First Hikizuri!

I finally bought a hikizuri last night! Despite the prominent stains, the size was good and the price even better, so I couldn't let this baby go! It has a wispy grass and flower design on a light blue background, and I think it will go well with my zentsuu fukuro obi. Now if I can just get my makeup technique down, I'll be ready to try a geisha hime! I'm unsure of what flower this is (they kind of look like kikyo [bellflowers]?), so if you know, please tell me. =)

Anime Blues Con 2012 - Blue Iromuji and Yukata Time!

Anime Blues Con 2 was held this past weekend here in Memphis. I've been the head of the culture track for two years now and as such was quite busy during the convention. For most of the convention, I wore yukata to save me time and effort - and help keep me cool in the sweltering Memphis heat! The first day, I wore my new black butterfly yukata with the black kanzashi design hanhaba obi. My staff arm band kind of ruins the aesthetic...

The second day, I had to do a kimono panel, so I wore my sky blue ro iromuji and red mandarin duck ro obi. My obi was off-center here. It got fixed before the panel luckily! Note the giant purple watch; I had to stay on time somehow X_X.

After the panel, I switched to my black kingyo yukata and a reversible hanhaba obi with light pink and silver polka dots on one side and magenta asanoha on the other. I didn't mean to look mad in the first few photos!

That evening was the lantern festival that we have annually. The fire alarm actually got pulled inside the hotel while we were out there, so there was some confusion at first as to whether there was actually a fire! Apparently, Anime Blues will now be know affectionately as "Fire Con" XD.

Me (with the ever-present walkie-talkie!) getting people lined up

The line begins in the hotel lobby

The lanterns glowing so beautifully in the dark at the lake side 

Posing with a lantern at the end of the festival on the bridge.
(Note the staff arm band has been moved to a lanyard XP)

We had a ton of great events for my track, including a sushi demonstration from Rain Sushi Bistro here in Memphis, an ikebana panel, a session teaching the game of Go, multiple Lolita panels and events, a masquerade ball, foam sword tournaments by Sleeping Samurai, and much, much more. Here's a few more photos (non-kimono) from the weekend!

Some of the ikebana arrangements we had displayed:

Some of the staff with guest Darrel Guilbeau. Other guests included Todd Haberkorn, Johnny Yong Bosch and Eyeshine, and Robert Axelrod.

Josh and I at the Masquerade Ball. I hosted =)

This is probably my favorite photo for the entire con. I got Todd Haberkorn to pose with the Pipe Fox (from xxxHolic) that I made. I didn't ask him to kiss it; that was all his idea! XD

 It was an exhausting weekend, but I had a great time putting the culture track together again. We got 2,000 paid attendees for only our second year, so we hope for next year to be even better!

Natsume, Hige Tsumugi Obi, and Ichimatsu Obijime

Ok, if I can behave myself, these may be my last lovelies for a little (as I have many expenses coming up and that need to still be paid off...).

First, I got this red lacquered natsume for practicing tea ceremony at home. It looks to be multi-seasonal.

The second item I purchased was this cream hige tsumugi nagoya obi with handpainted flower design. I'm not sure if it's supposed to be any specific flower or just abstract. The wispy grasses remind me of late summer and autumn though.

The last items I picked up were these 3 obijime. They appear to be sanbu himo from the photos, but I can't say for certain since they didn't give me any dimensions. I just loved the retro ichimatsu pattern. It reminds me a lot of the Taisho Roman era in Japan. =)

Blue Chawan, Handmade US Chawan, and Azuki color Komon

Two more chawan to add to the growing collection! The first is this lovely blue one:

The second one is this American-made chawan. A man in Nevada who studied under several Japanese potters made this by hand. It's very irregular, which I love. There are more available for sale here: http://stores.ebay.com/Charlie-B-Gallery/_i.html?_nkw=joe+winter&submit=Search&_sid=16086511.

Last, I found tall kimono with a wide wingspan on eBay (140 cm!!), and won unopposed for only 99¢! It's a deep azuki bean color, which will be perfect for later this year. =)