Strawberry Kimono

Some son of Hermes exchanged the gifts that Percy and Annabeth gave each other this Christmas, and they decided to take the joke.

Enjoy your holidays folks!

Free Graphic Novels (DC, Marvel, Image, etc), Music, TV shows, and music on HOOPLA.

Free music that you can KEEP on FREEGAL

Where cars are parked orderly and in reverse

Where fruits can be cubes

Where people keep left

And lamps have different brightness for double beds

People queue up in lines

Applies to stickers too

Where what you get is the same as the poster

you get waved goodbye..?

Relieving both mind and body

Yup.

Smooth train operator

No embarrassing knocking or barging into rooms to check out if they are occupied

When you need an extra hand

For the selfiestas

Brolly holders

Because normal manhole covers are too mainstream

Think diagonal

And anytime u need to soak your feet

Where you raise responsible adults, not brats

And luggage is organised in color codes

When you need help after the condom broke

Instant sanitary gratification

Why they are so welcome at football matches

Where water is that clean in the drains

Nuff said

Nikolai Kochergin’s illustration for tale “Morozko”.

Also known as, You TOO Can Wear What Maiko Do! This was suggested by a reader not too long ago, and I really liked the idea as being a jewellery dealer has allowed me to be able to search for items that most people don’t know where to look for. Not only will I be showing you the pieces in detail, but I’ll also show where you can purchase them for yourselves! To begin with, the majority of maezashi worn by maiko are actually brooches that are worn as hair ornaments with the aid of a tool called a “Kanzashi Converter.” It looks like this:

The image, along with said item, can be found on Rakuten from seller Shugale at the low price of 174 yen (approximately $1.54 USD)! You can also buy it from the same seller in silver for the same price here. If you’d rather use an English based website then Chirimen Bunny on Etsy sells them for $3.50 USD. This may seem a bit confusing that maiko are using brooches instead of actual kanzashi, but the trend is due to two major factors: taste and price. There are far more brooches available than kanzashi, so customizing one’s look is easier with a piece that can be used in multiple ways rather than one with a single usage. However, price is easily the biggest factor though, as these brooches can be purchased for relatively little money. So, even a maiko with minimal spending money can pick up a cute new brooch to use as a maezashi at any time! With that said, let’s take a look at a few stand out pieces ^^

The Lion

Worn By: Yuriha (ゆり葉) of Tama (多麻) in Gion Kobu Motif: Lion Jumping Through a Flaming Hoop Brand: Palnart Poc Material: Brass and Enamel Price: ¥ 3,240 / $28.72 USD Buy It Here  Image of Yuriha courtesy of Ktellusastory. Image of the lion brooch courtesy of Own P. This one is among the most expensive as it’s made by a Japanese designer in Japan, which is very rare nowadays! The vast majority of brooches have been made in China for almost two decades now, so the price reflects its Japanese origins. I personally don’t know much about Palnart Poc, but they have some very cute and interesting pieces! This piece features a gold colored lion created in brass jumping through fire that’s been colored with enamel. Due to its Japanese origins I could only find it being sold on Rakuten, but all sellers across the platform were selling it for the same price. You can also buy a matching ring and earrings too! Lions are powerful animals, but this brooch makes them seem less deadly as it’s meant to mimic a circus lion jumping through a ringmaster’s hoop at a playful circus. In most countries animals are slowly being banned from circuses, especially large and exotic ones, but lions are still legal to be owned by them in Japan, albeit not without some controversy. However, I don’t think that the designer had this in mind when creating this set and instead opted for a beloved past time of Japanese children everywhere of going to see a circus with their family.        

The Peacock

Worn By: Ichiyū (市結) of Katsumi (勝見) in Pontocho Motif: Peacock Brand: Unknown/None Material: Silver Metal, Abalone Shell, and Rhinestones Price: $4.29 USD Buy It Here Image of Ichiyū courtesy of Kuumill. Image of the peacock brooch courtesy of Ali Market. Remember how I spoke above about mass produced pieces from China? Well, this is definitely one of them. I had to go on Ebay to find the exact one as trends from China change so quickly and this piece is already a few years old. With that said, it’s just a cute little brooch in the shape of a stylized peacock. The feathers are abalone shell pieces that give the piece both color and shine. You may have noticed that Ichiyū’s is slightly different, and it is, but it doesn’t seem to be for negative reasons. On Ichiyū’s one of the abalone shell pieces has been swapped out with a mother of pearl piece, and this was either due to a a manufacturing defect or a fix not long after she got it. Peafowl are the beloved animals of the goddess Kannon, who is the Bodhisattva of mercy and compassion, as their unique skill of being able to attack and eat snakes makes them valuable stewards. Their plumage is also unrivaled and glamorous, just like the maiko themselves.  

The Owl

Worn By: Fukune (ふく音) of Kawayoshi (河よ志) in Miyagawa Cho Motif: Owl Brand: Unknown/None Material: Gold Plated Metal and Rhinestones Price: $1.59 USD Buy It Here Image of Fukune courtesy of Yasukosora. Image of owl brooch courtesy of Rhao. This is another mass produced Chinese piece and is still actively being made, hence why the price is so extremely low! This one features two owls, likely a parent and child, on a branch with flowers. Rhinestones are added both to the owls and the flowers to make the piece really pop. The centers of the owls use a special coated stone called “moon glow” that makes it very reflective, almost like a star sapphire. Oddly enough this piece is actually a knock off of a piece made by the famous designer Napier. Most Chinese produced brooches are actually made with the moulds used for the original brooches that are purchased from the original companies, sometimes with small details changed so as not to be exact replicas. So, while technically this isn’t trying to duplicate the original exactly it’s still close enough to be considered a knockoff as it is not an original design. In this case, the small cluster of rhinestones on the left side that form a flower were just originally a couple of rhinestones that had no distinct shape, which is a very minor change. For those of you who are interested in seeing the original product that it was based on you can check it out here. Owls are symbols of wisdom, so it only makes sense for a maiko to want to gain a bit of that wisdom for themselves ^^ 

The Flower

Worn By: Fukutama (ふく珠) of Shigemori (しげ森) in Miyagawa Cho Motif: Flower Brand: Unknown/None Material: Rhodium Plated Metal and Rhinestones Price: $4.00 USD Buy It Here Image of Fukutama courtesy of My Kyoto Photo (Patosan) Image of Flower Brooch courtesy of LorrieChristine I admit, I had a hard time describing what shape this piece was, but my best guess is a flower with six petals. It probably took me the longest out of all of these examples to find for sale as it’s so abstract and can be described in so many ways. But, besides that, it’s very striking and it’s super shiny, so I can see why a maiko would love it! That it features only a single colored rhinestone lends well to Fukutama’s seniority, so it really is a perfect fit for a senior maiko who’s close to the end of her apprenticeship. 

Bonus: The Swan