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iheartsendai β Tutorial: Draw Better Kimono
Published: 2011-06-20 21:09:21 +0000 UTC; Views: 98898; Favourites: 1724; Downloads: 617
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Description
A quick, very messy guide that I hope is helpful anyway!
Those of you who know a lot about kimono will notice I glossed over a few things, but this is meant as an overview of the most common mistakes I see artists making when drawing people in kimono/geisha/etc. Cosplayers might find it handy too. Feel free to share your own kimono art or ask questions, and I'll help if I can.
Also! If you like kimono/traditional Japanese things, please check out my blog:
[link]
EDIT: Wow! O_O I had no idea people would like this tutorial this much. Thank you very much to everyone who has favorited it!
EDIT 2: NEW TUTORIAL! If you liked this one, please check out
"Tutorial: Real or Fake Kimono". (Only #1 is repeated information from this tutorial, but I figured it was important.)
[link]
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Comments: 300
Thank you!
Tateya is a fancy knot reserved for furisode (young women's dangling-sleeved kimono, in modern times only available in formal versions). Here is a link on how to tie a tateya, if you're curious.
[link]
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Wow it's a lot biger then i imagined thanks for information is realy useful.
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You're welcome! Good luck.
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Thank you, and you're welcome!
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Very informative. Do you at all get bothered when people make these mistakes with kimonos they draw or wear?
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Thank you!
No, almost never, because I know it's a pretty esoteric topic for most Westerners. I'm always happy to see people taking an interest in kimono!
The only time it annoys me is when someone claims their drawing or sewing of a Japanese kimono is 100% technically accurate, and it's a Chinese cheongsam or something like that. In other words, if you're going to claim something's perfectly accurate, you need to do more than a single Google Images search on the word, you know?
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Ah! So much I didn't know! This is very helpful!
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Thank you!
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You're welcome. This really was a big help.
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You're welcome. Glad it was helpful!
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You're welcome.
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Could you tell me how exactly are sleeves on a female kimono attached? Are they only attached at the top or all the way around? And is there a slit on the body of the kimono beside where it would be sewn on?
Sorry if I'm not terribly clear
It's just, I'm looking to make a kimono for a costume (Hana from gate 7, whom I know you've mentioned on your blog more than once c; ) and it's difficult to tell in your pictures^^
Thanks in advance!^^
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I whipped up a tutorial as I get asked about this a lot, thanks for asking and reminding me.
[link]
Let me know if you have any more questions or if it isn't clear. (And go Hana! I played around with a costume for her for a long time but it just wasn't in my budget.)
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Ah! Thank you so much! That is very helpful!^^
Yeah, most clamp things I usually wouldn't try, but Hana is just too cute :3
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You're welcome.
Yes, I love her outfits.
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What kind of shoes are typically worn with kimonos? I have heard different names for them, but can't remember...
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For both men and women, geta δΈι§ are the casual wooden clogs normally worn only with cotton yukata and without tabi (split-toed socks), and the more formal zori θε±₯ (always paired with tabi) are worn with all other types of kimono, which are more formal in rank than yukata.
An interesting detail is that the thong on both geta and zori is in the dead middle of the shoe, so there is no "left" or "right" foot, and your toes hang off the outside naturally. In modern times you can find some geta with the thong shifted left or right for each foot, but the traditional way is still in the middle.
Specialized variants:
Okobo - the huge platforms worn by apprentice geisha (maiko)
Setta - Tatami-mat covered ones most often worn by men
Wara zori and waraji - Roughly woven straw ones worn in the past
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Very interesting. Does the thong on the geta or or zori still go between your big toe and your others?
Thanks for the info
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You're welcome!
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thank you i always like to know new thing and this certainly helped
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i have no that i have seen this, i have a better understanding of it/ Thanks a bunch
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You're welcome.
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oh, wow. i never knew this stuff. thanks!
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You're welcome!
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Awesome! I feel a little more educated after reading this! Thank you for the tips.
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You're welcome, and thanks!
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thank you very much. I admit to making at least two or three mistakes listed here. least I'll know better now.
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No problem! They're all easy ones to make if you're not familiar with them.
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oh, well that's good to know. thanks again. bye.
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i have a question, how do you draw the under kimono? the white one (think its called juban not sure thou), i have searched for something that explains it but i haven't found any... This tutorial helpt me alot to improve my kimono drawing skills xD
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Glad to hear it was of help.
The modern juban (yep, you're correct!) is basically the same construction as a modern kimono. The differences are...
-the front of the sleeve is completely open
-it's shorter in length and not meant to be bloused over like a normal kimono
-it's made of lighter material and is usually a lighter color (normally blues/greens/browns for men, pale pinks/reds/oranges/white for women)
-the collar is usually a different color (and usually white for women, navy/dark colors for men) because that's actually a separate collar sewn on to the juban, meant to be taken off and replaced periodically.
This TV take on an old ghost story, "The Peony Lamp", has a scene where you can see a woman's juban clearly starting at 4:39. The white sash she has on isn't a proper obi, as a note, and is just meant to keep the juban closed. If you watch the video from the start, you can see how the juban has the same silhouette and feel as the normal kimono the character wears over it.
[link]
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THANK YOU!! this was reaaaly helpfull :'D
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You're welcome! Good luck.
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This helped me so so much! I'm ashamed to have made such dumb mistakes
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No worries! It's not a piece of clothing most people know much about (even some younger Japanese).
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Wait. Are ALL female kimonos sleeves open?
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Open in the back, yes. In modern kimono, that's the only surefire way to tell the difference between a man's and a woman's, as women can, depending on certain circumstances, wear the same patterns and colors as men.
Ancient robes (as in Heian era, around 1,000 years ago) and modern priestess robes (which derive from Heian robes) are also entirely open in the front of the sleeve. However, in modern clothing open in the front = juban (underwear kimono).
If you check out my other tutorial, you can see lots of photos of modern women's kimono.
[link]
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This is really cool to know.
Thanks for sharing this.
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You're welcome, and thank you!
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YouΒ΄re welcome and IΒ΄ve read your blog "The Kimono Lady"
A really really interesting page and IΒ΄ve learned alot about Japan through you.
Some questions...are you a native Japan, or did youΒ΄ve lived enough years there to discover thoses "sectrets"?
And umm...what do you know about the fine arts of Kabuki?
I already was lucky enought to discover several informative web-sites, but as an insider like I feel you are IΒ΄m just curious to know your opinion/knowledge.
Sorry if IΒ΄ve bothered you in any way.
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