What is "Hanbok" 한복
한복 or hanbok, is the Korean traditional dress featuring a skirt and jacket for women and pants and shirt for men. Lately, there's been some discourse around the "hanbok" that are for rent near the palaces for tourists. The reason I use "hanbok" in quotes is that many of the rentals are not like traditional hanbok due to their use of bows, flasy ornamentation, and hoop underskirts. Obviously, most tourists don't know the difference between a traditional hanbok and a fusion one! Here are some tips to help you spot a more traditional hanbok if you want to achieve a classic Korean look.
Traditional Hanbok
- Solid color skirts / jacket (jeogori)
- Tiered undergarment called a sokchima (속치마) that gives a fuller skirt look
- Usually no glittery gold, ribbons, lace, or beading
Fusion Hanbok
- Bows especially tied in the back of the skirt
- Wire hoop underskirts
- Shiny beading and lots of embellishments on the skirt and jacket
- Ribbons, lace, glitter (not always but an indicator of being fusion)
At the end of the day, it totally comes down to your preference - oftentimes it's hard to know which you prefer until you get to the rental shops and start looking at the different colors / patterns / materials. If wearing a traditional hanbok is important to you, feel free to reach out to me when booking your photo session as I am happy to give rental shop recommendations that offer more traditional hanbok rental options!
