Art Gallery – Adorable kimono artwork!

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I spend a lot of time on an internet community called Gaia Online, and I’ve met many incredibly talented artists there. I mostly collect artwork of my little avatar on the site, but every so often I find an artist whose style and skill urge me to ask them to do something a little more exciting, and I commission them to draw me in kimono. I thought it might be fun to share some of them.

Today’s is an incredibly cute and fun watercolour by Abbakus. I think her art style worked really well with the graphic vintage feel of the outfit that I wore to ToyCon October 2010! She was a total sweetheart to work with, very careful to work with me to make sure all the details were accurate. It’s making me want to wear this ensemble again soon. XD

To see a larger version, you can click the image or click the link to view her DeviantArt gallery.

A few photos

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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.

Japanese Doll

Origami box

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!
Hina Matsuri Wagashi

Orizuru Nagoya Obi

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I actually received this on Monday but was hesitant to post it, not wanting to seem callous. I’ve permanently added the list of donation resources to the top of the page, and I also realized that one of the healthiest things for people to do, especially people like myself who are panicking needlessly, is to try to live a normal life. Furthermore, the motif of this particular piece seemed exceptionally timely. Paper cranes are often viewed as symbols of good luck and hope, and in Japan there is a tradition known as Senbazuru, or A Thousand Paper Cranes. The belief is that anyone who folds a thousand paper cranes will have a wish granted to them. They are often made to encourage long and happy weddings, or given to people suffering from illnesses and hoping for a cure. I cannot think of a more fitting motif to add to my collection right now.

I’ve wanted something with orizuru (which is the name for paper cranes, ori– folding, and tsuru– crane) for a very long time, and actually bid on an obi exactly like this a while back, but it skyrocketed out of my budget. When I saw another one come up for auction again I kept an eye on it but didn’t get my hopes up. However, the seller who’d put it up has been having some techincal/communication problems and I guess people were hesitant to bid, because I picked it up for a song.

It’s so nice in person, for synthetic it’s really thick and soft, not slippery like a lot of modern obi can be, and the areas with the cranes are edged in a thin line of gold thread, which really makes them pop.

Orizuru Nagoya Obi

Orizuru Nagoya Obi

Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan

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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.

George Takei (Sulu from the original Star Trek) is posting all sorts of links and donation resources on Twitter

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

Working on a new theme

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As you can see, I decided it was high time to make a custom theme for this blog. The one I was using before was lovely, but it was a pre-existing theme made by someone else, and it was getting difficult to work with. I wanted something unique and exclusive, and a bit more scalable.

However, I’d forgotten what a pain WordPress themes can be! So there are still things that are not working correctly, and I will be fixing them over the next few days. Please bear with me, and be patient. 🙂 Thank you!