Clothes store owner Zheng Qi poses as a Tang Dynasty (618-907) court lady in this series of photos to celebrate the Spring Festival and Lantern Festival. The images have quickly become an internet sensation.[Photo provided to China Daily]

Though Zheng was surprised by her overnight fame, Wang Xilin, a friend who promoted the photos using her Sina Weibo account says the response was not totally unexpected.

Commenting on the response, Wang, a hanfu aficionado who used to work at a museum and organize activities related to traditional attire in Xi'an, says: "We all know that 'Make traditional treasures come alive' is a slogan for museums across the country."

As for Zheng, she says: "It's a trend for hanfu lovers to shoot celebration photos during traditional festivals. I'm definitely not the first one."Separately, the hanfu designer says that since she has attracted wide publicity, she will endeavor to show people traditional culture in a humorous way and continue to design more high-quality plus-sized hanfu for women like her.