atla-annotated:
Cheongsam - Qi Pao
Both, Katara and Toph, as well as Asami are wearing qi paos. The difference in style can be explained by the different time periods i.e. what Asami wears is the height of fashion in the 1920, whereas Katara’s and Toph’s are of a more traditional style. Both styles are appropriate for the situation they’re worn in i.e. a royal party or, in Asami’s case, her being the fashionable daughter of a rich industrialist visiting a fancy restaurant.
The cheongsam is known in Mandarin as the Qi Pao. The stylish and often tight-fitting cheongsam that we know today was created in the 1920s in Shanghai and was made fashionable by socialites and upperclass women. The qipao is the traditional dress of the Manchu, not the Han Chinese, but became common during the Manchu rule (Qing Dynasty). Traditional Han dress is the hanfu.
Image source: One, two
More about the qi pao: Click me! or Me!