In Western tradition, a bride usually chooses white for her wedding gown. But things were once very different in China. Brides in ancient times often fancied much darker colors in which to tie the knot. For instance, there was a time when Chinese brides would wear black or red wedding dresses, depending on the dynasty.

To find out why, and uncover many other anecdotes related to fashion in Chinese history, many viewers are tuning-in to Chic China, a 10-episode TV show that started on CCTV-3 in November. It has brought ancient fashion to life through a combined stage show and voiceover, with each episode concluding with comments by Fan Di'an, director of the Central Academy of Fine Arts.