Kimono Lover

Various type of underwear and items used under the kimono (available for sale on Rakuten)

1. Panties with separate panels that you can pull apart to go to the bathroom without taking them off.

2. Kimono bra for smoothing out the the lines of the chest. Comes with pockets for padding above the breasts

3. A device that aids in tying the obi knot. Is hidden underneath the obi in the back.

4 & 5. A padded vest for smoothing out the chest, complete with a padded belt for the curve of the back.

6. An 11 piece set composed of the basic accessories needed to dress in a kimono. It includes an under slip [hadajuban], 4 tying ropes [koshihimo], an obi pillow (used for volumizing the obi knot) [obi makura], an obi stiffing board [obi ita], a collar stiffener [eri shin], a pair of tabi socks, a velcro garment fastening belt, and a tying-style garment fastening belt [datejime].

Hakata-ori 博多織

Hakata ori, or Hakata weave, is a beautiful stripe like silk weave pattern that is commonly seen on obi’s and cords. It came from China in the 1200′s and developed in Hakata (Fukuoka prefecture), where it got it’s name.

See Kimono-lover.blogspot.ca for more

Koma Geta 駒下駄　(こまげた)

“Koma geta” is a common name for the iconic two teeth wooden geta. During the late 17th century, around the Joukyou era, the platform and teeth of these geta were carved from one plank of wood. The teeth were low, thus its name resembles the word for horse (for the hooves).

For some reason, searches for the words “koma geta” in English letters yields the large, three legged geta worn by Oiran, but in Japanese, those geta are usually referred to as Oiran Geta 花魁 下駄, or Yoshiwara Geta  吉原下駄 (getting it’s name from Yoshiwara, a famous pleasure district in the Edo period).

kimono-lover,blogspot.ca

Tsuwano Washi-Ningyou つわの（津和野）和紙人形 “Tsuwano Paper Doll”

Otaiko Musubi お太鼓結び “Drum Knot”

This is the signature obi knot seen on most female kimono today. It serves as a general purpose knot that ranges from casual to formal. To create it, a long wide obi is folded in half, wrapped around the waist twice, unfolded in the back, looped, and secured with a cord. The knot is perked up with a thick pillow attached to a rope that is tied around the torso, as seen in the illustration above.

The bulkiness that is created tends to look weird to some people not familiar with kimono. I’ve heard people ask “Why do they carry bags on their back?”

The knot became popular after a celebratory event honoring the opening of a  Taikobashi  太鼓橋 “Arched Bridge” in Tokyo around 1823. A few Geisha cleverly wore a puffed out version of a commonly used square knot by men, the “playing card knot” karutamusubi かるた結び (shown below) , and it set off a trend that has since become the default style of wearing.

To see the resemblance, below shows a Japanese Taikobashi, which gets its name from the iconic Taiko drum. (Taiko 太鼓 means “Large Drum”)

Emon 衣紋

Emon refers to the “popped collar” that is a feature on female kimono. The collar line is placed slightly down the back instead of directly at the shoulder line (shown in the sewing diagram above), leaving a gap between the collar and the nape of the back. This slight exposure is considered sexy in traditional Japanese culture, especially considering how conservative the rest of the kimono is. The kimono on geisha and maiko epitomize this ideal by exposing quite a bit of their back above the obi.

An eri-shin 衿芯 “collar stiffener” is slipped into the collar of the juban (underkimono) in order to achieve the round curve of the popped collar.

Some juban will have an “emon-nuki”  衣紋抜き , a strip down the back that aids in pulling the collar down. This is then covered by the kimono.

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

"Japanese Women's Folk Costumes"  郷土の風俗

Sorry, this was a library book that I couldn’t sign-out so I had to resort to taking to pictures of it. The book was published in 1960.

The illustrations show woman in noragi 野良着 “working wear” for farming and manual labour. A variety of robes, aprons, pants, leggings, and skirts were used. Japanese noragi has largely become extinct due to the advent of western clothing. However, there are items of clothing that have survived for almost 200 years, making them historical treasures, such as the one below (available for $1495 from here).

Tabane-Noshi 束ね熨斗　

Tabane-noshi, “bundles of noshi”, is an auspicious and celebratory motif that is popular for use on kimono and obi, especially formal wear (such as houmongi, furisode, kurotomesode, and bridal ensembles). The first kimono pictured above is from the Meiji era. Many patterns and other auspicious motifs are used to decorate the individual strips. The motif is also used for kamon (family crests, such as the ones shown above) and good luck charms.

“Noshi” are thin strips of dried alabone (sea snail) meat. Since ancient times, noshi were wrapped in paper and used as offerings to the Shinto Gods (shown below). They were attached to gifts to communicate wishes of good fortune. Nowadays, the practice is often done with paper to represent the noshi. 

Houmogi 訪問者 “Visiting Wear

This kimono is a “Houmongi”, which is a category of formal female kimono that are worn to events such as weddings, tea ceremonies, and graduations (if one chooses to wear kimono). This type of kimono became popular during the Meiji era, approximately 150 years, by samurai class woman, and then evolved to become a social standard.

Houmongi are characterized by being made of fine silk, dyed a base colour, (pastel pinks, yellows, and greens are the most popular but any colour is used), then embellished with a motif that is dyed and/or embroidered. The motifs are generally displayed on 5 locations; top right chest, front of right sleeve, back of left sleeve, and, predominately, on the skirt. 

This design may have been influenced by playing the shamisen because of the way the instrument was held (front sleeve pattern is on the hand that grasps the handle).

The motifs span across seams, meaning that kimono fabric bolt artisans have the sew the fabric into a mock kimono, dye and embroider the motifs by hand, then send the fabric off for tailoring.

Even in modern times, a new houmongi can cost thousands of dollars. The one above costs 185,142円 (approximately $1500 USD),and that’s only the kimono (obi and accessories not included).

Mojirisode  もじり袖（ 捩り袖）'Mock' Sleeve

This type of sleeve is made by folding the bottom up into a triangle. Several surviving working kimono from the Meiji era (first image) have this type of sleeve. Although not as common nowadays, it can still be found on jackets.

Images: Ichiroya, Otokonokimono.Style,  Hantenya, Sou-Sou,

Kensaki 剣先 "Point of the Sword"

The “kensaki” is the name of the area on a kimono where the okumi (extension panel) seam meets the collar on the chest area.

Images:  2, 3,