A KIMONO lover,Nyapan,will give you a lecture on the ABC of a Kimono!

I daily wear a pair of jeans, But I LOVE the Kimono! When you take a Kimono in your hand practically, you’ll understand that a Kimono is made from many pieces of rectangular textiles.Firstly,to make a Kimono,a roll of fabric is cut from, then each piece of fabric is sewed,as shown in the figure <1>

The size of a roll of textile for women is about 37~38cm(14-15″)wide and 12~14m(13-14yd)long.You can have your Kimono made by this size of textile if your height is under about170cm(67″).When you have a Kimono tailored, you take your height,arms and your bottom measurements for reference.But the measure is not exactly strict, as when you are making a dress.Because a Kimono length and width can be adjusted when you wear it, if it’s not a perfect size for you.There is a unique way called “Ohashori” to adjust a Kimono length.When you put on a Kimono, pull up the fabric which hangs down on the floor(tailoring such a long length) to the right length up around your ankles and then fold the surplus fabric around your waist. How about adjusting the width of the chest and the bottom measurement?No problem! Kimono is a cloth that you wrap around your body.

If you are big, you should wrap a small quantity of fabric and if you are thin, you should wrap a much lager quantity of it.That’s all! See the figure <2>

The perfect size of Kimono for you is easier to dress and looks beautiful of course.

But a different size is not a big matter!It works out depending on the way of dressing.

I, Nyapan, think this is one of the Kimono’s charms.Besides,the Kimono is made in a way which makes each it easy to take the pieces of fabric apart.So,it is easy to put the Kimono fabric back to the original pieces and you can resew it to adjust to your size.That’s why you’ll be able to remake your grandmother’s antique Kimono for you even if it’s from 100 years ago, and enjoy your style of Kimono fashion.This is so practical!!

Even though there are slight differences,the method of making a Kimono is almost same for men and women.And the design itself has never changed since the old days. Instead, there are many various types of patterns,colors and textiles for both Kimonos and Obis(sash belt for Kimono).

Each region in Japan has special locality fabrics. Nyapan has a dream that one day

I will travel all over Japan to visit each textile manufacturer for the Kimono.

Anyway, as I explained,a Kimono is sewed linearly,which makes the Kimono easy to put away.Because you can fold up a Kimono so it is shaped like a square,like a handkerchief, which becomes a compact size, you can then pile the Kimonos up.This is a convenient way because of the small housing condition in Japan.

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And you don’t have to iron it,because the creases are along the stitches.You can put on a Kimono right away just after unfolding it.How efficient is that!

The Kimono design has never changed.But I think the interesting thing is that a

slight difference of your style ,which means depending how you dress up, looks

really different even if you wear the same Kimono.This is a test my taste! then, the more I pursue my own style, the more I’m into the Kimono charms. And another charm of it is when you put on it,the Kimono shows a solid impression and changes its shape by the action of moving freely.This free form is familiar with”Ukiyo-e” pictures.As shown in the figure <4>

I actually wanted to tell you about the other unique sides of Kimono ,such as

seasonable patterns or rules.Maybe some other time…