wafuku – noun: traditional Japanese clothing

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Here’s  Jotaro Saito’s 2011 collection of kimonos and obis. I particularly like the men’s kimonos and some of the women’s obis are made from fabulous textiles.

This video has the designer talking (with English subtitles) and shows some of the obit textiles close up,  and the video below it has the actual fashion show

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Here’s a girl in Harajuko (2012) looking lovely in a kimono, with an old fashioned, crocheted shawl and very contemporary hair colour and giraffe bag.  Note how her feet hang over the outer side of her zori shoes; which is standard with traditional zori and geta, as the toe post that goes between the big toe and second toe, is in the centre of the sole and not offset the way it is on western flip-flops. Nowadays some zir are made with the offset toe post but it’s much more usual for it to be central and the foot to hang slightly off the outer side of the shoe.

The photo is from Tokyo Fashon, a site I love.

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Now, I don’t know if this shop in Osaka, Japan didn’t know the English translation or if they didn’t care and went for shock tactics but this is a sign you certainly wouldn’t find during the sales here in UK (via japansubculture.com)

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This next photo shows a woman in USA, photographed walking through a park on her way to a wedding, wearing a man’s montsuki kimono and looking very good in it. I would have chosen a wider, stiffer belt/sash but I think she looks great in her men’s kimono. Her kimono has fuji (wisteria) mon (crests). The photo is from a blog site I love and one of my daughter’s favourite sites, called Advanced Style, showing older women with a sense of style, who, unlike many of the older generation, have not given up making an effort in their appearance, though I have to admit that some have not given up their favourite eras either and have stuck to the clothing of the era they liked best and said to hell with whether they are considered a tad out of date.  They will soon be retro anyway and that is always interesting and good.

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Interested in Japanese ghosts, goblins and ghouls? Check out this post on Weird Asia News

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Not sure of acceptable ways to use a public toilet? Her’es a notice to guide you, from a public toilet in Japan (courtesy of  picshag.com)

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If you want something else to browse, there’s always my Wafuku.co.uk website.

To see a vast selection of fabulous, vintage and antique Japanese kimonos, visit wafuku.co.uk. Based in Scotland and selling worldwide. Whether you want to own and wear a real kimono, a beautiful piece of wearable Japanese textile art, or hang one for display or even just have a look at stunningly beautiful kimonos, you may enjoy browsing through the selection on my site. I have high quality, vintage kimonos, obis and accessories (and much more) for men, women and children. Pop over to wafuku.co.uk and have a look

wafuku – noun: traditional Japanese clothing

Welcome to my Wafuku.co.uk Wordpress blog

 get this blog’s RSS feed 

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I blacked out this blog during most of Wednesday, 18 January, to protest against SOPA, which, although an American bill that will censor the internet, is a bill that will affect all of us, regardless of what country we live in.  You can read about SOPA below. SOPA isn’t the only troubling bill, there is another called PIPA and, in EU countries ( like UK), there is ACTA doing the same thing.

These bills aim to turn over ownership of the internet to corporations and government.

Here’s a video with the clearest explanation of SOPA and PIPA that I’ve found

by Clay Shirky at TED

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SITES YOU USE EVERY DAY COULD BE BLOCKED IF THESE BILLS PASS

In Europe, we have ACTA threatening the internet in the same way.

The EU will soon be voting on ACTA.

YOUR ISP COULD POLICE EVERYTHING YOU DO IF ACTA/SOPA/PIPA GO THROUGH

Click the the link below (I couldn’t get it to just embed on WordPress) to see a VIDEO about ACTA

http://mediakit.laquadrature.net/embed/716?size=medium

SOPA stands for ‘Stop Online Piracy Act’ and may, from that title. seem a fair idea but it affects way more than things like downloading pirate copies of music or video; it will also affect people who don’t do that.

Michael Geist says,

While there is little that people living outside the U.S. can do to influence SOPA and PIPA, there are many reasons why it is important for everyone to participate in tomorrow’s [18 January 2012] SOPA protest.

First, the SOPA provisions are designed to have an extra-territorial effect in countries around the world.

Second, non-U.S. businesses and websites could easily find themselves targeted by SOPA. The bill grants the U.S. “in rem” jurisdiction over any website that does not have a domestic jurisdictional connection.

Third, millions rely on the legitimate sites that are affected by the legislation. Whether creating a Wikipedia entry, posting a comment on Reddit, running a WordPress blog, participating in an open source software project, or reading a posting on Boing Boing, the lifeblood of the Internet is a direct target of SOPA. If non-Americans remain silent, they may ultimately find the sites and services they rely upon silenced by this legislation.

Fourth, the U.S. intellectual property strategy has long been premised on exporting its rules to other countries. SOPA virtually guarantees that this will continue.

Any site that offers a link to a copyright infringer, or has a vague connection with a site that does, may be blocked, which means Google and all other search engines will likely go, as will Wikipedia and pretty much all the other useful sites online.

To add insult to injury, a good number of the SOPA and PIPA sponsors and supporters are blatant copyright infringers themselves, doing the very thing they say they are trying to stop. For example, PIPA co-sponsor Senator Roy Blunt’s Twitter page displayed a background photo that he used without the photographer’s permission, which he removed after he was caught using it (you can see a screenshot of it below, captured before he had it replaced). The photographer’s wife states that not only did he not have permission to use the photo, but she was in the photo, so it gave the false impression that she was a supporter of his.

Other bill supporting, copyright infringement offenders in the US government: Claire McCaskill (D-MO) (who ineptly swapped out her infringing Twitter profile image for another infringing image — nice one!), Dennis Ross (R-FL) (technically a SOPA supporter, as he’s in the House), and Sherrod Brown (D-OH). They all bitch about copyright infringement and yet they do it themselves.

Here is the full text of the SOPA bill, as of Jan. 15, 2012

And an easier to read information page by Mashable, here

If you live here in UK or anywhere in the EU, please don’t overlook ACTA. It is just as damaging to the internet as SOPA and PIPA and time is running out to fight it. If you don’t want to lose access to a huge amount of the internet, do something about it. Information  about how it is HERE

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To see a vast selection of fabulous, vintage and antique Japanese kimonos, visit wafuku.co.uk. Based in Scotland and selling worldwide. Whether you want to own and wear a real kimono, a beautiful piece of wearable Japanese textile art, or hang one for display or even just have a look at stunningly beautiful kimonos, you may enjoy browsing through the selection on my site. I have high quality, vintage kimonos, obis and accessories (and much more) for men, women and children. Pop over to wafuku.co.uk and have a look

Akemashite Omedetou Gozaimasu – A Very Happy New Year

wafuku – noun: traditional Japanese clothing

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We’ve had incredible winds here of over 100 miles per hour as Hurricane Katia reaches us here in Scotland. I hear there is even worse to come, so we’ll see. It’s frequently wet and windy in Scotland but it has been much wetter and windier than usual this year. I don’t know if it is anything to do with global warming or simply a natural cycle that happens every generation or whatever but the grey skies that have been close to constant since late summer have become depressing and make one reluctant to go outside. Scotland does not have great weather at the best of times but this has been much more severe than usual.

Below is a photograph, from http://www.sott.net, of a wind turbine in Ardrossan, not so very far from where I am, which burst into flames because of the force of the winds making it spin in the wrong direction.

Still, there has been relatively little damage, despite the roaring winds; the hut is in a bad way, a small amount of tile repair required on the roof, a huge tree came down in our adjacent little field and about 6 foot or so was blown off the tops of a few of the pines growing further down the field, where there is a small wood entirely of very tall pine trees. There are smallish branches, from the old trees surrounding the house, littering the place, the plant covered metal mesh arches have blown over, etc. but no drastic damage. An acquaintance’s car, in a tiny village about 3 miles from here, was flattened when a large tree fell on it but it was empty and parked outside his home when it happened.

There’s been some flooding in the town, which is in a valley, but my home is on a hill on the edge of the countryside, so is never going to flood.

When I think of Japan’s tsunami and other natural disasters around the world, I do admit we have been let off lightly.

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Seijin-no-Hi

January 10th was Seijin-no-Hi in Japan. Seijin-no-Hi is the Coming of Age Day when people who will have their 20th birthday in the present year all celebrate. The celebration begins by going to local government office, then to a shrine with their parents, then partying the rest of the day away with friends. Young women usually dress up in wafuku (traditional Japanese clothing) for the day, which means wearing a furisode kimono, which has exceedingly deep sleeves and beautiful patterns on it. Young men may wear wafuku too, with an ensemble of kimono, hakama and haori, though most seem to choose to wear yofuku (clothing that is not traditional Japanese clothing), usually a standard suit. Of those young men who do wear wafuku, some wear the more usual, formal ensembles, comprising montsuki kimono and haori in black and hakama with black and white or grey stripes, but some turn it up a notch and wear even more striking versions, with brightly coloured kimono and haori and hakama of bold patterns and gold brocade, sometimes seen with very contemporary hairstyles, such as spikey blonde styles etc. I love both the more sedate versions and these more gaudy ones and the mix of traditional and contemporary.

Tokyo Fashion as a blog post about Seijin-n-Hi in Tokyo so, as I’ve written about it before on this blog, you may want to visit theirs, as they have lots of lovely photos such as the one below.

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You can see more photos here on Akakusa Diary, which has, amongst others, the picture below, with young men in both contemporary and traditional clothes and both colourful (front left) and serene (front right) versions of the traditional outfit.

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Now for just a few of the furisode kimonos on my Wafuku.co.uk website…

Floral Bands

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Rainbow Peacocks with Rhinestones

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Bouquets on Purple

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Soft yellow with Fabulous Flowers

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Bright Peacocks & Rhinestone Details

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Detail on Bright Peacocks & Rhinestone Details

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Furisode Kimonos

Furisode means ‘swinging sleeves’ and there are three styles of furisode kimono, all only worn by young, umarried women:

type 1 – Ko-Furisode: the shortest sleeved furisode, with sleeves that are around 85cm in length, one might wear a ko furisode, for example, with hakama for a graduation ceremony

type 2 – Chu-Furisode: a furisode with sleeves that are around 100cm in length. “Chu” means “medium”.

Type 3 – Oh-Furisode: “oh” means big, therefore oh-furisode means big, swinging sleeves, with the longest sleeves of all the furisode type kimonos. Oh-furisode have sleeves of 114 – 115cm. This is the type that would be worn for Seijin-no-Hi. all the kimonos shown above are oh-furisode.

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3D paintings

Check out the 3D paintings by Riusuke Fukahori; he paints a layer, pours on thick layer clear lacquer, paints on that and repeats the process  until done. You can see pictures of his work here on the www.thisiscolossal.com design website, as well as a short film of him doing the work.

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Snow Monsters

It is worth having a look at these trees covered in snow and rime ice in Japan, known as “snow monsters”. You can see one photo below and lots more here on the Pink Tentacle website.

Japan’s Snow Monsters

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I really like this photograph from tokyotimes.org 

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wishing you all the best for 2012

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If you want something else to browse, there’s always my Wafuku.co.uk website.

To see a vast selection of fabulous, vintage and antique Japanese kimonos, visit wafuku.co.uk. Based in Scotland and selling worldwide. Whether you want to own and wear a real kimono, a beautiful piece of wearable Japanese textile art, or hang one for display or even just have a look at stunningly beautiful kimonos, you may enjoy browsing through the selection on my site. I have high quality, vintage kimonos, obis and accessories (and much more) for men, women and children. Pop over to wafuku.co.uk and have a look.

wafuku – noun: traditional Japanese clothing

Welcome to my Wafuku.co.uk WordPress blog

get this blog’s RSS feed

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Anime Eyes - wide eyed appeal
In my last blog post I included a video clip showing the appplication of a fluid, presumably something like latex adhesive, that makes the single Japanese eyelid fold when opened, giving the appearance of a double eyelid, more like western world eyes. This is popular, whether done with a liquid or tape application or with more drastic cosmetic surgery, because it makes the eyes look bigger. A current trend in Japan is anime/manga style eyes, which are achieved by combining the added crease with contact lenses that make the iris and pupil much bigger, giving the larger than life, cartoon like eyes. I have to admit that some of them scare me a little, the eyes look inordinately large for the face, but I also find it an interesting look that can suit the Japanese face, though I do not like it so much if the eye enlargement involved surgery rather than the more temporary options.

photo via inventorspot

You can get the anime eye contact lenses here, by Geo…

…and here, by GNG

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Anime Eyes For Fancy Dress
If you flike the idea of going out in fancy dress as a manga or anime character, this video shows you how to apply anime make up, with the huge cartoon eyes and tiny lips. In case you are unsure, manga is Japanese comic book illustrations and anime is motion cartoons, both of the same style.

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And now for something even weirder
Now, if you want to go even further and have really freaky eyes, check out the contact lenses in the photos below, and many more very weird ones, here. I really like lots of those and wish I was young enough to carry them off. 

Check out those and many more here

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Tokyo Fashion
A site I really like is TokyoFashion.com, where you can see masses of photos of street fashion in Tokyo, with a lot of focus on Harajuku fashion (trends from Harajuku, in the Shibuya ward of Tokyo). You will see a lot of girls with anime eyes in those photos too. On that site, you find photos of people in the street in fabulous, creative outfits, many a mix of western fashion, vintage fashion and contemporary versions of traditional Japanese styles. There is also some Tokyo fashion show news. I like the people on the street stuff best. The fashion shows have mostly western women modelling, many of whom have legs so thin that it looks as though their thighs would snap like twigs, whichI find repellant; I thought the days of concentration camp-like models were coming to an end but it seems it is not. I also get a touch creeped out by the fashion that makes girls look like very young children, practically toddlers. It’s cute but slightly disturbing. I do, however, love most of the quirky fashion in Japan.

I especially like these zip tights

and these tattoo tights. There are lots of great tights and socks in the photos on that site.

I love this checked dog backpack

and this Vivienne Westwood watch

and the weirdness of these Jeffrey Campbell shoes

and these very pokkuri/okobo-like shoes, a style that is very popular in Japan just now and that you will see numerous girls wearing in Tokyo. I really like their big nod to traditional Japanese footwear, making it live on in contemporary fashion.

Then there’s the Harajuku Fashion Walk

To see much more like this, check out TokyoFashion.com, which is where I found those pictures.

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Fun Stuff For Winter
I have just bought one of these fun hats for winter; I find the extreme cold of winter is a good way to get away with wearing something silly and quirky, even at my age. I have bought the wolf hat and am considering the racoon hat too.

I’m also considering this cute Elmo hat. My daughter and I love this Iron Man ski mask, which I think would be great for her fiancé, who cycles to work.

I also want just bought this pair of perfect winter boots that I found but I can’t yet afford am still reeling a bit at the £140 £112 (approx. $221 $181) I paid (I got a 20% discount voucher), as I still really can’t afford them. I actually bought them at full price but, when I went back to look at them shortly after my purchase, I noticed there was a discount voucher code, available for the next three days, that I’d overlooked, so I cancelled the order and bought them again with the discount applied. Feeling 20% less guilty now. They have a cozy fleece lining and are waterproof and, best of all, are very long; it is so hard to find warm, waterproof, winter boots that go right up to the knee. They’re a mix of waterproofed leather and waterproof nylon. I already have two great pairs of equally expensive winter boots, which are also furry lined and waterproof but they only go up to just above mid calf and, although I love them, I would love them so much more if they kept my entire calf warm by going all the way up to the knee. One pair is black and the other is white; they are a mix of thick, plain leather with patent leather straps and round the toes (you can see me wearing the white ones in the photo of me building a snow Kid Robot, below the grey boots) but otherwise both the pairs I have are the same; all three pairs are Timberland boots, the two shorter pairs are called Timberland Mukluk Barometer. I think of the white ones as my Storm Trooper boots and the black ones as my Vader boots and, no matter how cold it gets in winter or how long I spend out in the snow, they keep my feet toasty. Now I really, really want have bought these long pink ones too.

I’ve just discovered that the mauve and black boots are actually grey and black, the site with them just had a badly coloured photo but I found them on the Timberland site. Now buying those too, while the discount is still available so I can get the 20% off them too, then I can choose one pair when I see them and return the other…. probably. Rats, can already feel myself wanting both but I really can’t keep both. The grey ones can be seen below the pink ones.

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Can teeth be too perfect?
Another thing I discovered was a place that offers to make perfect teeth look more crooked. Apparently some Japanese people are intimidated by perfection, so some folk are having their perfect teeth made to took slightly imperfect, in the hope that they will become more appealing to those who were intimidated by their previous perfection. Ah, Japan… full of surprises. While I dislike those absurdly white, almost strobing teeth that so many in the USA seem to admire and I don’t balk at slight, natural imperfections in the lie of the teeth, which they seem to abhor, I do find it odd to dislike and remove natural perfection. I think the are clip-on, so no actual harm done. You can see a site offering imperfection creation for teeth here.

Image via www.takagi-ds.com

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If you want something else to browse, there’s always my Wafuku.co.uk website.

To see a vast selection of fabulous, vintage and antique Japanese kimonos, visit wafuku.co.uk. Based in Scotland and selling worldwide. Whether you want to own and wear a real kimono, a beautiful piece of wearable Japanese textile art, or hang one for display or even just have a look at stunningly beautiful kimonos, you may enjoy browsing through the selection on my site. I have high quality, vintage kimonos, obis and accessories (and much more) for men, women and children. Pop over to wafuku.co.uk and have a look

wafuku – noun: traditional Japanese clothing

Welcome to my Wafuku.co.uk WordPress blog

get this blog’s RSS feed

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Japanese Furoshiki – the multifunctional cloth
Furoshiki are Japanese wrapping cloths. Typically, the Japanese tie these cloths in a variety of very clever ways to wrap gifts and make bags and suitcases. When it comes to folding and tying, no one does it better than the Japanese.

The 2 pictures below are from an instructional video clip here

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You can see how to tie a bag like the one below in the Kakefuda Kyoto Famous Furoshiki Store’s  instructional video clip here

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Got a laptop like the one below to wrap or something the same shape? Check out the instructional video clip here

You can find those clips and more here.

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For printed instructions, check  out the following pictures. Click them for enlargements, which open in a new window…

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Here are some of my furoshiki

Two large, silk furoshiki

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Fukusa

Another item the Japanese use to cover gifts is the fukusa, like the ones shown below. Fukusa are also used at tea ceremonies. Traditionally in Japan, gifts were placed in a box or on a wooden or lacquered tray, over which a fukusa was draped. The choice of a fukusa appropriate to the occasion was an important part of the gift-giving ritual. The practice of covering a gift became widespread during the Edo or Tokugawa period (1615–1867).

Fukusa, unlike furoshiki, do not get tied, they are just laid over the item. The one above, on the left, is woven from gold lacquer coated thread, with a design of oshidori (madarin ducks) and ume (plum blossom) and the tassels are in the form of minokame (turtles with a trail of algae behind them). The type on the right is often given with wedding gifts; the kanji on it, called kotobuki, can be translated both as congratulations and as longevity.

The antique silk fukusa above has fabulous, deeply couched, golden embroidery in the centre, in the form of a mon (crest); this mon is sasa (bamboo). This will have been an extremely expensive fukusa when new.

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The fukusa above has flying cranes, which represent longevity and loyalty.

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These fukusa are in the form of wallets, the grey one is given to someone in mouring and the golden one would be given as a wedding gift. They would be given with money in them.

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You also get fukusa like the one shown in the picture above, with a little bone or plastic button, which often come complete with a lacquered tray inside. You sometimes see these ones with Buddhist scripture all over them.

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Oriental Eyes

I absolutely love the Japanese eyes, with their lovely almond shape and single eyelid but many Japanese people prefer the oxidental eyes with the double eyelid. They feel it makes the eyes look bigger. Sadly, this has led to many having cosmetic surgery to give them double eyelids that crease in the middle like oxidental ones, which also tends to reduce the lovely almond shape. A less drastic solution is the one you see below in the video clip, showing some fluid that is applied to the lower part of the eyelid, making it slightly rigid when it dries, forcing it to crease when the eye opens and therefore look like double eyelids. It gives the folding eyelid without destroying the lovely almond shape and it is not permanent. Assuming the stuff being applied is harmless, I hope this catches on more than cosmetic surgery, as it means they don’t lose their beautiful oriental eyes and can choose to go back to their natural look at any time. I’m not anti cosmetic surgery at all, I just love oriental eyes and envy those with them and I hate to think of anyone with them permanently destroying their own natural eye appearance.

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If you want something else to browse, there’s always my Wafuku.co.uk website.

To see a vast selection of fabulous, vintage and antique Japanese kimonos, visit wafuku.co.uk. Based in Scotland and selling worldwide. Whether you want to own and wear a real kimono, a beautiful piece of wearable Japanese textile art, or hang one for display or even just have a look at stunningly beautiful kimonos, you may enjoy browsing through the selection on my site. I have high quality, vintage kimonos, obis and accessories (and much more) for men, women and children. Pop over to wafuku.co.uk and have a look

wafuku – noun: traditional Japanese clothing

Welcome to my Wafuku.co.uk WordPress blog

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The Japanese Moon Rabbit
Tsukiyo no Usagi; the rabbit in the moon. The Moon rabbit in Japanese folklore is a rabbit that lives on the moon, based on pareidolia (the phenomenon of seeing images that seem significant, like clouds in the shape of objects, faces in foodstuffs etc) that identifies the markings of the moon as a rabbit (sometimes said to be a hare). The story exists in many cultures, particularly in East Asian folklore, where the rabbit is seen pounding in a mortar and pestle. In Japanese versions it is pounding the ingredients for mochi (rice cake/dumplings).

In the Japanese anthology, Konjaku Monogatarishu (lit. Anthology of Tales from the Past; a Japanese collection of over one thousand tales written during the late Heian period of 794-1185), a long, long time ago in a far distant land there lived a rabbit, a fox and a monkey who believed that they had sinned in their former lives. Thus, as punishment, they are reincarnated as animals. Determined to compensate for their former sins, they gathered one day and promised to each other to be good and love each other as brothers.

From heaven, Taishakuten, a deity in the Land of Gods, looked upon them in disbelief. “Impossible! The present world is filled with hatred! Even siblings will go as far as to hate, rob or even kill each other. These humans have no compassion and regret anymore, you are telling me that you ANIMALS have it?” he thought to himself. As a test of their true faith, Taishakuten transformed himself into a weak, old man, and descended to the sinful world where the three animals lived. He laid himself down on a path, pretending to be in severe sickness, great pain and nearing death.
Soon enough the three animals passed by this seemingly dying old man. “Salvation… please, help this old man. I have an unfinished journey in front of me, but I have been overcome by hunger and thirst… Anyone, anything, please offer this old man his salvation…” He begged to the three animals in a frail voice.
Seeing this as the perfect chance to prove their determination to be good, the monkey ran off into the forest and brought back fruits and vegetables; the fox went to the graveyard and brought back offerings to the dead that people have left behind; rice cakes, fish, beverages and such.

Rabbit Netsuke

Being small and weak and used only to collecting grass for food, the rabbit was not able to find anything to save the dying man. In great shame, he went back to the old man. “I am so sorry but I have not yet found anything; I will search elsewhere. Please make a fire and await my return”,  the rabbit requested.
Standing by the old man, the smug fox and monkey were getting impatient, “The rabbit brought back nothing and now he tells us to make a fire and wait for him? Useless!” exclaimed the fox and the monkey in disgust. Moments later the rabbit returned, still with nothing. He stared into the fire, then jumped into its flames, making himself food for the old man.
Taishakuten, was so very impressed and touched by such a self-sacrificing act that he proclaimed that the rabbit would be ascended to the moon, so that humans will remember the rabbit and his selfless act forever.

In Japanese art it is sometimes depicted as two rabbits on the moon.

The night of the 15th of September, or ‘Jugo-ya’ (Fifteenth night), is a time when the Japanese go out and appreciate the beauty of the mid-autumn full moon. Such activity is known as ‘O-tsuki-mi’ (moon viewing). ‘Mochi’ (rice dumplings), watermelons, chestnuts and numerous autumn fruits are offered to the bright, full moon. Such offerings are arranged on small, decorative stands and are placed near the windows of Japanese homes.

Rabbits are a popular motif on Japanese fans and textiles and all sorts of other items, like in the images of a Japanese textile and tabi shown above. Examples of rabbits depicted in Japanese antiques are this fabulous netsuke…

and this spectacular antique kimono…

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On a change of topic, I discovered this extremely expensive wallpaper the other day. I wouldn’t want it on my walls but it was interesting to see.

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Recently I saw this lovely furisode kimono in a Paris Vogue from Novemeber 2010…

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If you want something else to browse, there’s always my Wafuku.co.uk website.

To see a vast selection of fabulous, vintage and antique Japanese kimonos, visit wafuku.co.uk. Based in Scotland and selling worldwide. Whether you want to own and wear a real kimono, a beautiful piece of wearable Japanese textile art, or hang one for display or even just have a look at stunningly beautiful kimonos, you may enjoy browsing through the selection on my site. I have high quality, vintage kimonos, obis and accessories (and much more) for men, women and children. Pop over to wafuku.co.uk and have a look

wafuku – noun: traditional Japanese clothing

Welcome to my Wafuku.co.uk WordPress blog

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Osaka Station Water Clock
In Osaka station they have a fabulous clock that shows the time in water droplets. Between each minute it makes pretty designs. I’ve seen these great fountains before; they are controlled by computer and release carefully timed droplets that create patterns. I think they are so impressive. Photos and video on a blog at

http://gorimon.com/blog/log/eid1414.html

and a video below

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Great Advertisement
Watch it right to the end, it may look grim but is very funny…

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High Brow Finger Puppets
A shop in the US sells these finger puppets. Such an unlikely set of characters (they have other artists, playwrights and philosophers too) and I particularly like Shroedinger’s Cat. I wonder if it is dead or alive.

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Fun & Thrifty!
This takes me back. I remember these types of ‘things to do with’ guides. Oh how easily pleased we were back then; we didn’t beg for the latest expensive gadgets and toys, we got excited when given a handful of empty thread boobins or some such crap. As I recall, I never managed to get more than one spool a year, so that limited me a little when I wanted to make a snake from them.

This next recycling idea is somewhat horrifing now that we know the dangers of asbestos. For those, like me, in the UK, shingles are roof tiles.

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Everybody
I love these guys singing along to animé videos of The Backstreet Boy’s song Everybody. They get the actions and facial expressions just right and the guy on the left, with the great hair, is so very good at it. There are two versions, one with three animé characters and one with a single, different one. The version with the single character is longer though a bit fuzzy but don’t let the image quality put you off. Worth watching both. They almost make me like the song.

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If you want something else to browse, there’s always my Wafuku.co.uk website.

To see a vast selection of fabulous, vintage and antique Japanese kimonos, visit wafuku.co.uk. Based in Scotland and selling worldwide. Whether you want to own and wear a real kimono, a beautiful piece of wearable Japanese textile art, or hang one for display or even just have a look at stunningly beautiful kimonos, you may enjoy browsing through the selection on my site. I have high quality, vintage kimonos, obis and accessories (and much more) for men, women and children. Pop over to wafuku.co.uk and have a look

wafuku – noun: traditional Japanese clothing

Welcome to my Wafuku.co.uk WordPress blog

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Uchide-no-Kozuchi – The Japanese Lucky Mallet

The lucky mallet is part of Japanese folklore and a popular motif in Japanese art, often seen on textile art and as charms and ornaments. I have hanten jackets (see one above) with lucky mallets on them, obis displaying them and at least one beautiful tomesode and a few boy’s kimonos displaying a takarabune (treasure ship) loaded with treasure, amongst which is the lucky mallet.

The lucky mallet is one of many treasures seen carried on a takarabune (treasure ship). This mallet had the ability to alter a person’s size and the one carried by one of the seven gods of luck can grant wishes.

The tale is about Uchide-no-Kozuchi, a legendary Japanese hammer, andbthe name translates as “Small Magic Hammer” or “Miracle Mallet” and, in English, as “Lucky Mallet”. It is said that swinging the mallet grants its holder’s wishes. It plays an important role in the legend of Issun Boshi (One-Inch Boy), from the Otogizoushi, a tale written in the Muromachi Period, which tells a story of a tiny hero called Issun Boshi whose height is just one sun (slightly over an inch).
The story goes that the tiny Issun Boshi was in love with a princess who was the daughter of his employer, however, he was ridiculed for his diminutive size. He is given a job of accompanying the princess he loves on a trip. Along the way, they run foul of an Oni who has the mallet and swallows Issun Boshi whole.  Issun Boshi forces the Oni to spit him out by poking him on the inside with his tiny needle sword. The Oni spits him out but drops the Uchide no kozuchi in his haste to escape. As his reward, the Princess uses the mallet to grow Issun Boshi to full size.  At the end of the story, Issun Boshi and the princess are married.

Left picture – The princess, Issun Boshi and the Oni about to swallow him.
Right picture – Princess, with mallet, and enlarged Issun Boshi.

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Shichi-fuku-jin – the Seven Gods of Luck

Shichi-fuku-jin are the Seven Gods of Luck in Japanese folklore. They are comical deities, often portrayed together sailing on a treasure ship (takarabune). They carry various magical items such as an invisible hat, rolls of brocade, an inexhaustible purse, a lucky rain hat, robes of feathers, keys to the divine treasure house and important books and scrolls. The one called Daikoku (also known as Daikokuten), the god of wealth and farmers, is depicted in legend and art as stout and sitting on two rice bags (often with rats nibbling at the bags, as a sign of prosperity) and he’s shown with a bag of precious things slung over his shoulder and a wish-granting mallet in his right hand. In the picture above, he is the one second from the right.

Daikoku

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Advanced Style

On a different note, I like a blog called Advanced Style, about stylish mature women. When younger, I had style; I was very into vintage clothing, especially 1940s and 1950s, and mixed it with contemporary, creating original and stylish outfits that got me noticed and made me different from the crowd. Nothing outrageous but I knew what I suited and I loved stylish clothes. In my mid forties I seemed to lose my confidence, worrying about dressing too young for my age and unsure of what suited me, especially as I’d changed shape a little and no longer felt young. I became increasingly cautious about my wardrobe, becoming more and more invisible. Although I do wear haoris, which do get noticed because they are beautiful and unusual, I otherwise do play very safe. The Advanced Style blog makes me want to capture a little more stylishness again and, I hope, as I get older, regain some confidence and cease to fear being too noticeable. The women in this blog, who seem to be a fair bit older than I am, are an incentive. I may not like all the clothes or looks they chose but I love that they make the effort and certainly have style. In the picture below, of two of the women on that blog, I love the simple, fitted black top and accessories of the woman on the left and the sunglasses of the woman on the right. I also like their hats but I have a small head, without the required high crown to sit hats on, so I can never get hats to fit me or sit correctly, so, although I love hats, I can’t indulge in wearing them but envy those who can.

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Piano & Cello Building

This magnificent building is in Huainan, Anhui province, China. It is the Institution of Architectural Design of Hefei University of Technology and the designers are apparently the Huainan Fangkai Decoration Project Co. Ltd. You enter the building via the cello, which houses escalators.

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Customer Comment

A customer has just left the nicest message in my Wafuku.co.uk Guestbook, about my vintage kimono website, for which I am greatly appreciative. She said…

“There are few good small vintage boutique websites out there, let alone one specialising in traditional Japanese clothes. Descriptions are always thorough and accurate (unlike certain online auction sites ). intuitive ideas on everyday wearing are scattered throughout the site, like wearing a girls kimono as a striking long jacket. For me, it will always be haori jackets (I have brought a few from this site) a real overlooked gem of the clothing world (though rediscovered by both high-street and high-end fashion recently). They add a real striking contrast with western clothes and are ideal for creating a signature look, this site has the biggest variety on the net in the UK I’ve seen so far. I cannot recommend this site highly enough, you won’t be disappointed!”

I was so pleased when I read that.

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If you want something else to browse, there’s always my Wafuku.co.uk website.

To see a vast selection of fabulous, vintage and antique Japanese kimonos, visit wafuku.co.uk. Based in Scotland and selling worldwide. Whether you want to own and wear a real kimono; a beautiful piece of wearable Japanese textile art, or to hang one as a display or  just want to have a look at stunningly beautiful kimonos, you may enjoy browsing through the selection on my site. I have high quality, vintage kimonos, obis and accessories (and much more) for men, women and children. Pop over to wafuku.co.uk and have a look.

wafuku – noun: traditional Japanese clothing

Welcome to my Wafuku.co.uk WordPress blog

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A Kyoto Geisha
Here is a short film about the life of Miehina, who is a Kyoto Geisha

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Floral Pets
In Japan, there are florists creating charming bouquets and floral displays in the form of dogs and cats…

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They make the cutest food in Japan.
Check out these little bread rolls.

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Isn’t this delightful?
I really, really want this little, dancing Japanese robot but will never have one. I’ve completely fallen for her. I especially like when she stands on one leg for a few moments and when she does little jumps to turn.

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If you want something else to browse, there’s always my Wafuku.co.uk website.

To see a vast selection of fabulous, vintage and antique Japanese kimonos, visit wafuku.co.uk. Based in Scotland and selling worldwide. Whether you want to own and wear a real kimono, a beautiful piece of wearable Japanese textile art, or hang one for display or even just have a look at stunningly beautiful kimonos, you may enjoy browsing through the selection on my site. I have high quality, vintage kimonos, obis and accessories (and much more) for men, women and children. Pop over to wafuku.co.uk and have a look

wafuku – noun: traditional Japanese clothing

Welcome to my Wafuku.co.uk WordPress blog

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In this blog post you will find Nagoya obi, otaiko musubi tying instructions, how to wear obi makura, obiage and obijime, the names of the parts of an obi and the shapes and scale of different types of obi.

Let’s start with the folding instructions for Nagoya obis
Opened up your Nagoya obi and at a loss about how to fold it again?

I have put together the instructions below, to show you how to do it. You can drag the image to your desktop to keep a copy for use without having to come online for it.

Further down this page you also will find instructions for wearing an obi makura, obiage and obijime.

You can fold it up smaller, if you prefer, just do 4 folds at the last step instead of 3, then it is smaller but thicker

When I have time, I will draw out instructions for converting a Nagoya Obi into a tsukure (two part, pre-shaped, easy wear) one, with the taiko musuba (taiko knot) section, pre-folded and stitched into its ready to wear shape, and a separate sash, and post the instructions on this blog.

Whether a normal Nagoya obi, like the one above, or a tsukure Nagoya obi, you need an obi makura (bustle pad), for inside the top of the taiko knot, to pad it out, an obiage to hold the makura and the top of the knot section in place and an obijime to hold the centre section of the obi knot in place.

Obi Makura

Makura means ‘pillow’ and an obi makura is bustle padding that’s worn inside the top of an obi’s  taiko shaped rear knot, to pad out the top of it. The obiage holds the makura in place, though sometimes makuras also have ties.

Obiage

An obiage is an obi ‘scarf’, worn through the rear knot, over the makura, and tied at the top of the sash at the front, then tucked partially behind the sash. The obiage helps hold the makura and the obi’s rear knot in place. This pink obiage has shibori work; shibori is a very fine tie dye patterning that not only decorates it but makes it stretchy, so it is much longer than this photo of it unstretched makes it look. You can see how the shibori work pulls the patterned sections in, making them narrower than the sections without it.

Obijime

An obijime is an obi cord, worn through the centre of the obi’s rear knot and around the centre of the sash, tied at the front with the ends tucked into itself at the sides. It helps hold the obi’s rear knot (musuba) and the sash in place.
The diagram below shows how they go together on an obi with a taiko musuba (square taiko knot).

Names of obi sections

The next diagram shows you the names of the parts of an obi, both untied and tied into an otaiko musubi (taiko knot). Despite the fact that the knot is called taiko, meaning drum, and the base of the knot is described as the bottom of the drum, the obi musubi’s name taiko is not because of the Japanese hand drum, it was named after the Taiko Bridge because some geisha wore this new design of musubi at the bridge’s initial opening ceremony and this particular style then became fashionable and known as the taiko musubi and has remained very popular ever since.

Types of women’s obi

The following diagram shows the various types of obi to scale. It’s not very obvious but the fukuro obi is a little bit narrower than the maru obi. Only the sash section of the tsuke (two part) obi is shown. The tsuke’s knot is separate and pre-shaped.

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Women’s Obi Types

Darari obi is a very long maru obi worn by maiko. A maiko’s darari obi has the kamon insignia of its owner’s okiya in the other end. A darari obi can be 600 centimetres (20 ft) long.

Fukuro obi (pouch obi) is a grade less formal than a maru obi and the most formal obi actually used today. It has been made by either folding cloth in two or sewing two pieces of cloth together. If two cloths are used, the cloth used for to make the backside of the obi may be cheaper and the front cloth may be for example brocade. Not counting marriage outfits, the fukuro obi has replaced the heavy maru obi as the obi used for ceremonial wear and celebration.[8] A fukuro obi is often made so that the part that will not be visible when worn are of smooth, thinner and lighter silk.[7] A fukuro obi is about 30 centimetres (12 in) wide and 360 centimetres (11.8 ft) to 450 centimetres (14.8 ft) long. When worn, a fukuro obi is almost impossible to tell from a maru obi. Fukuro obis are made in roughly three subtypes. The most formal and expensive of these is patterned brocade on both sides. The second type is two-thirds patterned, the so-called “60 % fukuro obi”, and it is somewhat cheaper and lighter than the first type. The third type has patterns only in the parts that will be prominent when the obi is worn in the common taiko musubi.

Fukuro Nagoya obi or hassun Nagoya obi (“six inch Nagoya obi”) is an obi that has been sewn in two only where the taiko knot would begin. The part wound around the body is folded when put on. The fukuro Nagoya obi is intended for making the more formal, two-layer variation of the taiko musubi, the so-called nijuudaiko musubi. It is about 350 centimetres (11.5 ft) long.

Hakata obi (obi of Hakata) is an unlined woven obi that has a thick weft and thin warp.

Hoso obi (thin sash) is a collective name for informal half-width obis. Hoso obis are 15cm (5.9 in) or 20cm (7.9 in) wide and about 330cm (10.8 ft) long.

Hanhaba obi (half width obi) is an unlined and informal obi that is used with a yukata or an everyday kimono. Hanhaba obis are very popular these days. For use with yukata, reversible hanhaba obis are popular: they can be folded and twisted in several ways to create colour effects. A hanhaba obi is 15 centimetres (5.9 in) wide and 300 centimetres (9.8 ft) to 400 centimetres (13 ft) long. Tying it is relatively easy, and its use does not require pads or strings. The knots used for hanhaba obi are often simplified versions of bunko-musubi. As it is more “acceptable” to play with an informal obi, hanhaba obi is sometimes worn in self-invented styles, often with decorative ribbons and such.

Chuuya obi or Hara-awase obi is an informal obi that has sides of different colours/designs. Chuuya is often spelled chuya and means daytime and night time; the earliest chuuya obis were bright on one side and black on the other, like night and day, hence the name. Chuuya obi were used by iki-suji ladies in ancient Japan; iki-suji means a kind of kimono expert, such as a Geisha. Chuuya obi are now obsolete and are collectors’ items. They are fequently seen in pictures from the Edo and Meiji periods, but today it is hardly used. A chuuya obi has a (usually) dark, sparingly decorated side and another, more colourful and festive side, this way the obi can be worn both in everyday life and for celebration. The obi is about 30 cm (12 in) wide and 350 cm (11.5 ft) to 400 cm (13 ft) long.

Heko obi (soft obi) is a very informal obi made of soft, thin cloth, often dyed with shibori. Its traditional use is as an informal obi for children and men and there were times when it was considered totally inappropriate for women. Nowadays young girls and women can wear a heko obi with modern, informal kimonos and yukatas. An adult’s heko obi is the common size of an obi, about 20 centimetres (7.9 in) to 30 centimetres (12 in) wide and about 300 centimetres (9.8 ft) long.

Hitoe obi (means “single-layer obi”). It is made from silk cloth so stiff that the obi does not need lining or in-sewn stiffeners. One of these cloth types is called Hakata ori. A hitoe obi can be worn with everyday kimono or yukata. A hitoe obi is 15 centimetres (5.9 in) to 20 centimetres (7.9 in) wide (the so-called hanhaba obi) or 30 centimetres (12 in) wide and about 400 centimetres (13 ft) long.

Kobukuro obi is an unlined hoso obi whose width is 15 centimetres (5.9 in) or 20 centimetres (7.9 in) and length 300 centimetres (9.8 ft).

Kyo-bukuro obi (capital fukuro obi) was invented in the 1970s in Nishijin, Kyoto. It lies among the usage scale right between nagoya obi and fukuro obi, and can be used to smarten up an everyfay outfit. A kyo-bukuro obi is structured like a fukuro obi but is as short as a nagoya obi. It thus can also be turned inside out for wear like reversible obis. A kyo-bukuro obi is about 30 centimetres (12 in) wide and 350 centimetres (11.5 ft) long.

Maru obi (one-piece obi) is the most formal obi. It is made from cloth about 68 cm wide and is folded around a double lining and sewn together. The ornate pattern is along the entire length and on both sides. Maru obis were at their most popular during the Taisho and Meiji-periods. Their bulk and weight makes maru obis difficult to handle and nowadays they are worn mostly by geishas, maikos and others such. Another use for maru obi is as a part of a bride’s outfit. A maru obi is about 30 centimetres (12 in) to 35 centimetres (14 in) wide and 360 centimetres (11.8 ft) to 450 centimetres (14.8 ft) long, fully patterned[9] and often embroidered with metal-coated yarn and foil work.

Nagoya obi, or when differentiating from the fukuro Nagoya obi also called kyu-sun Nagoya obi, the nine inch nagoya obi) is the most used obi type today. A Nagoya obi can be told apart by its distinguishable structure: one end is folded and sewn in half, the other end is of full width. This is to make putting the obi on easier. A Nagoya obi can be partly or fully patterned. It is normally worn only in the taiko musubi style, and many Nagoya obis are designed so that they have patterns only in the part that will be most prominent in the knot. A Nagoya obi is shorter than other obi types, about 315 centimetres (10.33 ft) to 345 centimetres (11.32 ft) long, but of the same width, about 30 centimetres (12 in). Nagoya obi is relatively new. It was developed by a seamstress living in Nagoya at the end of the 1920s. The new easy-to-use obi gained popularity among Tokyo’s geishas, from whom it then was adopted by fashionable city women for their everyday wear. The formality and fanciness of a Nagoya obi depends on its material just like is with other obi types. Since the Nagoya obi was originally used as everyday wear it can never be part of a truly ceremonial outfit, but a Nagoya obi made from exquisite brocade can be accepted as semi-ceremonial wear. The term Nagoya obi can also refer to another obi with the same name, used centuries ago. This Nagoya obi was cord-like.

Odori obi (dance obi) is a name for obis used in dance acts. An odori obi is often big, simple-patterned and has patterns done in metallic colours so that it can be seen easily from the audience. An odori obi can be 10cm (3.9 in) to 30cm (12 in) wide and 350cm (11.5 ft) to 450cm (14.8 ft) long. As the term “odori obi” is not established, it can refer to any obi meant for dance acts.

Sakiori obi is a woven obi made by using yard or narrow strips from old clothes as weave. Sakiori obis are used with kimono worn at home. A sakiori obi is similar to a hanhaba obi in size and extremely informal.

Tenga obi (fancy obi) resembles a hanhaba obi but is more formal. It is usually wider and made from fancier cloth more suitable for celebration. The patterns usually include auspicious, celebratory motifs. A tenga obi is about 20cm (7.9 in) wide and 350cm (11.5 ft) to 400cm (13 ft) long.

Tsuke obi (also ccalled tsukuri obi or kantan obi) is any ready-tied obi, often in two parts, the sash and the knot, making it very easy to put on. It was first invented to aid women with arthritis who could no longer pull hard enough to tie their obi knots but it became popular with other women too, because it is so quick and convenient. The tsuke obi is fastened in place by ties. Tsuke obis are normally very informal and they are mostly used with yukatas but also available as more formal two-part nagoya obis.

White obi: In a traditional Japanese Shinto wedding ceremony, a bride will wear a white obi on her white kimono. In the Edo era, a widow may dress in all white to signify that she will not remarry. Thus, some very old, white obi may not have been used for weddings. The bride will change into numerous outfits on her wedding day, often brightly coloured ones as well as the white Shinto one. Formal obis worn by men are much narrower than those of women (the width is about 10 centimetres (3.9 in) at its most). The men’s obi is worn in much simpler fashion than women’s: it is wrapped around the waist, below the stomach and tied with a simple knot in the back.

Women’s Obi Accessories

Obiage is a scarf-like piece of cloth that covers up the obimakura and keeps the upper part of the obi knot in place. These days it is customary for an unmarried, young woman to let her obiage show from underneath the obi in the front. A married woman will tuck it deeper in and only allow it to peek. Obiage can be thought of as an undergarment for kimono, so letting it show is a little provocative.

Obidome is a small decorative accessory (obi ‘brooch’) that is fastened onto obijime at the centre front of the obi. The obijime threads through it and, when an obidome is worn, the obijime is tied at the back, inside the rear knot, instead of at the front. It is not used very often nowadays.

Pocchiri is a maiko’s especially ornate obidome. These maiko obidome are very decorative and very large. Once they graduate to full geisha/geiko, they no longer wear an obidome at all.

Obi-ita is a separate stiffener that keeps the obi flat, as it stops it creasing when one bends. It is a thin piece of cardboard covered with cloth and placed between the layers of obi when putting the obi on. Some types of obi-ita are attached around the waist with cords before the obi is put on.

Obijime is a cord, about 150 centimetres (4.9 ft) long, that is tied around the obi and through the knot,[15] and which doubles as decoration. It can be a woven string, or be constructed as a narrow sewn tube of fabric. There are both flat and round obijimes. They often have tassels at both ends and they are made from silk, satin, brocade or viscose. A cord-like or a padded tube obijime is considered more festive and ceremonial than a flat one.

Obi-makura is a small pillow that supports and shapes the obi knot, it acts as bustle padding. The most common knot these days, taiko musubi, is padded out at the top with a makura.

Men’s obi types:

Heko obi (soft obi) is an informal, soft obi, free flowing and usually made of shibori (tye-dyed) fabrics, traditionally silk. It is tied very informally. The adult’s heko obi is as long as a normal obi at 300cm (9.8 ft) to 400cm (13 ft), but relatively wide at up to 70cm (28 in). Adult men wear the heko obi only at home but young boys can wear it in public, for example at a summer festival with a yukata. On men it is tied to sit just below the belly at the front and tied slightly higher on the waist at the back.

Kaku obi (stiff obi) is another obi used by men. A formal kaku obi is about 10 centimetres (3.9 in) wide and 400 centimetres (13 ft) long and depending on its material, colours and pattern is suited to any and all occasions from everyday wear to a close relative’s funeral. A kaku obi typically is made of hakata ori which has length-wise stripes and woven pattern based on Buddhist symbols and is worn tied in the simple kai-no-kuchi knot.

Netsuke:

A Netsuke is an ornament suspended from the top of the obi and worn mostly by men. A pouch or container (remember, kimono have no pockets) can be attached with a cord and the netsuke stops the cord pulling out of the obi, securing the pouch that hangs below the obi.

Children’s Obi Types

Sanjaku obi (three foot long obi – but it is not the Imperial foot measurement of 12 inches) is a type of men’s obi. It is named after its length, three old Japanese feet (about 37.9 cm / 14.9 inches). The obi is sometimes called simply sanjaku. During the Edo period it was popular among the people as the obi for yukata-like kimonos because of its ease of use. According to some theories, the sanjaku obi originates from a scarf of the same length, which was folded and used as a sash. A sanjaku obi typically is shaped like a kaku obi, narrow and with short stitches. It is usually made from soft cotton-like cloth. Because of its shortness, the sanjaku obi is tied in the koma musubi, which is much like a square knot.

Shigoki obi was utility wear in the time of trailing kimonos, and was used to tie up the excess length when going out. Nowadays the shigoki obi’s only function is decorative. It is part of a 7-year-old girl’s outfit for celebration of shichi go san. Most often it is red or vermillion, sometimes bright green, with tasselled ends. You can see an woman wearing one on a white kimono in a photo on many of my women’s kimonos’ detail pages.

Heko obi A soft obi, like men’s heko obis, but in bright colours, usually tie died. Tied in a soft, simple bow at the back.

Tsuke obi (pre-tied, 2 part) is a popular obi used for children because of its ease of use. There are even formal tsuke obis available for children. These obis correspond to fukuro obis on the formality scale.

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The picture below shows an extended obi makura, known as azuma sugata, also known as a karyou makura, which aids in tying a variety of obi knots, such as fukurasuzume knots (sparrow knots), like the ones you see below it.

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Displaying an obi
Here are some very nice ways to display an obi, which are actually really simple to do.

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If you want something else to browse, there’s always my Wafuku.co.uk website.

To see a vast selection of fabulous, vintage and antique Japanese kimonos, visit wafuku.co.uk. Based in Scotland and selling worldwide. Whether you want to own and wear a real kimono, a beautiful piece of wearable Japanese textile art, or hang one for display or even just have a look at stunningly beautiful kimonos, you may enjoy browsing through the selection on my site. I have high quality, vintage kimonos, obis and accessories (and much more) for men, women and children. Pop over to wafuku.co.uk and have a look.