Parents have a special knack for embarrassing their children.
But sometimes this happens accidentally, like when one Chinese mother bought a dress for her daughter without realizing that the English design said “sex before marriage.”
TikTok user Xueqi Pang (@qiqip4ng), a 27-year-old Norwegian journalist of Chinese immigrant background, shared the hilarious details of her mother’s fashion faux pas in a viral video. It had been viewed more than 1.1 million times by Thursday.
@qiqip4ng Always wondered who buys those weird clothes with random English phrases. Now I know, its my mom 🫠💸 #fyp #asianmom #chinese #fashion ♬ original sound – Qi-Qi
In her video, she explained that her mother always has the best intentions when she shops for her children.
“So my Chinese mom really likes shopping online and usually she gets something for me as well,” she said.
When it came to the story of the dress, Xueqi told the Daily Dot that the family was invited to a Chinese wedding last summer. But since Xueqi was in the process of moving, all of her dresses were packed away.
So it ended up being a lucky coincidence that her mother’s online order from Taobao arrived around the same time—and that it included four dresses for Xueqi.
But since her mother doesn’t speak or read English, she didn’t know that one of the dresses had English text that read, “I like long walks and sex before marriage.”
Xueqi couldn’t help but laugh in her viral video as she showed a picture of herself holding up the T-shirt dress. “Mom, what?” she asked in disbelief.
She gave more context about her reaction to the Daily Dot. “I was like… Is she shaming me for not being married to my boyfriend yet? Haha!” she wrote. “In China usually you get married before moving in together.”
Her sibling had another theory: They have a sneaky suspicion that their mom got it for herself. “But since it was waaaay too big for her, she gifted it to me, lol!” Xueqi wrote.
In the comments section of Xueqi’s video, viewers were in stitches over the dress.
“This is absolutely iconic ahahahaha,” this user wrote. “Your mom is an ICON,” another gushed.
Some encouraged the TikTok user to embrace the mistake and wear the dress to family events. “If you don’t wear this to EVERY holiday…….” this user commented.
This isn’t likely to happen, as Xueqi said that she can only imagine her poor grandparents’ reaction. But she said that she plans on wearing it to a fun summer party. “What an ice breaker on so many levels,” she wrote.
The “sex before marriage” dress was such a hit with viewers that some expressed serious interest in buying it for their own closet.
“In the most genuine way possible pls ask her where she got it pls i will buy it from u i want it so bad,” a user shared.
“Please where do I buy this hahaha,” another wrote.
While Xeuqi told the Daily Dot that she considered doing a charity auction, she will most likely keep the dress. “It has kind of become a family heirloom now,” she joked.
Some believe that the real fashion crime committed by Xueqi’s mother was choosing a dress with such mismatched fabric.
“Words aside….WHAT kind of article of clothing is this,” a user wrote. “No cuz the fabric choices alone should have screamed NO,” another asserted.
Inquiring minds had to know whether Xueqi translated the dress’ NSFW text to her mom.
Xueqi gave the scoop to the Daily Dot, writing, “The next day, on our way to the wedding, I played the Chinese voice translation for her,” she wrote. “I believe she reacted with a slightly embarrassed ‘ew,’ and then suggested me wearing it only as home wear or sleep wear.”
According to Xueqi, this isn’t the first time her mother has given her a strange gift. And it’s not likely to be the last. “My mom is one of those Chinese moms who have so many strange, fun, and practical gadgets in her home,” she told the Daily Dot.
“She has gotten me plenty of other, how should I put this, ‘more conventional dresses,’” she explained. “Last time she got me very puffy down jacked in middle of summer.”
But even though some of these gifts miss the mark, Xueqi appreciates her mom for always thinking of her. “I can never know what she gets me next, but it’s always fun and exciting!”
