I am sorry there’s been radio silence for so long! I’ve just had a lot going on in my life, both good and bad. In a nutshell, for those of you who don’t want the nitty-gritty, I spent a week in the hospital in early December and am still sort of recovering despite it nearly being July; I travelled a ton in February through April; I got engaged; I am currently back home prepping for a wedding, but will be moving across the continent once I’m legally able to. If you’re curious and want the deets, keep reading. There’s a bit of gory medical detail in the first paragraph below, but no photos, don’t worry.
Category: non-kimono
Pop! Montreal Marché des Possibles
Tonight I was invited to the opening night of Marché des Possibles, a local annual event put on by Pop! Montreal. You might remember my post from last summer about the Yatai MTL! food festival, which is one of the themed weekends that’s part of this event.
They contacted me through here so I figured it would be a great excuse to wear a kimono, but it’s currently waaaay too hot for either of my synthetic hitoe and they’re really all that fit me at the moment. So I decided to improvise and wear my pink lace haori over a summery tunic with a sakura design. I love how this looks; I feel like I represented Kimono Tsuki well but felt breezy and comfortable and was I was much better able to enjoy the evening!
-
-
-
-
-
Marché des Possibles is held every weekend between June 22 and July 29, and features a lovely variety of local craftspeople, vendors, and restaurants. I found a beautiful pair of earrings that happened to perfectly match my dress from Mi Florcita that are made of real pressed flowers in resin, and a gorgeous crescent moon ceramic pendant by Creations Lucie Jolicoeur and you all know I can’t pass up a good moon! I think this will also look really cool as a sort of improvised obidome. I’ll be sure to try it out in the near future.
-
-
I will definitely be going back to the event on the weekend of July 19, as that’s when this year’s Yatai! is. I’m hoping to wear one of my yukata, if the weather and my body cooperate, and I’ll post lots of photos. If you’re in or around the Montreal area this summer, give this event a visit.
Review: Kimono-inspired On The Go makeup bag
Today I’m showing off a beautiful kimono-inspired travel makeup bag by Mandy of The Lime Green Sewing Room. Mandy is a good friend as well as an incredibly creative and talented person and I wanted to support her new endeavor.
If there’s one thing I love nearly as much as kimono, it’s makeup. I’d been looking for a travel bag with an attached brush roll and couldn’t find one that was compact enough to throw in a purse but big enough to actually carry anything useful, so I asked Mandy if she’d be interested in helping me out and I’m so thrilled with the results! She combined a few patterns together to create the On The Go makeup bag, and it’s absolutely perfect.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
This beautifully mod kiku fabric was the jumping-off point for the entire bag. The colours feel especially kimono-inspired to me, I’d love to see an outfit that incorporates red, grey, and mint green like this! The brush roll section is a great accent, and I love that she went to the effort to find coordinating details like the ribbon tie and even the zipper. The brush roll part is treated so it’s easy to clean, it just needs to be wiped down if the brushes leave a mess on it and the top flap keeps them well-protected in transit. The bag itself is enormous – it holds everything shown in these photos with room to spare, and once it’s tied shut it fits comfortably in my hand and barely takes up any room in my purse. This bag is adorable and with careful organisation and planning, it will be just as practical for an overnight jaunt as it will be for a long vacation.
You can find the Lime Green Sewing Room on Etsy, Facebook, and Instagram!
I purchased this item myself and chose to review it.If you have a topically appropriate craft, product, or service you would like me to review, please contact me.
A few photos
Not a big update today. As some of you know, one of my other passions is photography. Earlier today I went to the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre of Montreal‘s Japanese crafts show/festival, and I thought I would share some of the photos I took that I am especially fond of.
And this is a box of wagashi for Hina Matsuri that Kansai_gal sent me a few weeks back. I finally managed to find time to photograph them before I ate them! Cute, and delicious!
Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan
I have turned the donation resources at the bottom of this post into a permanent page in the top link – please check there for any future updates. – Japan Donation Resources
My hopes are with the people of Japan in this horrifying time. Please take a moment to spare a thought for the culture that brought a lot of us together and the people who have lost their lives, loved ones, or homes.
If you are trying to get in touch with someone in Japan and are not having success, Google has set up a Person Finder service or you can browse the Red Cross survivor index
Live news stream from MBS, in Japanese. The beeping in the background is the aftershock alert.
Wikipedia article – may not be the most reliable source currently due to constant updates
CNN’s Live blogging of the Earthquake and subsequent aftershocks and tsunamis for Day 1
CNN’s Live blogging of the Earthquake and subsequent aftershocks and tsunamis for Day 2
Seismic activity map of the quake
Photos from the Globe and Mail
Shocking before and after photos – these really help show the devastation, if you’re wondering why such a large, developed nation desperately needs help right now.
Gakuranman’s live-blogging with links to news sources, help sites, etc
Donation resources
If you are looking for ways to help, you can:
Donate directly to Red Cross Japan via Google Crisis Response, which also has a lot of good resources
Donate to the Red Cross USA to provide much-needed first aid, water, and medication
Donate to Doctors without Borders to provide first aid as well as more intensive trauma aid
Donate to International Medical Corps to provide first aid as well as more intensive trauma aid
Donate to Global Giving to provide water, food, clothing, and many needed resources
Donate to ShelterBox to provide boxes of life-sustaining shelter supplies such as tents and camp stoves to survivors
If you are in Canada, Air Miles has set up a service where you can donate 200 Air Miles and they will give 25$ to the Red Cross.
Donate to Japan Earthquake Animal Rescue and Support to help the often-forgotten and silent victims of natural disasters, the wildlife, pets, animals in zoos, etc.
The Poster Cause Project has a wonderful collection of original themed art prints, with proceeds going to Doctors Without Borders to aid their work in Japan.
I have turned the design at the top of this post into an item on Zazzle, they will be sending all post-production profits from the sale of it directly to Red Cross Japan. I would like to make it clear that I get absolutely nothing from the sale of this item, so I am urging you to buy it solely for the relief efforts.
Also, my dear friend Naomi is auctioning off a few of her favourite kimono and obi ensembles, with 100% of the winnings going to Global Giving through eBay’s charity services.
View her auctions here
-
-
-
-
Blogroll
Bebe Taian
CHOKO Blog- Just Another Kimono Blog
- KaranKoron Dori
- Kimono & Coffee
- Kimono and Kitsuke
- Kimono Daisuki
- Kimono Life
- Kimono no Kokoro
- KimonoTEKA
- Red Delilah's Kimono Ai
- SAKE, KIMONO, and TABI
- Salon De Happiness
- Shakunetsu no Kimono
- Silk & Bones
- SiRe's Kimono Blog
- Strawberry Kimono
- Tansu Flowers
- The Kimono Lady
- YokoDana Blog
Japanese Culture
Vendors
Pop! Montreal Marché des Possibles
Tonight I was invited to the opening night of Marché des Possibles, a local annual event put on by Pop! Montreal. You might remember my post from last summer about the Yatai MTL! food festival, which is one of the themed weekends that’s part of this event.
They contacted me through here so I figured it would be a great excuse to wear a kimono, but it’s currently waaaay too hot for either of my synthetic hitoe and they’re really all that fit me at the moment. So I decided to improvise and wear my pink lace haori over a summery tunic with a sakura design. I love how this looks; I feel like I represented Kimono Tsuki well but felt breezy and comfortable and was I was much better able to enjoy the evening!
Marché des Possibles is held every weekend between June 22 and July 29, and features a lovely variety of local craftspeople, vendors, and restaurants. I found a beautiful pair of earrings that happened to perfectly match my dress from Mi Florcita that are made of real pressed flowers in resin, and a gorgeous crescent moon ceramic pendant by Creations Lucie Jolicoeur and you all know I can’t pass up a good moon! I think this will also look really cool as a sort of improvised obidome. I’ll be sure to try it out in the near future.
I will definitely be going back to the event on the weekend of July 19, as that’s when this year’s Yatai! is. I’m hoping to wear one of my yukata, if the weather and my body cooperate, and I’ll post lots of photos. If you’re in or around the Montreal area this summer, give this event a visit.
Review: Kimono-inspired On The Go makeup bag
Today I’m showing off a beautiful kimono-inspired travel makeup bag by Mandy of The Lime Green Sewing Room. Mandy is a good friend as well as an incredibly creative and talented person and I wanted to support her new endeavor.
If there’s one thing I love nearly as much as kimono, it’s makeup. I’d been looking for a travel bag with an attached brush roll and couldn’t find one that was compact enough to throw in a purse but big enough to actually carry anything useful, so I asked Mandy if she’d be interested in helping me out and I’m so thrilled with the results! She combined a few patterns together to create the On The Go makeup bag, and it’s absolutely perfect.
This beautifully mod kiku fabric was the jumping-off point for the entire bag. The colours feel especially kimono-inspired to me, I’d love to see an outfit that incorporates red, grey, and mint green like this! The brush roll section is a great accent, and I love that she went to the effort to find coordinating details like the ribbon tie and even the zipper. The brush roll part is treated so it’s easy to clean, it just needs to be wiped down if the brushes leave a mess on it and the top flap keeps them well-protected in transit. The bag itself is enormous – it holds everything shown in these photos with room to spare, and once it’s tied shut it fits comfortably in my hand and barely takes up any room in my purse. This bag is adorable and with careful organisation and planning, it will be just as practical for an overnight jaunt as it will be for a long vacation.
You can find the Lime Green Sewing Room on Etsy, Facebook, and Instagram!
I purchased this item myself and chose to review it.If you have a topically appropriate craft, product, or service you would like me to review, please contact me.
A few photos
Not a big update today. As some of you know, one of my other passions is photography. Earlier today I went to the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre of Montreal‘s Japanese crafts show/festival, and I thought I would share some of the photos I took that I am especially fond of.
And this is a box of wagashi for Hina Matsuri that Kansai_gal sent me a few weeks back. I finally managed to find time to photograph them before I ate them! Cute, and delicious!
Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan
I have turned the donation resources at the bottom of this post into a permanent page in the top link – please check there for any future updates. – Japan Donation Resources
My hopes are with the people of Japan in this horrifying time. Please take a moment to spare a thought for the culture that brought a lot of us together and the people who have lost their lives, loved ones, or homes.
If you are trying to get in touch with someone in Japan and are not having success, Google has set up a Person Finder service or you can browse the Red Cross survivor index
Live news stream from MBS, in Japanese. The beeping in the background is the aftershock alert.
Wikipedia article – may not be the most reliable source currently due to constant updates
CNN’s Live blogging of the Earthquake and subsequent aftershocks and tsunamis for Day 1
CNN’s Live blogging of the Earthquake and subsequent aftershocks and tsunamis for Day 2
Seismic activity map of the quake
Photos from the Globe and Mail
Shocking before and after photos – these really help show the devastation, if you’re wondering why such a large, developed nation desperately needs help right now.
Gakuranman’s live-blogging with links to news sources, help sites, etc
Donation resources
If you are looking for ways to help, you can:
Donate directly to Red Cross Japan via Google Crisis Response, which also has a lot of good resources
Donate to the Red Cross USA to provide much-needed first aid, water, and medication
Donate to Doctors without Borders to provide first aid as well as more intensive trauma aid
Donate to International Medical Corps to provide first aid as well as more intensive trauma aid
Donate to Global Giving to provide water, food, clothing, and many needed resources
Donate to ShelterBox to provide boxes of life-sustaining shelter supplies such as tents and camp stoves to survivors
If you are in Canada, Air Miles has set up a service where you can donate 200 Air Miles and they will give 25$ to the Red Cross.
Donate to Japan Earthquake Animal Rescue and Support to help the often-forgotten and silent victims of natural disasters, the wildlife, pets, animals in zoos, etc.
The Poster Cause Project has a wonderful collection of original themed art prints, with proceeds going to Doctors Without Borders to aid their work in Japan.
I have turned the design at the top of this post into an item on Zazzle, they will be sending all post-production profits from the sale of it directly to Red Cross Japan. I would like to make it clear that I get absolutely nothing from the sale of this item, so I am urging you to buy it solely for the relief efforts.
Also, my dear friend Naomi is auctioning off a few of her favourite kimono and obi ensembles, with 100% of the winnings going to Global Giving through eBay’s charity services.
View her auctions here
-
-
-
Blogroll
- Bebe Taian
- CHOKO Blog
- Just Another Kimono Blog
- KaranKoron Dori
- Kimono & Coffee
- Kimono and Kitsuke
- Kimono Daisuki
- Kimono Life
- Kimono no Kokoro
- KimonoTEKA
- Red Delilah's Kimono Ai
- SAKE, KIMONO, and TABI
- Salon De Happiness
- Shakunetsu no Kimono
- Silk & Bones
- SiRe's Kimono Blog
- Strawberry Kimono
- Tansu Flowers
- The Kimono Lady
- YokoDana Blog
Japanese Culture
Vendors
Gion Kobu