Coordination Comments: Yellow Snowflake Komon & Purple Obi

For the past few months, I've been complaining to a friend that I haven't been blogging much because I never seem to find time to dress up in kimono. She suggested that since I have so many pieces that I don't have the chance to wear, why don't I just post pics and comments on coordinates instead?

Well today, I'm finally listening to her advice! I tend to prefer not to post coordinates before I wear them as I like to wear something completely new each time I dress up in kimono, but well... desperate times call for desperate measures, I guess XD;

Here is today's coordinate!



As you can see, I'm still on my yellow phase XD

This here is another yellow hitoe komon that I got from Shinei's sales sometime last year. I know, I know, I already had one yellow hitoe komon.... But yellow is such a cute colour, and I couldn't resist the snowflakes!

One thing I love about hitoe is that it can be worn with either summer or spring/autumn/winter accessories, depending on the look you are going for. Since I wore summer accessories last week, I thought I'd go for a warmer look for this coordinate.

I wanted to give myself a bit of a challenge today and pair this kimono with a more striking obi. Usually I would just follow a colour scheme that would match the tone of the kimono - in this case, it would be dusty pink, browns and white. However, I just couldn't shake the idea of wearing purple and yellow together, so I brought out my favourite purple obi.

Close-up of the colours:


I matched it with a pale green obijime to give it a bit more of a refreshing feel, and a green han'eri with embroidered pink flowers to bring out more of the green and highlight a little of the pink.

I was at a bit of a loss when it came to the obiage, but my friend had given me this yellow obiage that was perfect - if I fold it correctly, it would have little squares of purple, green and pink showing!

The obiage does seem to blend into the kimono abit, but I wanted both the kimono and the obi to be the main focus of the outfit. A pink obiage (or even a coral one to match the flower in the obi) would've been one too many colours in this outfit and would've made the obi and its accessories the main focus, with the kimono just fading behind as a background to the striking combination.

I forgot to add tabi and zori to the picture, but I think I'd probably have worn white tabi (maybe I can embroider some to have green leaves or something?) and yellow zori. If I had green or purple zori, I'd definitely wear them though!

I'm pretty happy with the formality of this outfit. It's something that I'd probably wear out for lunch at a nice restaurant in a mall, or something that I'd go to watch a movie or musical or concert... Maybe even a house party if I'm brave enough! It's exactly the sort of places and events I'd wear kimono to, which means this outfit is perfectly wearable for me :)

How do you like this outfit? What would you change about it if the kimono and obi had to stay the same?

Coordination Comments: Potential Ensemble for Sakura Furisode?

On the IG forums, I was advised to choose more colourful accessories for the furisode I dressed Mich in a couple of weeks ago. I found some hot pink accessories, and decided to put them together to see how they went, and this is the result!



What do you think? Colourful enough? Bright enough? Too much pink? Comments and suggestions welcome!! ^_^

P/S: I really need to find that white han-eri I was talking about.. I can't believe I lost it!! Or did I give it away..? o_O

Coordination Comments: 9 Ensembles!

Yesterday, I mentioned that I would put together a few ensembles today and take pictures. Well, I ended up doing it last night while I was waiting for my hair to dry after my shower. Okay, so I was restless and couldn't sleep too, which is why I stayed up so late.

ANYWAY, I was determined to create an ensemble that would match the triangular Japanese shawl that my sister knitted for me. Here's a picture of it folded, but you can see much better pictures if you follow the link above.

Since I had that gray kimono, all I had to do was choose the right accessories. Of course, I kind of got carried away with creating ensembles, because not all of them match the shawl very well! =^_^="" I did have some difficulty trying to match the shawl and make the ensemble look younger at the same time because the general colour scheme is quite mature, but I think I managed at some point.

I also need some help choosing a hat! I have four hats that could go well with some coordinates, but I can't decide which! Here's a picture of the hats. You can see which ones to choose from in the pictures of each ensemble.

Here are the ensembles I created!


1) Pale blue obi with a pink and red hawk on a gray branch. This one is my favourite, I think. I don't think hawks have seasons, so I can wear this at any time in June and September!

I chose pink accessories to accentuate the hawk. Here is an upclose picture of the details:

As you can see, I have some phone charms on it. I have this handy plastic device onto which I can attach these charms and then slip behind the obi so that the phone charms can dangle from the top of the obi. You can vaguely see the red mushroom attached to it here and tucked behind the obi. The only problem is that I can only put one at a time! Which one should I choose? Or should I find a way to put multiple charms onto it? Maybe tie a bit of string? Hmmm, this requires some thinking...


2) Magenta (or wine-red, I can't really tell) yuzu obi with pink accessories.

The obi and the kimono together matches the shawl very well. I chose pink accessories so that the outfit will feel warmer. A little difficult to see, but the obi accessory is a pink cupcake, the same one in the earlier detail picture. This seems suitable for wearing in late September.


3) Magenta yuzu obi with blue accessories.

In this one, all the colours match the shawl really well. Almost too well, perhaps? It certainly makes for a cool-feeling outfit. I think I would wear this in late June or early September, provided the weather is right.


4) Magenta yuzu obi with dark green accessories.

I'd thought to accentuate the green leaves in the ensemble. Unfortunately, this turned out really dark and dull! I don't think I'll wear this anytime soon (read: within the next 20 years), because the colour seems to be more suitable for a 40 or 50 year old woman!


5) Magenta yuzu obi with white and green accessories.

From the previous ensemble, I was hoping a white obiage would lighten and brighten up the ensemble. Luckily, it did! I forgot to put in a pair of white lace tabi that I would wear with this. Unfortunately, the green seems to clash really badly with the shawl, so I won't wear this with the shawl (i.e. not gonna wear on Saturday). Besides, this is more of a late May ensemble anyway.


6) Grayish pink obi with white and yellow accessories.

Not seasonally appropriate because the embroidered flowers are sakura. I think I would wear this when I'm at home in hot Malaysia and it's sometime in March or April. Here are upclose details of the obi decoration:

If you squint, you can see that the stamen of the sakura are done in deep yellow, which is why I chose a yellow obijime. The obiage is white because a yellow obiage would be too much. The obi accessories are of a pink cupcake, a yellow chick and a brown monkey eating a banana.


7) Pink striped obi with floral detail. OMG I think that if I didn't have to match this with the shawl, this would be one of my favourites, right up there with the hawk obi! I would wear this in Malaysia from March till May.

You can see that the leaves of the flowers are the same shade of green as the obijime, which is woven with strands of pink the exact same shade as the obi! It looks as though they were made for each other! I chose a cupcake and a gingerbread man accessory because the obi motif reminds me of the countryside and country kitchens, which also brings to mind home baked goodies. The obiage is white to balance the colours and to lighten the ensemble. I had placed a pair of pink lace tabi on the picture, but now I think a pair of white lace tabi might be better.


8) Plain white summer-weight obi with blue accessories.

This is a rather cold outfit. Also, because of the lack of motifs on, well, everything, it's very plain and dull. Really everyday-wear, this. I'd thought to brighten it up with a flamingo obidome and three accessories of a transparent yellow cat, a yellow chick and the banana-eating monkey, but it doesn't really do much. Definitely a late June ensemble, this.


9) The final ensemble: the same plain white obi with pink accessories.

Once again, really really plain. The obijime is the same shade of purple the shawl is. This seems to be more of a late May ensemble.


I paired all of them with geta rather than zori because I haven't received my new zori yet. Besides, it's expected to rain this Saturday, so I guess geta would be better.

Sooooo people? Opinions? Which one should I wear on Saturday? Which one do you like best? Any suggestions on improving them?

Coordination Comments: More yukata coordinates

I was in Pavilion for dinner last night, and when we were walking around the lower ground floor before heading towards the restaurant, I happened to see this stall selling really really cute bags - all yukata-style! Of course, I couldn't resist and bought two of them. They were good quality, well-made and cheap too - RM127 for two bags! Think about it - that's only £20! Waaaaay cheaper than anything I'd find in London.

So of course, once I got home, I just had to play around with my yukata to see what goes with my bags. Despite being absolutely sotted with the lime-green bag, I have yet to find an ensemble that I'm equally as ecstatic about. There are two which look passable, but they look far better in real life than in the pictures, and compared to the other ensembles, they're rather odd. Anyway, onto the pictures!

... By the way, all these yukata are from my UNIQLO collection ;) I just played around with the various yukata obi I have.

In this one, I thought the white in the yukata and the bag's polka dots would come together with a white obi. The green goes quite nicely with the yukata leaves, so this is one of the more passable ensembles, but it's.... brighter and more colourful than what I'd normally wear:

I don't really know how I feel about yellow and pink together on an adult ensemble, but I do think it looks cute with the bag! Maybe if I let one of my younger cousins wear it? I certainly wouldn't!

This is the original obi that came with the yukata. The yellow bag looked odd next to it, so I thought of the green, but it also looks odd. Maybe I should just stick to a black bag?

This is also the original obi that came with the yukata. Makes for a sweet outfit, doesn't it? I love this bag with this yukata!

This yukata with a yellow obi certainly makes for a brighter outfit. This is one of the better ensembles.

I tried playing around with the colours of this ensemble, and since there was a little red in it, I thought red wouldn't be too bad a colour. Since there was yellow on the other side of the obi, I thought that if I were to show the yellow side, the yellow flower bag will also match.

Original obi with yukata. Nice mature outfit, but the bag gives it a bit of "youth". I quite like this, actually. Lime green and navy look so cute together. I will probably spruce up the obi a little with some green accessories.

The final ensemble I put together! Navy and yellow are always a good match for yukata!

So, what do you think? The pink yukata is sooooo hard to coordinate with! I doubt I'd ever go out in some of these ensembles, especially the pink and yellow one, but oh well. Just thought I'd post these ideas and see if anyone likes them haha.

Which is your favourite?

Coordination Comments: Two yukata coordinates!

I was feeling rather restless tonight, as I'd had a very heavy dinner, and when I'm too full, I can't sleep. I didn't want to shop online, and I was afraid to do my coursework, in case I made some major mistake in my calculations through my sleepiness.

So what did I do? Put together some yukata ensembles, of course! (^____^)V

I've been dying to wear an outfit that was more "otona" (adult/mature-woman/etc) with an otaiko bow. I'd even set my one ro juban aside for it, but the juban turned out to be much to small in the shoulders for the yukata, so I had to forgo having a juban collar. (Note: "Ro" is a type of weave of the cloth that makes it semi-transparent. Very good for the summer, as it is very cool to wear. Most of the better-quality yukata are made of cotton ro material.)

Unfortunately, I only have one obiage and obijime set here in Malaysia, and it isn't a ro set. It isn't even an informal set! Noooo, it's a formal pink shibori obiage and a wide (more formal) pink obijime. Nevertheless, I highly doubt anyone here in Malaysia would really be able to point out the difference (except for the residents of the Japanese flats near my house maybe), so I think I'll wear it out anyway.

Here is the first set:

The yukata is one of the first yukata I've ever bought online, and is from UNIQLO. It came as a set with a white hanhaba obi (which I love to bits!). I'd bought this odori (dance) obi ages ago, and hadn't any idea what to wear it with till I thought it would match this yukata. I was thinking that the pink of the obiage and obijime might be a little random and startling in this ensemble, and I'd actually love to wear a green or maroon set with this, but navy and pink seem to be worn together often enough that this is possibly forgiveable.

And up next is the second set!

This is another yukata from my first online purchase, also a yukata from UNIQLO. It was featured in one of the fashion magazines the year after! I was soooo excited to see that I had a yukata that actually appeared in a magazine *laughs*

Anyway, this yukata came with a black hanhaba obi. For coordinating this set, I'd stuck to the same general colour scheme because I wasn't quite sure what else to put with this. I like that it's all black and pink, but I have one tiny (okay, MAJOR) problem with this outfit - the obi is MOFUKU!!!! (Note: "Mofuku" is funeral-wear for those in mourning. It refers to any item that is all black. Obi have a black-on-black motif, and kimono will be all black with 5 family crests. Even the accessories like the obi ita and obi makura are black!)

I actually hadn't realised that it was mofuku when I bought it, because all the pictures indicated that it was a black obi with a gray pattern on it. I was understandably shocked when I received this in the mail, but it wasn't the seller's fault that I'd misunderstood his description (read: hadn't read the description thoroughly).

Although I like this outfit better than the navy one (in terms of obiage-obijime-matching), I'm still very hesitant to wear such a glaringly obvious mofuku item out. On the Immortal Geisha forums, there are whole threads dedicated to arguments for and against wearing mofuku items out. Some forumers say that different people tell them different things: it's a big faux pas to wear any mofuku item out, one should use little mofuku items in everyday kitsuke to get more use out of it, it's alright to wear a mofuku obi as long as the accessories are colourful. It all makes me dizzy!!

I think I wouldn't mind wearing it out (after all, I've seen pictures of people doing it in Japan), but I'm horribly afraid I'd offend someone with it.

What think you? Wear it out, or keep it in the closet?

Coursework done!

Ahhh I just finished the last piece of coursework for this term and sent it off to my groupmates for checking. Well, not so much checking as it is making sure it looks alright! :P I'm so glad it's over!!!!

Patty's gone back to Concord; he went on Wednesday. I feel bad, cos for the first half of his hols, I practically ignored him for my coursework, and then when I finally had free time, I was sick so I couldn't really go out. By that time, he was already feeling rather lethargic and didn't want to go out, and I feel kinda guilty that a part of me is glad we stayed home, cos my throat really was killing me!

But now, my coursework is almost done and a number of my kitsuke stuff is here, so I can FINALLY get to practicing my kitsuke, especially for furisode!!

Do you all remember this furisode from this post?

I finally found and bought a matching fukuro obi for it! Okay, so the obi I bought doesn't seem to be as formal as it should be, but the colours and patterns are spot-on with this furisode and they look absolutely gorgeous together! Here's a picture:

I assure you, the shade of orange is darker than the picture, and matches the flowers perfectly. Even the shade of gold seems to match the gold edging in the furisode!
I wasn't quite sure what obiage to match it with, but at the moment, I quite like the look of my yellow shibori obiage (left in the picture below) because its sweetness balances the harsh brightness of the obi against the white background, and provides a sort of in-between. Also, the shade of yellow just happens to match the swirly pale gold karakusa in the kimono :P
I haven't thought of an obijime either, but I just received this set yesterday, and can't wait to try them on! I was thinking of the white one in the middle..... Think it'd look alright?

Hehehe, I think you can tell I'll be spending this weekend practicing kitsuke. But first, I want to do a major clean-up of my room and of the living room and kitchen... LoL :P
Toodles!