Burgundy Stripe TL Kimono Kitsuke with Gingham Obi

I got to do my first kitsuke with my first TL size kimono today! I was so excited to try it on! It fits beautifully! I was worried that none of my juban would fit since the wingspan is so much wider than the ones I have, but luckily, one of the newest juban I have had a wide enough shoulder that it fit pretty well. I essentially copied the model when I did this kitsuke, but imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, right? =P

Zori that came with the set (not a great match, but plays on the plaid/gingham)

Juban (sakura for April!)

And some love for the kitty!

The next time I do this kitsuke (most likely at the Middle Tennessee Anime Convention next weekend), I will have a chikara nuno sewn onto the juban as this fabric really wanted to slip upward, and I'm going to add a different haneri that plays on the colors of the obi and accessories.

More TL size kimono!

After seeing how AMAZING my new TL size kimono fit when I received it yesterday, I unabashedly ordered 2 more TL kimono - one from the same series as the previous one and a yukata.

The first picture is of the kimono on the model. (Look close; it has kitties!!!)

The yukata is the black one with goldfish in the middle. Seeing as I traded my other kingyo yukata, it seems fitting that the new one have the same motif.

I will hopefully have them in my hands next week!

Strawberry Yukata Kitsuke #2 and Beige Sha Komon Kitsuke

The green hanhaba obi I ordered for the strawberry yukata finally arrived today, so I did a real quick kitsuke and snapped a photo. No photos of the back because I made the musubi in a hurry and it looked like it. X_X I am very pleased with how well the color matches!

I also decided to try on my new beige sha komon from Shinei with the red mandarin duck nagoya obi that I received from Ichiroya today. I know I'm technically breaking the sha-with-sha and ro-with-ro rule, and I'm also just wearing a hanjuban with an attached collar (because it's so hot already!!), but I'm pleased with the outcome (although I would have liked the design to be more centered on the otaiko, but it's an antique obi and therefore short). I chose light green accessories to make the outfit feel "cooler". I also used this as an opportunity to wear my lace tabi, sheer embroidered haneri, and cork-soled zori. I hope you all like it!

2 New Yukata Kitsuke

Yesterday, I had some time to do some kitsuke just for fun. The first is my new blue yukata. I was so excited by how good the fabric felt and how nice it fit me. I need to take some of the bulk out of the ohashori for next time. X_X The second picture shows the colors more accurately. You can't really see it in the pictures, but the obi has a woven design of cherry blossoms with a little lamé woven through.

I wanted to wait to try on my strawberry yukata until the green hanhaba obi I ordered arrived, but since I was in the mood, I put it on anyway and used my red obi. It matches fine, but definitely seems more juvenile. The green will help to make it a little more sophisticated.

I'll post more pictures when I get the green obi. =)

Daffodil(?) Tsukesage, Men's Odori Yukata

Tonight's cheap eBay wins! Every thing was less than $2 XD

Pink Daffodil[?] Tsukesage - This one confuses me. It appears to have a design of daffodils, but they're on branches. Can anyone tell me if this is correct?

Men's Odori Yukata with Ougi and Yanagi - I bought this for Josh, but I'm pretty sure it will be too small for him. If that's the case, I'm going to find another use for it.

Four Kumihimo (two pink, one green, and one leather) - I really bought this for the 1st one on the left. I wanted a new light pink one =D

Yay for Tax Refund!

Typically, when I buy kimono, I am looking for inexpensive buys, and I'm definitely not afraid to buy things that need cleaning or repair. The biggest problem I run into is finding things that fit my 5'8" frame. So today, I spent more than I usually would to get a TL size kimono and obi set. I keep laughing because it often gets translated as "Thor size" (and I certainly feel that way sometimes)! Since I got my tax refund, I feel a little less bad about spending so much, but I believe it will be worth it. The picture below is the set I bought:

I just loved the color combination! I will probably use pink accessories as in the picture, but I bet pale blue would also be pretty. I also spent a few extra dollars to get LL zori thrown into the package. I don't get to pick those, so it will be interesting to see what color I get! I cannot wait to get the set and try it on!

"Oh!Enka" Dance Performance

I was very lucky to be a part of a dance performance of "Oh!Enka" for the Cherry Blossom Festival at the University of Memphis this year. Even though I'm an alumni (and not even of the Japanese language program!), they still allowed me to participate =D. We only had 1 month to practice, so I am absolutely thrilled with how well it turned out! The two photographs were taken during practice, and the YouTube video is the actual performance on 3/21/12. I hope you all like it!

And the video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9p_ENsUSMw&feature=youtu.be

I've been on a super buying spree lately! So bad of me, I know... XP

So here's the stuff from the past couple days!

Navy ro haori


Shellfish juban (it's got a huge stain, but at $6, I couldn't pass it up!)


Ro nagoya obi with hagi and crickets



I've been buying up quite a few things for my man. He won't admit it, but he's getting the "kimono bug", too. His quote the other day: "I love my kimono [he has 3], but I want other ones to wear, too." Guilty!! XD

Men's hitoe juban with town scenery (it has a few rips on the seams, so I should be able to fix it pretty easily; another cheap buy, of course!)


Men's ro juban with daruma dolls


Ocher men's kimono with fine grid pattern


Beige kaku obi with fine diamond pattern


Navy kaku obi with chain pattern

Beige Sha Komon, Red Mandarin Duck Ro Obi, and 2 New Juban

I am definitely anticipating summer (as seen in past posts), and here's another summer purchase! The first item is a beige sha komon with hana design from Shinei.

The second is a red(-ish) ro nagoya obi with Mandarin duck design from Ichiroya. This was one of those items that I saw and immediately knew I had to have it!

I am glad I found both of these items today because nearly all of the summer kimono and obi I own are shades of blue or white/cream. While those tones feel cool in the sweltering summer heat, I really wanted some variety. =)

Last, I ordered 2 juban off Rakuten. The first is just a simple white ro juban. I have a ro juban, but it's too small for most of my summer kimono.



The second juban is a washable one, but the selling point was the color and design: black (which I've never seen on a whole juban) and cherry blossoms.

Casual Tea Ceremony Kitsuke - March

Josh and I went to another tea ceremony practice yesterday, and since Sensei was not going to be present, we dressed more casually then usual for tea ceremony. I used this as an opportunity to try out my new hanabishi komon and purple hanhaba obi. For ease in travel, I used (my favorite) karuta musubi to tie the obi.

I think it turned out well!

Hanhaba Obi x2!

I must be on a green kick lately (new blog colors, most notably), because it seems every thing I buy or want lately is green. Maybe I'm craving fresh spring and warm summer? Anyway, I received my ichigo yukata today (it's so cute!!), but other than red (which is really too bright compared to ther red tones in the yukata), I didn't have any obi to match it. I decided to play on the green tones in the leaves and bought this obi:

It's been a very long time since I purchased a new obi, and I'm very happy about the length of this obi (420 cm). It should be easier to make a nice musubi since I can actually spare some length! Darn this American body! XP

I also bought a white hanhaba obi for da-da-da-da! $5! from Tosen on Rakuten. They always have such great deals, but I usually miss out on the item I want. Luckily, the one they had left of these three was the white one (I plan on coordinating it with my blue yukata).

I'll have to take better pictures when it arrives since the only full picture was of all three obi.