What’s In a Kimono? Part 7

I haven’t done this feature in a long time, but since yesterday was International Kimono Wearing Day I figured we’d take a look at another piece that has more than meets the eye behind its history and wear!

Name: Kasumi (霞) - Haze Type: Haori (羽織), Previously a Furisode (振袖) Time Period: Taisho Period (1912-1926) Age: 93-107 Years Old (Antique) Condition: Excellent - No Staining or Marking Material: Silk Motifs: Butterflies and Haze Execution and Technique: Yuzen Value: $500 - $750 USD To begin with, yes, it’s absolutely gorgeous and my phone camera can’t capture the depths of the colors properly. Second, it looks really odd for a haori, and that’s because it is! Somewhere between its conception as a furisode and my acquisition it was transformed into a haori. For this example I decided to show the front and the back just so we can get a better feel for its original state. The biggest giveaway is its sleeves as they are still furisode length (sitting at around 90cm)! If this was originally a haori then the sleeves would have been cut off just above the main butterflies on this piece and would only be about 50-60cm at most as kimono sleeve length was much longer during the Taisho Period than it is today. The other giveaway is the motifs itself; they’re very whimsical and girly! This isn’t to say that haori can’t have pretty motifs, but that they’re a coat meant to accent the kimono being worn or have more “refined” motifs. The motifs themselves are Butterflies (蝶) that have been beautifully rendered with skill and a very bright color palette using the yuzen dye resist technique. Combined with the haze it appears as though the piece is like looking at something out of a dream as these butterflies seem too beautiful to be real. The smaller white butterflies appear to be morphing into larger and more resplendent shapes and sizes, so maybe it’s the butterflies who are dreaming? Just a thought ^^ So, now that we know all of this, let’s look at the main issue here: why? Why would someone do this to a furisode? There’s actually a few reasons why it may have ended up in this state. The first, and probably the most likely, is that the bottom of the skirt got damaged and, not wanting to throw away a perfectly good piece (mostly), it was cut off to be re-worn as a haori. The second option, which could be just as valid, is that it was altered during war time in the 1940s. During this period many families had to use whatever kimono they had, including heirlooms and formal wear, to go work in the factories or just for wear overall since new kimono were not being made. In some areas people even competed to see who could have the most fashionable work clothes (Mineko Iwasaki even mentions this in her memoir), so it wouldn’t surprise me if this furisode was turned into a haori for use during this time but possibly being too late in the war to be worn in a factory. You may be wondering as to why it’s in such good shape if it was possibly altered during the war, and the answer is that it was purchased from someone who brought it back to America after the war and kept it in storage for decades. It’s possible that it was altered for use during the war but never worn as its condition is excellent. It’s still very much wearable and I have personally worn it a few times as it’s really breathtaking in person ^^