It’s finally happening! Mameroku (豆六) of Arai (新井) in Gion Kobu is wearing sakkō!
I’m the happiest person on earth
Finally! And look how lovely she looks!
@tsuyuei-blog / tsuyuei-blog.tumblr.com
It’s finally happening! Mameroku (豆六) of Arai (新井) in Gion Kobu is wearing sakkō!
I’m the happiest person on earth
Finally! And look how lovely she looks!
October 2016: maiko Ayaha of Pontocho by ta_ta999 - blog
This picture is absolutely stunning
December 2016: first-year maiko Umekana of Kamishichiken wearing maneki kanzashi signed by famous kabuki actors by yuko_umeno on Instagram
November 2016: Maiko Koeri (Hiroshimaya Okiya) of Gion Kobu wearing an absolutely gorgeous kimono with a chrysanthemum-motif on it.
Source: Kinmokusei on Instagram
Spotlight on: Teruyo 照 代
Teruyo is a senior geiko and one of Kamishichiken’s four jikata (musician) geiko. The date of her debut is unknown; she may have debuted as a geiko. This year Teruyo was one of the recipients of a special grant from the Ookini Zaidan Foundation, offered to geiko over 65 wanting to pass down their knowledge of the arts to younger members. The other recipients from Kamishichiken were Naoko, Fukuzuru, Shimeyo and Katsumaru. Teruyo has a strong, distinctive voice. You can hear her singing “Kyo no Shiki” with Satoyuki in this video.
December 2016: Gorgeous Maiko Mameroku (Arai Okiya) of Gion Kobu at a temple.
Mameroku is the most senior Maiko in all of Kyoto and has been extremely dedicated and very famous ever since she started working. Her erikae is highly anticipated.
Source: Hiseong Kim on Instagram
Fingers crossed for a 2017 Erikae! Mameroku has been a long time favorite of mine. She’s made such growth in her confidence since being a junior maiko and I’m holding out hope she’ll debut soon!
Hi ! Love your blog! I have a question... in your opinion, if a foreigner (me) were in Japan / Kyoto, and went into a fancy shop such as Kintakedo wanting to buy a nice hairpin, and wear it, would that be okay? Would it be seen as cultural appropriation in a bad way? Or like an intruding tourist? Same with Obi or Yukata, to wear casually/ incorrectly in their home country. Would it seem rude? I'm wondering because I don't want to seem rude and like I'm just looking for souvenirs... thanks
Of course that’s okay! The issue of “cultural appropriation” is something that is very American-centric and tries to blanket any use of culture by someone else as “appropriation”. If you think you’re “appropriating” then ask yourself this: Am I doing this respectfully or am I just picking and choosing what I want without a care to how something should really function? Kanzashi isn’t just limited to Japan and, since they’re hair ornaments, wearing one in your hair is the appropriate way to wear it. The same is with kimono; if you learn how to wear it properly and with respect for the makers of the piece and traditions on how to wear it then you’re not appropriating. The kanzashi makers like those at Kintakedo see tourists all the time and are very happy when their craft can be appreciated by people around the world. For kimono and obi a yukata is very informal and it’s not a big issue to make mistakes. Since most Japanese people don’t even know how to wear a kimono properly they are very surprised (in a good way) when someone who is not Japanese can put one on by themselves. Most Japanese people will actually help you if you don’t know how to wear kimono and are very open to teaching anyone how to wear one properly, mostly because “cultural appropriation” doesn’t exist outside of America and they enjoy it when people can appreciate their traditions and customs.For some excellent videos from a Japanese perspective on wearing kimono I recommend the following:Can Foreigners Wear Kimono? (Japanese Opinion Interview)Can Foreigners wear Kimono? ボストン美術館・着物イベントに批判で中止?(Also, Googling “Can foreigners wear kimono?” will give you the exact same results as those videos)What would be considered “appropriation” is sticking chopsticks in your hair, slathering on some white make-up, and calling yourself a geisha. First of all, chopsticks are for eating and do not belong in your hair (that’s just gross and unsanitary). Secondly, the white make-up only becomes an issue when you don’t know how or why it’s worn (which most people don’t). Thirdly, it takes years of training to be able to call yourself a geisha, so having some ignorant idiot call themselves one, either at a Halloween party or something, is incredibly disrespectful to the hard work and dedication that it takes to truly become a geisha. It would be the equivalent of putting a stethoscope around my neck and calling myself a doctor. tl;dr: Cultural appropriation is an American word that most people don’t understand because they’ve never bothered to open up a dictionary. If you do something with respect then you are not “appropriating”. Most Japanese people are very happy when foreigners show an interest in kimono and other traditional aspects of culture and are more than happy to help you out if you want to learn more.
I know its been forever since I’ve posted anything so I kind of pushed myself and tried to draw a super detailed picture. I think this is the most complex drawing I’ve done in terms of patterns, all which were drawn and colored individually and I tried to keep all motifs and ornaments as accurate as I could. I hope you enjoy ^^
Shared with permission from a friend who took these images. These are detail shots of Ichitomi’s beautiful erikae ensemble. Her kimono features a rare and gorgeous peacock motif with added peonies (on the opposite side) and pine trees and her juban has gold and silver pine needles to match. The hanao on her senryō geta are a very chic silver and pink, which contrasts well well the greens and blues on her kimono. Her golden obi features kikkō (tortoise shell) and hanabishi (flower diamonds) patterns that are meant to mimic the shell of a tortoise, an animal that is associated with long life and endurance.
@kyradavisme I know you were asking about a peonies and peacock motif! Look how lovely! ^^
Cute little kitty. question would peonies be put with the peacock motif? Would you wear a kimono with the peony and peacock motif? when a maiko gets an older sister, are they from the same okiya?
I’m sorry it took so long for me to get to this question, dear! Thank you for your patience~ I think peonies would be lovely with the peacock motif if done correctly. Personally, with the picture I posted of a Peacock tomesode with a dark background is done simply and elegantly and I wouldn’t add anymore to it since the peacock is done with so much detail that adding anything else would distract from the main feature, I think with another arrangement peonies scattered at the bottom would be lovely with a brighter background. Peacock motifs are usually only found on super formal kimono like kurosode and tomesode, I could see it on a Furisode as well, with some details being added to the shoulders and sleeves, probably some more peonies but the main focus would definitely be the peacock in the very front with feathers trailing to the back to bring the whole piece together would be nice. Here’s a lovely picture with three awesome motifs a peacock, peonies, and pine. It’s on an uchikake so nothing would be covering the back and the peonies would be trailing. It’s quite nice I think! I think something flashy like this would be perfect as a wedding kimono~
Source is from here: https://www.treepeony.com/pages/peonies-in-japanese-art%20
And I love your second question too~ Onee-san and imouto-san in the kagai have a very interesting relationship. Not all okiya are going to have geiko to pair up with their new maiko and not all maiko get onee-san to train them. When an okiya can, they’ll ask their practicing Geiko if they would like to become the onee-san to the new maiko, geiko aren’t required to, sometimes older geiko will only have had 4 or 5 imouto in their long careers because they’re a lot of responsibility to take on and they have to take a lot of their personal time to meet with their imouto and fine tune their arts and their skills, not to mention they kind of risk themselves as they are representatives for their imouto so if the imouto makes a mistake, the onee-san takes on the responsibility. Some times if an okiya has a close connection with another okiya or an independent geiko, they may approach them to ask them if they would like to take on one of their maiko as their imouto. So if an okiya can, they will set up an onee-san imouto-san relationship within their okiya but if that option isn’t available, and they have close relationships with other geiko they will reach out. Of course not every maiko is going to have an onee-san but if they can get their maiko an onee-san they’ll do their best to give them that support.
“ 今月のお衣装は、深緑に紅葉で黄色の帯どす。 もり多の今月は、ハロウィンの飾り付けをしております^_^ “
Beautiful Maiko Koyoshi-san!
This is the last picture I swear. Look at what I get to wake up to every morning. So cute!
Went out with my fiance to get brunch and left with a kitten. Her name is Ripley and she's adorable.
July 2016: maiko Ichiyuu of Pontocho by kuumill on Instagram
September 2016: Geiko Ryōka (Sakaemasa Okiya) of Gion Higashi dancing at an ozashiki.
Source: Sumire Tachibana on Instagram
She is such a beauty, I can’t wait to see more of her!
Umekana-san already sparked the interest of many people during her Shikomi-period and is expected to become very popular.
Kamishichiken has now 8 active Maiko, a very high number for this small district, and three of them are working for the Umeno Okiya!
Congratulations Umekana-san and all the best wishes for your career!
Source: yasu733 - Blog
March 2016: maiko Ichiharu and Marika of Gion Kobu by @_mattgranger on Instagram
“Two Maiko, rushing to their next job passed on the street. They greeted loudly from a distance, conversed as they walked towards each other, clasped hands as they passed and turned back to finish chatting - never broke their stride…. and on to the next gig.”