Reserving and Ordering

[Reiko]

How do I obtain a password for when I want to reserve an item? I want to buy this one particular kimono, but I want to reserve it first. I want to be able to buy a furisode (they are my favorite). And now I think I can finally afford one.

Please respond.

[Kiyoaki]

Reiko,

You could either e-mail Wada san and ask them first, or go through the full purchase process as if you already have a profile. Before finalizing the sale, the program will prompt you to create a profile and thereby a password for future purchases.

Kiyoaki

[bawsin]

Can you explain, however, how something is "Reserved"? I've seen that status on items on Ichiroya.com, but I've never known how it was obtained.

What I've always done up to now is to simply Order an item, then ask that it be held for a time so that I can combine shipping with future purchases. But that's clearly different from Reserving something!

Is it simply a matter of e-mailing Wada san and asking that an item be Reserved for you? My worry, frankly, is that while I'm waiting for an item to be manually Reserved, someone else will go ahead and Order (buy) it...

Thanks,

bawsin

[Kiyoaki]

baswin,

The 'reserve' feature seems to be a new thing. In the past Wada san has offered items where he's stated the 'price' was reserved. I assume that meant they were selling something 'on reserve', which suggests they couldn't offer any volume discounts on the particular item.

The new 'reserve' feature seems to be something entirely different, because there is no 'add to cart' button avialable if you want to finalize the sale. In effect, it's taken out of the 'available' category and in effect is put 'on hold'.

How you go about accomplishing that, I don't know, because I've never done it. It might be usefull for truly expensive things in the future though ('X' times one's monthly income).

Kiyoaki

[Reiko]

I just found out that I don't have enough money to buy the furisode I wanted. I thought I did. Now, I can't buy it and I've become upset and disappointed.

I've always wanted one, one that was real, made of real silk. But I won't be having one. I am not wealthy like others are. At first when I thought I had the money, I asked my mom to help me to figure out how to send it. But she thinks I am wasting my time and money on something I don't need. (Even if I had the money, I can only pay with checks.) But I can't help myself. She doesn't understand how I feel about Japan and all the things about it. Still, it maybe that she's right and it is all a waste. Tell me please, is it all worth it? But what does it matter now that I can never purchase one.

[Nicole]

Reiko.
I've also seen various kimonos that I wanted very badly but didn't yet have the money, and when I did get it, the item was already sold. But I just figure when something like that happens, maybe I simply wasn't meant to have that particular one, and that another, possibly more beautiful one will turn up that I love even more than the first. And then you already have the saved money.
My mother also finds my love for all things Japanese to be a silly habit, and never ceases to make comments, which of course upsets me. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, it doesn't make one of you right or wrong. If collecting kimonos and the like is a hobby you enjoy and would like to either start with or continue, then what does it matter if some others thinks it's silly. My mother collects glass unicorns... and I find that hobby a bit dull but I don't tell her it's a waste of time and money. It's what she likes.
So please, don't get upset. Your first kimono will the most amazing thing you've ever gotten in the mail, and if you have to wait a bit longer for one, it'll be even more special.
And as for the paying with a check, I believe if you make payment through the Paypal site, you can use a check. I'm not entirely sure, so check that out.
Anyway, don't worry Reiko. Good things come in time.

[Reiko]

Thank you. I needed to hear that. Perhaps you are right. Maybe I wasn't meant to have that particular kimono.

[HikaruNoGo]

I'm sure all of us here have lost a piece that we loved. Yes it hurts and we get hung over it for days sometimes weeks, sometimes never. But I can say that there is always something new to fall in love with.

Finding that something new makes me feel a lot better and I tell myself that if I had gotten the other item, then I would never have gotten this one!

My mom also thinks I'm spending too much money on kimono. My advice is moderation. Don't spend a fortune at first and don't get too much at once. Just get one good, afforable kimono that you love and when you show your mom the beauty, she'll most likely understand your interest and leave you alone. Or maybe she'll join you!

I figure there are weirder things that people collect. Pig related items and matchbooks come to mind. To me, it's pointless and junk that takes up space. But it makes those people happy. Kimono makes us happy, and no one will ever call them junk!