The Kimono Dress, Research Paper Example

Clothing refers to covering the human body with the use of clothes. Wearing of clothes is a common feature in many societies. It depends on the characteristic of different societies. The amount of clothing worn depends on physical and societal considerations. Clothing serves many purposes. It protects people from harm and dangers posed by their occupations. Clothes protect people from insects, toxins, thus regulating the transmission of germs. There is no written history of human clothing. Human clothing has evolved over time.

This paper discus the kimono mode dress amongst the Japanese. Many conventions govern kimono elements. These include the length of sleeves, the colors, and decorative designs in use. The basic division is between fudangi, clothing worn in mundane circumstances and haregi, and clothing worn on special occasions. These essential classes further explained to generate five basic types of outfits. They include, home wear, street wear, casual formal wear, formal wear, and ceremonial wear (Dalby, 1993).

History of the Kimono

Relevant resources were also used to give the history of the kimono. Kimono is the traditional dress worn by the people of Japan. The word “kimono” originally meant clothing. Kimonos were initially prepared from hemp that consisted two parts. They include distinct upper and lower parts (About the Japanese Kimono). It now refers to the stylish, t-shaped piece of clothing (D. Young & M., Young, 2006). The kimono is not just a type of dressing amongst the Japanese. It is a clear indication of the evolution of the Japanese history.

The individuals indicated, “Kimonos make use of silk or polyester and vary in size, shape and style. Men, women, and children wear the kimono for many diverse ceremonies. The kind of season, sex of individuals, age, and marital status of the person wearing them influence the kind of decoration on these kimonos”.

The Kimono style has transformed from one period to the next throughout its history to take the present form. Its origin dates back to an era in Japan’s past known as the Jomon period. During this era, the kimono was in the type of a garment adorned freely over the body. The people then did not have much use for garments since the main economic activity was hunting and gathering of food. The period between 300 and 550 AD, changed the pattern of the kimono. It became a two-piece piece of clothing. The arrival of Chinese who came and settled with the Japanese greatly influenced the evolution of the kimono. They introduced worms made of silk. The production of the kimonos used a single white color.

The period after 300 and 550 AD, that is, between 550AD and 710AD, the style of kimono differentiated into three groups. They included uniform, formal and court. They modified the kimono into newer styles with longer and wider sleeves. The style varied depending on the intended group. This led to the introduction of use of colors during the Muromachi period (1338 to 1573). The men and women wore brightly coloured kimonos. Kimonos quickly became an art of generating new styles and colors that were important.

The kimonos became family legacies due to the renewed importance attached to them. Then the Kimonos passed on from generation to generation. This led to the pushing of citizens and governments officials to wear Western-style clothing between 1868 and 1912. Ordinary citizens wore decorated garments that had the wearer’s family crest. This identified the family background of the individuals.

Features

In the research, I asked respondents, of varying ages and both genders, which color on a color chart they would choose for clothes worn on different types of occasions. This includes what they will wear around the house, to informal meetings and parties or for shopping. It also included what one will wear to a sporting event. The most popular color found is pale, regardless of age, gender, and context. This explains the reasons as to why the Japanese are conservative with colors.

Further observation and analysis show that the features of the kimonos indicate the status of people wearing them. The women’s kimono is a detailed piece of clothing and varies in colors and style. The long flaps of a woman’s kimono specified their age and marital positions. For young, unmarried women, the kimono consists of long sleeves called furisodes. The furisodes kimonos worn by Japanese women declare their love for men by showing of the long sleeves of their kimonos.

On the other hand, a bridal dress is a white kimono with short sleeves called shiromuku. The shiromuku is the traditional Japanese wedding kimono. The shiromuku symbolizes a new journey. Similarly, married women wear tomosodes kimonos. The tomosodes are short-sleeved, black, with decorations at the bottom. The white color symbolizes the beginning of a journey. This signifies the solemn component of the wedding.

Married women wear a tomes ode either black or another color. This has flatter flaps on the sleeves. During formal occasions such as weddings of relatives, the women wear black tomesodes with family crests on them. Cultured tomesodes worn on formal occasion s do not have the family crest. The distinguishing feature of black and color tomes odes is the pattern decorated on them (Dalby, 1993). The kimonos of these women attending festive events are more colorful than domestic kimonos.

The features in kimonos for men are conservative in style with colors of white, blue, or gray. They symbolize the maturity of the men as they move into advanced ages. Warriors dress in bold colors to represent their leaders. This symbolized the battlefield as being gaudy.

The kimonos for the kids are colorful and exuberant in nature. In this case, the idea is to draw attention to themselves especially during special circumstances like the child’s graduation ceremony. When compared to the kimonos from parents, they are more bold and colorful.

On the other hand, men’s summer yukata often have large bold design. The men wear the yukata during relaxation. The design of the yukata defines the number of occasions for use. When bold and highly elaborated, then the occasions will be limited. Thus, influence on the mode of dressing related to the social and the occupation of the male (Miyamoto, 1979). Therefore, the differences in the colors of kimonos show the age differences between the children and adults.

Making the Kimono

Production of kimonos involves the use of long pieces of cloth of about 39 to 43 feet long with at least 14 inches. This fabric was then cut into eight pieces. The method known as the straight-line-cut is often used. The pieces are sewn together to make the basic form. All the fabric is fully used. This process makes it simple to remove and change spoilt fabric during the production process. The eight parts used ensure that it will be effortless to take the kimono apart to change or fix it. The kimonos made using the straight-line-cut method were easy to fold hence suitable for all weather. Thus, they provide warmth in winter.

To hold the kimono in place, then one must wear a sash around the waist over the kimono. The sashes of 13 feet long and 12 inches wide called obi. There are two types of obi; fukuro-obi with a design on one side and nagoya-obi, narrow in the middle and easier to tie around the body. Individuals use different ways of style and technique to join the obis. They come in a mixture of colors and patterns, resembling those of the kimono. There are different ways to tie the obi. The first is the taiko-musubi with back ties that puff out. The second is the obi-age or the bustle sash, which uses pads to hold it in place. The style of people determines the differences in the obi color combination.

The kimonos get their colours through two ways. First, weaving of the fabric is from different colors. This then results to the oshima-tsumugi fabric. This fabric is strong and gloss. It can also result to yuki-tsumugi fabric. The names depend on the place of production. The kimonos can get colors through dyeing. This involves the use white fabrics in which a design is drawn or embroidered onto it. This technique generates highly coloured fabrics. The examples of such fabrics include kyo-yuzen made in Kyoto. Elaborate and lavish coloured designs characterize the kyo-yuzen.

The colour woven designs can use both sides if one side fades. The advantage of the dyed fabrics is that they allow for the application of new colors. There are also other essential features that worn with the kimono. They include the han’eri. This is a half collar lining of the inner kimono. There is the tabi, split-toe socks worn with zori sandals. The items must be white to show off the colors of the kimono one is wearing.

Occasions and Seasons

Observations made establish that the Japanese pick the kimonos based on the season. Different kimono styles worn depend on different occasions and holidays. The Japanese customs view different periods of the year with high regard. During spring, pale green kimonos carry the day. The Japanese people enjoy lighting fireworks and attending festivals in the summer. For summer periods, the colour of kimonos is lavender and dark blue while the colours of leaves come in the fall.

On the other hand, strong hues of red and black colours come in winter. The yukata is an informal casual wear worn on summer fireworks and celebrations. It is made of cotton. Yukata colours are typically navy and white kimonos come in the summer periods of yukata. These colours largely inclined to the social standing of the male in terms of their social ranks in the society, age, and or sex. The Japanese uses different colours to express the love for the four seasons (Miyamoto, 1979).

Full patterned kimonos signify for a formal visit. Women paying a formal visit wear homogi. A pattern covers the homogi. The patterns called tsukesage with decorations on the sleeves that meet at the top and patterns on front and back hemlines that meet on the shoulders. Some of the kimonos have patterns that start from the hemline to the shoulders. People wear them to informal parties and weddings of friends. On the other hand, the casual kimonos have small delicate designs (called komon) or bold and bright coloured patterns (called tsumugi).

During the coming-of-age festivities and ceremonies that include children’s festivals and births reporting, the clothes worn by children relate to such occasions. This are characterised by the special events that mark different stages in the growth of children. Between the age of one and three months, close family members, visit a temple to mark and report the birth of a child. In such occasions, the baby is dressed in a white kimono. They add a boldly coloured yuzen-dyed kimono for girls and a black kimono with decorations of the family crest for boys (Miyamoto, 1979).

During the shichi-go-san (‘seven-five-three’) festivities, kids dress in kimonos for this occasion. The festivities mark the time when the parents take their five-year-old sons and their seven or three year old daughters to the shrines. The festivities involve thanking the gods for keeping the kids in good health.

During the period of initiation of young people into adulthood, boys wear haori (half-coats) and hakama with their family crests decorated on them. This happens when they turn 20 in the coming-of-age ceremonies. During this festivity, girls wear furisodes (kimonos with long sleeves).

In summary, the general observation is that appropriately colored banners frequently mark festive and solemn events. Within the Japanese culture, white and black colours characterise such occasions.

References

Dalby, L. C. (1993). Kimono: Fashioning Culture. New Haven: Yale University Press,

Miyamoto, Keitar?, ed. (1979). I, Shoku, J? (Clothing, Food, and Housing), Volume 4 of Nihon no Minzoku (Folk Customs of Japan). Y?seido, Tokyo.

About the Japanese Kimono. Retrieved from http://www.ehow.com/about_4759376_japanese-kimono.html (accessed April 11, 2012)

Young, D. & Young, M. (2006). The Aesthetics of Everyday Life. Retrieved fromhttp://japaneseaesthetics.com/gpage6.html.