Tag: blue

Blue embroidered irotomesode.

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So recently I was informed that there are a couple of sellers on Yahoo Japan who ship internationally, and accept PayPal, rather than necessitating a deputy service. Needless to say, this was a pretty dangerous bit of information. I set to browsing and found a few pieces I was going to make an attempt on.

I stumbled across this beauty and was instantly charmed by the rich blue colour and the incredibly detailed embroidery. It’s fairly rare to find such lush hand-done embroidery on a modern piece, which this most definitely is. I tossed out a relatively extravagant bid and figured I’d lose it anyway, due to the level of work gone into it and the size (a reasonably long 167cm!). I was pretty astounded when the auction ended at 1100 yen (just under $15 USD currently). I wondered if I’d somehow missed a pertinent fact in the auction like a huge stain or a significant tear, but no. I was just incredibly lucky.

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I cannot begin to explain how amazing the embroidery is – it’s textured but still smooth, lush, and has a wonderful sheen to it without being tacky.

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I love that the red on the crane’s head is done in sagara (french knot) embroidery to give it a different texture than the rest of his feathers.
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I also love how derpy and charming the tortoise looks. He’s goofy and adorable.
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All in all, it’s a stunning piece with wonderfully auspicious motifs, and I can’t wait to find a suitable coordination and event to wear it.

Why being my friend is dangerous, the sequel!

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My dear friend Elise (whom I have known since kindergarten!) was back in town and spent a few days at my house recently, and I forcibly subjected her to kitsuke, as I have done with other friends in the past. I asked if she had a preference for a particular kimono, and she told me she really liked the gothic landscape houmongi, so I decided to just pair it with the obi that it was bundled with when I bought it.

It’s not the most adventurous outfit I’ve ever put together, but it works well and suits her, so I am happy. Her kitsuke is not fabulous, but for such a slim girl, she’s surprisingly curvy (tiiiiny little waist!) and I didn’t want to subject someone who had never worn kimono before to really tight himo and tons of padding, especially not in the murderous heat we’ve been dealing with lately. So everything is a little bit shifty, but since we weren’t actually going anywhere I was not too concerned.

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Iran So Far

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I’m sorry, that was a terrible title. I don’t even like SNL that much but the title of that song got stuck in my head, so there you have it. I’d been itching to dress since I got back from my trip, but I’ve also been itching to wear my gorgeous mosque houmongi for a while now. I thought I’d try it out before the weather got too warm to wear awase (lined kimono), but clearly I mis-judged. I was SO HOT by the time I was finished getting dressed. I also want to apologize to the lovely kimono angel who anonymously sent me the moorish arches obi – I was totally going to wear it as well after I’d photographed it with the one here, but by the time I was done I was so insufferably hot and my cardiac issues were giving me grief, I was unable to. I promise though, I will wear them together at some point!

This kimono is so spectacular that I really wanted the focus all to remain on the hem. In that vein, I decided to go very subtle with all the accessories. I thought the gold obi brought out the desert tones in the hem really well, and I happened to have an obiage on hand that is virtually the exact same colour as the kimono. Finished it off with an off-white haneri with embroidery and a flat gold and green saga-nishiki obijime. I decided to emphasize the theme subtly by using my moon obidome, to honour the Islamic Crescent. I thought it was very appropriate without turning the outfit into an overly thematic costume.

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I also managed to tie one of the best nijuudaiko musubi I’ve ever tied. Unfortunately I somehow also managed to not take a single decent back photo of it XD Oops. I did get a few side views though. Yes, that is a little bow in there – I tied the ends of the obijime in a bow to get them out of the way and thought it looked cute.

Navy yukata for a good cause

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After the devastating earthquakes in Japan just over a month ago, several of my friends decided to raise money by auctioning off items in their collections, with proceeds going to Global Giving for disaster relief. When I saw the adorable navy yukata that Jess had listed, I knew I had to have it. It’s got such a fun, summery feel to it. I love the trellis-like design, and I can’t wait to wear it.

Blue yukata

Blue yukata

I know it’s going to look adorable with my green hakata. I just have to wait for the weather to improve! I love how I keep ending up with more yukata and nowhere to wear them.

Shah Mosque Houmongi

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I don’t know if anyone remembers that I made a resolution only to buy really special pieces. Unfortunately, my complete and utter lack of dedication has pretty much thrown that to the wayside, but I am trying to keep an eye out for particularly spectacular items. I blame BikaBika for this, she posted the link to the auction on the Immortal Geisha forums and I knew then and there that I needed to have this item. Thankfully Naomi was there to help me get it through YJA. It finally arrived in the box of stuff I mentioned last Friday, and I was so excited to finally get it so I could see it in person and write about it.

I’ve always been fascinated by architectural motifs on kimono, but I’d never seen one with a mosque on it. In particular, the blue dome and heavy Moorish ornamentation would suggest that this is the Shah Mosque in Iran. The yuzen dye work is absolutely stunning, the whole piece looks like a soft painting but the details up close are breathtaking. The silk is incredibly lush as well, it’s got an interesting nubby texture, almost like shibori but it’s woven into wave-like stripes and not part of the actual visual pattern.

Shah Mosque Kimono

Shah Mosque Kimono

I have several coordinations in mind for this particular kimono, including one using the gorgeous Moorish Arches obi I received as a mystery gift, but also a more subdued modern look. Hopefully I will find the time for one or both of them in the near future.