People should wear kimonos!

[akihito89]

Kou_Hiko,

I like what you said,  Maybe if we wear happi and stuff to the mall, eventually, people will either wear this stuff, or ask us where they can get it.  I've had several PPL tell me that they'd wear a happi if they could find one.  

The machine is against us!  We must fight! We are at war!  Eventually, we could push the envelop and wear kimonos on Japanese holidays (or whenever we have an excuse).  Slowly but surely, We (the great warriors we are) will overcome the flood tide of destruction!

[Kou Hiko]

The best way to get people interested in kimono is to introduce it to them. Some people haven't even seen one in their lives and most never up close.

Here's a question: How did you first find out about kimono and how did you fall in love with it?

We need to remember what it was that got us hooked so that we could use the same instances to get others to fall for kimono the same way we did.

For me it was when my Japanese teacher brought in her kimono she got when she went to Japan 40 years ago.

That is why I dress up in public and give kimono presentations to classes. If we introduce it to them then they will learn about it and hopefully their intrest will grow to what ours is now.

So, tell me how you became interested in kimono and we can learn from that and incoorperate it into our goal to spread the popularity of kimono.

[akihito89]

Here's how i got hukt on kimonos.

About 12 years ago, I found out that there's more in the world than our little world.  Probably after watching a few Karate Kid movies, I fell in love with Japan.  I knew they used to wear cool stuff. That was part of the passion.  The mor I learned about kimonos, The more I loved and wanted them.  in 1995, I saw a Japanese Bride doll in a white wedding kimono with a tsunokakashi on her head.  I knever knew that a kimono that pretty existed.  I decided that if I get married, I'm marying a JApanese woman and having a Jpanese wedding!

In all basicality, The mor I see kimonos or learn about them, the more I love and want them.  I bot a shiromuku just coz I was bored last summer.  Now, I use it as a weapon in the war for kimonos (the war to deliver mankind form the slavery of the machine)!  

Last semester, I used my shiromuku in a presentation for my History 112 class.  The girl that wore it, said she was going to get a white wedding kimono to wear for her wedding when she gets married.  Other PPL have said the same thing.  We're making progress in this great struggle for survival!  Onward!!!!!  Never let down your sword!!!!

[Kiyoaki]

TnT,

Educating Westerners may be the ticket to preserving the kimono. Often, the newly converted, prove to be the staunchest missionaries and defenders over the long haul. Afterall, as non-Japanese, we aren't as caught up with the idea that we'll do the wrong thing, or committ some social gaffe. We're usually too brusque to worry about such things.

Seriously though, if foreigners start to adopt the kimono, the Japanese will take a greater interest in preserving their own traditions.

Kiyoaki

[chiiyo]

As much as I do agree with what Kiyoaki-san said, I do find it highly amusing and ironic. Has asian cultures gotten to a state that we need westerners to start protecting our own cultures? Indeed, anyone who ever thought that asians were caring less about their own cultures would find truth in this statements...

[Himiko]

Kimonos are cool. I like to wear them the traditional way, complete with full accessories...
Nothing like going out in my trusty kimono for running errands, shopping...even when I live in the east coast, USA.
Since I am Asian, no one asks me funny questions, and if people ask me stuff in Japanese, I just reply them in like kind! Even though I am not Japanese.
It doesn't matter what your ethnicity is, when wearing kimono, as long as u look good and look cool, you are gonna make people notice you!
Takes just a few people to start this kimono trend!

[Himiko]

Why bother if u are Asian or Western when everyone loves the kimono in their own unique ways? I think the kimono has become so universally intriquing and accepted all over the world that race doesn't have to be a barrier or pre-requisite for enjoying the mystique of the kimono.
Maybe some Japanese are so used to their own stuff that they don't bother about their kimonos, or just simply the lack of knowledge and interest etc.
No matter what one's background is, I still think the kimono has universal appeal to everyone, and I am glad it still does for people around the world!

[Kukai]

I've been reading through the various posts to be sure that no one has mentioned a very inspiring publication...
KIMONO HIME
Kimono hime is a magazine that has been going for only about two years. It caters mostly to the younger "new style" kimono crowd in Japan (I love their creativity and have no objections to whatever they do or combine with their kimono!). One can order it through KINOKUNIYA bookstores. The young folks in Japan, first the Angel crew in Osaka, then the new look in Tokyo featured in Kimono hime, should be studied by Japanese and non-Japanese alike who do not normally wear kimono, or want to wear them in new ways. Accessorize differently, take advantage of the fact that the old gorgeous ones are too short (sleeves and lenght) by layering, etc. etc. Cool haneri (color) and kimono combos. Cute vintage 40s hats with meisen, big pins instead of netsuke, etc. Enjoy! And get inspired! I wear hakama (I'm female) with blazers, michiyuki over tight pants, haori with a wide belt, kimono hitched up over a skirt.... Everyone loves the new combinations.
Cheers, Kukai

[CAcationu2]

Hihi! ^.^
I am new here as well and of course, love kimono! I have a yukata and furisode outfit and i wear the yukata often. Unfortuneately, some people really are bullheaded and rude about nationalities. I am not Japanese or any other Asian ethnicity and I dont look it at all, so one day when i wore my yukata out, i was getting compliments and such as some do and an Asian girl came up to me and said she liked my yukata and i said thanks and we started talking. But then she got rude and would say things like, "What, do you think it will make you more oriental if you wear it?" and "Why are you wearing it if you arent japanese?" This made me feel really bad, especially since she seemed offended by it, like i was defiling her culture or something. But then i met poeple (of asian decent) who said it was a great thing that i was interested in kimono and such, so i guess its just a point of view. I find it odd that some people really put a lot of thinking into how different some nationalities look and how some think its wrong to enjoy someone elses traditions. Even my father thinks its too weird, especially for me to go out in pulic wearing kimono. i myself have never understood that. I mean, sure there are very noticable differences in some people of different nationalities, but i grew up not paying attention to that so it kinda shocks me when others invest so much in it.
Thats why i like this board! ^.^ I can like kimono even if i am Cherokee indian and european. And its fun ^.^

[Kate425]

Maybe the person who was grilling you felt bad about not appriciating her own heritage? Some people will always find a reason to put others down, a polite smile and an answer akin to " I do it because I love it" usually works!

[Flock]

What a nasty thing for someone to say! I suppose they didn't stop to think that they were (assuming they were wearing) wearing clothes from a non asian culture. people who get like that about things make me angry.
No one has ever said anything mean to me about it luckily.

[ramchaza]

I'm an American woman who loves kimonos. I don't wear mine in the traditional japanese style. for some reason I don't know, kimonos here are usually seen as robes to wear at home. I do wear mine at work, but loose and not tied. I get many compliments when I do wear it, people really like it. several women at my work have also now purchased kimonos from here and have worn them to work!

This is really getting kimonos into the main stream. This just isn't a country where kimonos are worn as they are in Japan, at least in every day life. But as Americans, we've always adapted things to our own style, haven't we? They're still beautiful and make you feel special, no matter how you wear them!

[Flock]

I'm glad you pointed this out, kimono is governed by strict rules in japan, but is it not good to embrace change too? Clothes have changed everwhere through history and been adopted by many diffirent cultures, be free! woo!

[ramchaza]

I don't wear something from another culture if I don't like itor the culture, so wearing kimonos is also a sign of respect for something beautiful from that culture. CAcat's experience is a shame, but there are nasty people in every culture. Next time it happens, & I hope it doesn't! handle it with humor - "Is it making you more asian?" "Yes, I think it is! " or just "Sorry you feel that way, I'm wearing it because i like it" . If she was wearing western clothes, did you ask her if they made her more AMERICAN? but usually the best way to handle something like that is just "I'm not going to argue with you or get into this" and walk away. It's her problem clearly, not yours.

People love kimonos here, but don't usually see an average person wearing them in every day situations, so when i do, it's only making it easier for others to do so, too!

I also bought a kilt from scotland i love to wear, with hose and heels! so clothes from other countries are being worn by people who love the beauty of them!

anyone have any other clothes they wear from other countries???

[Kaede]

I have a chinese blouse (one of those ones with the high mandarin collar) as does my husband. Unfortunately only he had the foresight to bring his when we moved to Scotland. Mine is in storage in Canada.

Moving on, I am a bit wary of wearing my yukata (when they arrive) in public, except to special occasions, as Brits, in particular don't seem to be too kind to people who like to be different. Goodness knows how many kilt jokes I hear already when people find out I live in Scotland.

Acceptance is coming, especially as I read an article today that said that there is a higher concentration of Japanese people in Edinburgh (where we live) as well as London and Manchester, so maybe it will help me (and them) appreciate their culture more. I dunno....I'm a bit of a wimp *laughs*

I've got a friend in the US who is about as anal as they come - she has a lovely kimono but refuses to wear it without the full kit, which she doesn't have all of it yet. She's got a beautiful obi as well but doesn't like it. She was the one who pointed me to Ichiroya as the place to get my accessories from (I intend to buy at least the jyuban (?) and the datejime for my yukata) as she insists I must wear them in the authentic manner.

I wasn't even aware that people were receptive to wearing them in new and interesting fashions and I must admit, when she gets online, I'm sooooooo pointing it out to her *chuckles* Maybe I will get her to join here too...

I love kimono, not only for the cultural aspect, but for the artwork and love that goes into each one of them. The fabric weaving, dyeing, sewing of the kimono. The sheer workmanship is awe-inspiring.

[Kiyoaki]

One note of caution.....
The yukata originally served as a bathrobe. Traditionally, the only times they were worn out of the home, while returning from the public bath, or for the festivities surrounding O-bon, which is the Japanese version of All Hallow's Eve.

The dressier ones for women are more acceptable as casual wear today, whereas the plain blue-white ones are less suitable for general public use.

[Kaede]

These are the dressy ones that are meant to be worn outside...not the bathrobe types..I should have specified that One of them comes from Kyoto and is coming with a pre-tied obi in a contrasting colour. They are both lovely printed ones, quite similar actually, which is funny as one's coming from the US, and the other one, as I mentioned, from Kyoto.