WE ARE NOT DEAD YET!

So....moving. Yeah. It kinda sucks. You would think I would be used to it by now because I have been leading a semi-nomadic existence since sophomore year of college. In the past ten years or so, the longest I have stayed in any one place was three years (the shortest was about four months). Alas, I am not used to it, and this was the first time I had to stock an apartment from scratch in only a couple of weeks (all of my previous apartments were either furnished or I had a few months to find stuff before moving in). But anyway, I think I'm finally settled in now. Should be able to go back to a regular posting schedule -- for real this time -- starting this Friday.

Friday Photo (on Saturday!): Custom Yukata

This is the custom yukata I had made for me while living in Japan. It's also probably my favorite yukata, just because it is made for me (and finding the bolt of fabric in the shop was super-exciting). It is mostly off-white and shakes of purple and pink, with a tiny bit of yellow added to some of the flowers. The pattern includes lilies, pinks, morning glories, and what I believe is hagi (darned if I can remember the English name for hagi...). I like to wear it with a cheerful yellow obi to bring out the yellow in the flowers.

And we're back (mostly)

(Double rainbow over Waikiki, looking towards Diamond Head with the ocean to the right.)


Hello from Hawaii! My move has been mostly successful so far, but in a lot of ways it's still in progress. Today we bought most of the furniture I'll need for my apartment, but there is still quite a lot to get and quite a lot of work to do. And today was just exhausting! Anyway, I'll be back with a new picture and something to say about it this Friday.

Friday Photo: Uchikake

A little pic-heavy today, but there's just so much going on with this uchikake that it's pretty much the only way to show it all. 

Here we have an uchikake in near-perfect condition. I think there's like...one snag somewhere on it. Based on the motifs and weight this is mostly a fall-to-spring piece and is covered in fans, cherries, wisteria, mandarin ducks, royal cart wheels, chrysanthemums, bell flowers, various water forms, things I think are pine and partial snowflakes (though those might also be grasses), and various abstract patters in the background. The base colors fade from the red spectrum to the blue spectrum. The sleeves and body have colorful false layers along the edges, even at the fronts of the sleeves (which are open most of the way down). And the hem on this thing is HUGE. The whole thing is quite heavy.

I remember the day I gave a presentation on kimono to my Japanese class. I had this at the time and decided to bring it. I had to haul it to school in the suitcase I usually reserve for things like month-long trips and moving to new places.

And speaking of moving, next week I'll be moving to a new state! It's all very fun and exciting, but it also means I might not be able to make any posts next week. I'll pick up with posting again as soon as possible though!