such as Tet, the Vietnamese lunar New Year, but they are now predominately female dress. They fit tight around the neck and breasts and are split on the sides from the bottom below the knees to just above the waist. Loose pants are worn underneath. They are most often white but can also be the same color as the ao dai.
Long sleeves are most common.
Now that they can afford them, many Vietnamese women have several ao dais. The national dress is on a definite upswing, says Tran Thi Hue, whose brother founded the Thiet Lap shop in 1950. Western fashion is also on the upswing, however, due to the increased buying power of Vietnamese women, especially younger women. Phu Nu'' held an ao dai competition. Their renaissance is nationwide yet most noticeable where the economy is strongest - in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi.