Fashion Friday- Traditional Japanese Fashion

I’m Mikkabi and this week I’ll be talking about traditional Japanese clothing! At my school we used to have quite a few Japanese transfer students and during our Ethnic Fair they dressed up in traditional garments and it’s quite lovely to see! There are quite a lot of parts and pieces that go into making a proper traditional Japanese outift, and I’m excited to show you guys some of the various pieces that go into making these lovely ensembles!

Yukata: Often considered a more casual version of a kimono. This is meant to cool the body and most Japanese wear them after taking a bath.

Nagajuban: This is the robe that takes shape of a kimono and is worn underneath it. The is basically the layer between skin and the silk of the kimono. The collar of this robe is visible from the outside of the main garment, but the collar is often wrapped or covered with a haneri for decorative purposes.

Haori: This is another loose-fitting coat that was originally worn by men, but has become popular among women. **If you’ve seen/read Bleach this is the coat the captains wear**

Haori himo: a woven strong that hold the haori together (see the labeled image at the top)

Hakama: This is the long pleated ankle-length skirt that is always worn over a kimono **also seen in Bleach (all Soul Reapers wear black hakamas). In ancient times, the hakamas were meant to prevent the enemies of Japanese samurai from seeing their footwork. It was also another garment that originally was only worn by men but has since changed.

BONUS: How to fold a Hakama!

Tabi: Traditional socks that were worn by men but women now wear them as well.

Zori: Traditional flat sandals often worn with a kimono (made from cloth, plant fibers, rice straw, or leather).

Geta: Traditional open-toe sandals that are slip-on or flip-flops and are used for informal occasions (often worn with the yukata--usually leather or cloth)
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Obi: A kind of sash that both genders can wear. The way they are tied often has a correlation to the wearer. Certain knots were thought to ward off evil spirits. If a martial artists, the type of the knot and color denote rank.

Obiage: This is a pillow used to support the knot of the obi. If the obiage is visible, the woman is unmarried. If it’s a married woman the obiage is hidden semi-discreetly.

Obijime: This is the knot used to tie a knot around the obi. The color and adornments depend on the occasion. (see the first diagram)

Kanzashi: This is the hairpin worn by women to keep their hair in place. The design of the pin depends on the season and occasion of the event. They are commonly linked with geishas since they wear them the most/more often.

Please note that if you want to dress in a traditional Japanese fashion that meeting all of these elements (and more) is EXTREMELY important. Any element or detail missing results in insulting the heritage and detail associated with the elegance of the clothing. Please be sure to take wearing a kimono seriously.

What NOT to do:

So to connect this to artwork, the various traditional Japanese garments I mentioned above have been used in lots of work and influenced many artists to do a modern interpretation of it.

I really loved conronca’s use of color and lighting to make a cheery, warming image of a young girl in a kimono, I’m a big fan of all of her work so please check her out!