Author: Diane

Vintage style with modern convenience

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After Gofuku no Hi, I realised owning at least one other hakama would greatly expand my kimono wardrobe. Even though I’m still far too chunky to fit into most of my kimono properly, they do a great job of hiding a less-than-ideal hip wrap. I found a lovely modern teal polyester hakama from ebay seller Yoshihori and snatched it up. The seller had embroidered ones too, which were utterly lovely, but significantly more expensive. So I decided to be reasonable and buy the plain one. So imagine my surprise when the seller contacted me, incredibly apologetic, telling me the plain one was sold out and would I like the embroidered one instead, for no extra charge? Of course I said yes!

A few days after I bought it, but before it had arrived in the mail, a friend of a friend posted on facebook that she was selling off a large chunk of her collection, including a gorgeous mauve kofurisode that was clearly meant to be worn with hakama. The colours were gorgeous, and it had a wonderful sort of large-scale Taisho-inspired feel to it. I knew it had to come live with me, and be paired up with the new hakama as soon as it arrived in the mail.

Initially, I’d planned to wear the ensemble to Otakuthon, Montreal’s big anime convention. However, it’s in the middle of August and we’re already regularly breaking the high 30s temperature-wise. Even in a heavily air-conditioned convention centre, there’s no way I could wear synthetic awase and not die. So I decided to put the outfit together to see how it looks. Everything is very heavily decorated with sakura, so of course I chose a coordinating haneri. I waffled a bit between yellow and purple obi, but decided to use the purple so it sort of disappeared. The kimono and hakama are busy enough, the outfit didn’t need another level of contrast.

I know I say this a lot, but I love love love how this turned out. I can’t wait until it’s cool enough to wear it. Maybe for my birthday, in November?

Summer Breeze

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Summer may officially start tomorrow, but it’s here with a vengeance already. It’s blisteringly hot and humid out, and even looking at the heavy, layered outfit that I’d left on the mannequin was making me hot! I got this adorable ro komon with bells a few years ago but never had a chance to wear it. It’s very long, which is great, but it’s also very narrow. Even at my thinnest, it never fit. It’s just too cute to get rid of, and I figured it was high time it had a moment in the (blistering) sun.

The obi is not usumono, but it’s a thin hanhaba, and the yellow colour really draws the eye to the yellow-gold bells on the kimono itself. I used my pink seashell summer-weight obiage and obijime to add an accent colour. I went with the ubiquitous pink set because it’s actually the only summer set I have. I’ll eventually invest in more sets, but as I currently don’t own a single usumono kimono that fits me, it’s not really a priority right now. I tied the obiage in a bow to echo the obi in back, to add a bit more softness and girliness to an otherwise very simple outfit. It feels light and airy, which is exactly what I was hoping for.

Items used in this coordination

Review: Origami crafts from Tori Creations

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As you probably know, I am always looking for unique ways to incorporate a bit of traditional Japanese aesthetic into my daily life. At my current size and health level, wearing kimono with any regularity just isn’t practical. Housewares and accessories, however, are an excellent way to accomplish this. Anne-Claire of Tori Creations makes incredible, beautiful works of art using traditional washi paper and various origami techniques. She was kind enough to send me a wonderful assortment of her products for me to review and share.

First up was this wonderful lamp. The lamp itself is very clean-lined and simple, which ensures that all the focus is on the beautiful paper she’s chosen to decorate the shade. The workmanship in this lamp, like all her other products, is impeccable. There is one seam line where the paper edges meet but it’s very clean and easily hidden. All the inside edges are very well-finished and securely adhered. It makes an excellent bedside lamp!

 

She also sent along this charming light string. Each balloon-style shade is a different pattern or colour, and they’re very fun and playful-feeling. The lights themselves are LEDs, which means there’s no risk of overheating and damaging the paper. So not only are these beautiful, you can tell Anne-Claire has put a lot of thought into the functionality of them as well.

Last, but not least, are these completely adorable ornaments. There is a blue crane, a sweet little fish, and a tiny horse. They’re very safely and carefully nestled into delicate glass ornaments, complete with a little bit of “snow” in the bottom. The snow makes these ideal for Christmas, but honestly they’re too cute to keep hidden away the rest of the year. I think I will hang them in one of my windows.

Anne-Claire was a complete pleasure to interact with. These are all very well-made, and were incredibly well-packed. The lights were in one box, surrounded by protective packing peanuts. The ornaments were in a separate box, very safely nestled in cotton wool. The lamp was disassembled (though it was very easy to put together) and all of them were bundled carefully with bubble wrap in another box. She even included lightbulbs! Canada Post is notorious for mangling things, but aside from having to re-inflate a few of the balloon-style lamp shades, everything was pristine.

If you would like to get one (or more!) of these beautiful and practical works of art, Anne-Claire has graciously offered a 25% discount to my readers through her Etsy shop. Simply use the code MOONBLOSSOM at checkout and the discount will be automatically applied.

I received this item from the retailer or manufacturer for honest review purposes.If you have a topically appropriate craft, product, or service you would like me to review, please contact me.

Lovely Layers

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Go figure, as soon as I change the blog’s colour scheme to summer, the real summer vanishes. It’s cold and damp and dreary out, and I was inspired to play with layers. I wanted to replicate the look of a vintage dounuki (under-layer kimono that usually coordinates or contrasts with the layer above it), but using modern pieces. I love the lush look of something very patterned beneath something simpler so I paired up my yagasuri komon and rich blue flowered tsukesage. I also thought it would be a good opportunity to use an awesome tsuke-obi I hadn’t yet coordinated with anything. Yellow accessories contrasted nicely but tied everything together, since there are yellow accents in the obi, and yellow centres on some of the flowers of the kimono.

One thing I learnt is that dressing a wobbly mannequin in multiple layers is even more difficult than dressing yourself in multiple layers. Thankfully my poor, long-suffering father was happy to help by holding her in place and holding layers together while I tied things up. I do think it was worth the hassle though. It looks rich and sumptuous, and all the colours tie together quite harmoniously. I don’t think this outfit is something I would wear out (way too hot and bulky), but I’m glad I put it all together nonetheless.

Items used in this coordination

Book Review – Kimono no Tanoshimi ga Hirogaru Obimusubi Arenji Jo

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cover着物の楽しみが広がる　帯結びアレンジ帖
(Kimono no Tanoshimi ga Hirogaru Obimusubi Arenji Jō)
by Kururi
Language: Japanese
ISBN: 978-4262160238
Amazon.com Listing

Well, that title’s a mouthful, isn’t it? It essentially translates to Expand your Enjoyment of Kimono; Notes on Obi Musubi Arrangement (thanks to Tamara for the coherent translation).

This book is an incredible resource for anyone looking to improve their personal kimono dressing and styling. It’s entirely in Japanese but the pictures and diagrams are so thorough that it’s a negligible issue. It’s not for formal kitsuke, nothing useful for kurotomesode, furisode, etc, but it’s chock-full of styling suggestions and obi tying alternatives for casual kimono wear. This book is a vital addition for anyone looking to expand their kimono skills and library.

It’s got all sorts of basic resources; a seasonality chart, padding diagrams, coordination examples, and a wide variety of musubi for nagoya and hanhaba obi. The obi variations are very well-organised. The book first shows a “standard” tie that most kimono afficionados are already familiar with (otaiko for nagoya obi, chocho for hanhaba obi), and then shows variations using the same starting-off points. There’s even a few examples of women’s styling using a narrow men’s kaku obi.

 

I’ve scanned a few pages to give you a feel for the book (and how necessary and relevant the text may be), but I urge anyone who collects kimono to pick up a copy. It’s quite new, published in January of 2016, so it’s still quite easy to find online and it’s incredibly affordable for all the information it contains. It’s also small and lightweight, very practical to throw in a bag if you’re travelling.

I would recommend this book for:


-Anyone from beginner to expert
-People looking for interesting variations on traditional kitsuke
-People who wear casual kimono frequently

I would not recommend this book for:


-People looking for more detailed, artistic images of kimono
-People looking for traditional formal (kurotomesode, furisode) kitsuke help

 

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