Japanese fashion
- Thread starter chiori
- Start date
Chidoriashi
In imagination land
- 2 Feb 2007
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- 63
I think Kimonos are traditional Japanese fashion of course, and they are very popular, albeit only certain days/times of the year.
Chidoriashi
In imagination land
- 2 Feb 2007
- 824
- 63
Yeah, I always think of kimono as the big heavy one for women though.
- 23 Sep 2005
- 1,295
- 76
The reason why kimono's are not very commonly worn anymore is because of numerous reasons;
a. There are not zips, buttons or drawstrings etc on a kimono. The design itself is incredibly simple (literally just a few rectangular bolts of fabric sewn together), so to wear a kimono properly and attractively it takes a lot of practise and skill.
b. Western clothes are cheaper- you need a lot of things to wear a kimono properly- undergarments like Juban/Nagajuban, Obi, tabi socks, lots of ties, a special board for under the obi to keep it flat, obijime, even a type of fake collar etc etc. Unless you're just getting a cheap cotton yukata set to go to a casual festival or hotspring in or something, when buying a full brand new kimono ensemble, the price can be very expensive (much more expensive than buying a new western outfit).
c. It takes more time to put on a kimono ensemble than to put on western clothes.
d. There are different types of kimono for every occasion. Many kimono's motifs are attuned with the seasons, months or even particular days of the year and wearing motifs out of season/month/day of kimono's for the wrong occasion or age (like houmongi is a very formal design kimono while a furisode is a young girl/womans kimono) is looked down upon a lot.
So western clothes tend to be a lot more flexible.
e. Kimono's aren't very comfortable to wear. You can move so much more freely in western clothes and so when you wear a kimono you have to change the way you move and even the way you sit. It can take some getting used to wearing a kimono. Western clothes are just so much more liberating to wear.
Kimono's can look absolutely beautiful, but there's so much time, effort & money that goes into wearing them, this is why most people don't wear them everyday in Japan anymore. Only certain professions still wear kimono on a daily basis (like Sumo wrestlers & Geisha).
a. There are not zips, buttons or drawstrings etc on a kimono. The design itself is incredibly simple (literally just a few rectangular bolts of fabric sewn together), so to wear a kimono properly and attractively it takes a lot of practise and skill.
b. Western clothes are cheaper- you need a lot of things to wear a kimono properly- undergarments like Juban/Nagajuban, Obi, tabi socks, lots of ties, a special board for under the obi to keep it flat, obijime, even a type of fake collar etc etc. Unless you're just getting a cheap cotton yukata set to go to a casual festival or hotspring in or something, when buying a full brand new kimono ensemble, the price can be very expensive (much more expensive than buying a new western outfit).
c. It takes more time to put on a kimono ensemble than to put on western clothes.
d. There are different types of kimono for every occasion. Many kimono's motifs are attuned with the seasons, months or even particular days of the year and wearing motifs out of season/month/day of kimono's for the wrong occasion or age (like houmongi is a very formal design kimono while a furisode is a young girl/womans kimono) is looked down upon a lot.
So western clothes tend to be a lot more flexible.
e. Kimono's aren't very comfortable to wear. You can move so much more freely in western clothes and so when you wear a kimono you have to change the way you move and even the way you sit. It can take some getting used to wearing a kimono. Western clothes are just so much more liberating to wear.
Kimono's can look absolutely beautiful, but there's so much time, effort & money that goes into wearing them, this is why most people don't wear them everyday in Japan anymore. Only certain professions still wear kimono on a daily basis (like Sumo wrestlers & Geisha).
- 28 Aug 2011
- 7
- 0
To be honest, I'd rather wear whats comfortable. If I could sport a yukata all year (Let alone afford one), then I would.
i bought a comfortable yukata in soho manhattan for $30. and i got a nice obi for $25. I am only brave enough to wear it around the house. It has a lot of freedom of movement in the arms, with sometimes a little restriction of leg movement. My friend said kimono are cheaper in the US because vintage kimono are not always so popular in Japan. New kimono in Japan can be thousands of dollars, but you can get one in New York (of course it won't be tailor-made for your body) for $200-.
I wonder though, how many variations there are on these forms of dress available, based on how detailed any Japanese tradition can be. Like what would a rice harvester wear to his daughter's wedding in 1615? Hmm, it'd be cool to see a timeline with a drop-down display for each class or each period.
