The kinds of kimono


There are various kinds of kimono. They are not worn on alone like a T-shirt . The kimono which ordinary people wear is divided into the kinds shown on the lower figures . Other kinds kimonos are put on for a special event or a shrine ritual. Kimono has neither a zipper nor a button . It is fixed with string and belt unique for kimono . It is better to wear the special footwear for kimono, when putting on kimono. There are five kind of footwear . Basically , they are ‘zori’, ‘seeta’, ‘geta’, ‘waraji’, ‘jikatabi’. ‘Tabi’ are Japanese socks . Japanese footwear is more healthily than Occidental shoes , but whenever the foot is accidentally stepped on , it is painful .

About the correct order in which to wear it

1 First , put on the tabi , and then put on the underwear . There is an undergarment for the upper body and for the lower body. There is also a one-piece shape in the underwear for women. ‘Hada-juban’ is the underwear of the upper half of the body . There are two kinds of underwear for the lower half of the body and they are a wrapped skirt type and trouser type . ‘Momohiki’ is the trouser type underwear for men , it is also called ‘patch’ . Althought there is the trouser type for women , it is not called either ‘patch’ nor ‘momohiki’ , it is called ‘under-slacks’ . ‘Susoyoke’ is the wrapped skirt type of underwear . How to choose is purely a matter of personal taste ….。

under wear




3 　Next please put on ‘naga-juban’. Do not wear ‘naga-juban’ in front of people ., it’s not good manners .
‘Han-eri’ is worn over the top . There are various kinds of ‘han-eri’. It can be changed whenever you like .
If ‘han-eri’ becomes dirty or rumpled , it must be washed and changed.



4 　’Nagagi’ is kimono foundation. There are many people who call ‘nagagi’ ‘kimono’.
Here, the whole is called ‘Kimono’ for Japanese folk costumes.
The method of wearing ‘nagagi’ for a man and woman is different.
The size of all the kimonos is decided on the basis of the size of ‘nagagi’.



5 　Around the waist a fabric belt is worn.
This is the way it can be worn everyday.

fabric belt

The first method is wearing a haori.
The second method is putting on a hakama.
The third method is wearing both a haori and a hakama.
‘Haori’ and ‘hakama’ are men’s formal attire . Of course , you may carry out these three figures everyday.
For the first time when a man buys kimono, a draper recommends buying ‘nagaju-ban’, ‘nagagi’, and ‘haori’ all together.
When going out , even in the hot time of summer, it is necessary to put on ‘haori .



6 　Nowadays ‘hifu is hardly worn. Sometimes a girl wears it to celebrate being three years old. Even if a woman puts on ‘haori’, it doesn’t become ‘full dress’ like man , it is informal dress style. There is a historical background. ‘Hifu’ and ‘haori’for women can be worn anywhere except in a public place .

hifu and haori

7 　A coat is not formal wear or semi-evening dress . It is greatly different from ‘haori’. A coat is worn outside only , you should take it off in the room. Since a man rarely wear a kimono, there are rarely those who prepare a coat for kimono . The collar type of coat has many kinds . The name of those coats is the same as the collars name .

coat of kimono


About ’han-juban’

‘Han-juban’ is the clothes style which is made when a hada-juban and a naga-juban are unite.
The material worn on the upper body is made from the cloth of ‘ hada-juban ‘.
There is both ‘ hada-juban ‘style and ‘ naga-juban’ style for the lower body..
The collar of ‘hada-juban’ is remodeled like the collar of naga-juban , and is attached to ‘ han-eri’ . ‘Han-juban’ are the clothes for softening the summer heat.



About ’yukata’

‘Yukata’ is formally called ‘yukatabira’ . In earlier days , it was worn when going to a public bath, and it was like a pajama . Nowadays, it became ‘town wear’ which can be worn easily in summer. ‘ Naga-juban ‘ is not worn when wearing ‘yukata’. ‘Hanhaba-obi’ is worn when a woman wears a ‘yukata’ . This belt is easier to put on than other belts , which means this can be worn easily compared to other kimonos. When wearing a yukata, wooden clogs are worn with bare feet . The wooden clogs , in Japanese , are called ‘geta’




About the layered look

There was a custom of wearing kimono in many layers among aristocratic circles. They wore multiple layers of the kimono of a different color . The representation is ‘twelve-layered ceremonial kimono’ which the noble woman wore at the Heian Age.(794-1192). Livin in this kimono is difficult and serious . Althought I do not wear it , it is very heavy and wa can not walk . It has been heard of noblewomen having worn a maximum of 18 layered. The tradition of the layerd look is inherited by only formal wear and ceremonial wear nowadays. People of the Edo period (1603-1868) wore layers of four or three ‘Nagagi’ . People of the Meiji period (1868-1912) wore layers of three or two ‘nagagi’. As a time progresses, number of ‘nagagi’ became fewer. It is called ‘sanmai-gasane’ to wear layers of three ‘nagagi, . It is called ‘nimai-gasane’ to wear layers of two ‘nagagi’. The parts of ‘sanmai-gasane’ are called ‘upper garment’, ‘middle garment’and ‘under garment’ from the top. The parts of ‘nimai-gasane’ are called ‘upper garment’ and ‘under garment’ from the top. It became ‘nimai-gasane’ when it was in the Showa (1926-1988) . it is sewn with the fly front of the Japanese style nowadays. In formal wear , it is decided that the color of ‘under garment’ , the ‘han-eri’ and the ‘tabi’ will be white . Man also has to wear a haori and a hakama . ‘Nagagi’ is the name specified in a textbook which the Ministry of Education published at the Taisho Age (1912-1926). Almost Japanese do not know the word ‘nagagi’ , it hardly teaches about a kimono by compulsory education.


About the shape of the sleeve

The upper figures are kimono which ordinary Japanese people wear.
There is no ‘nagagi’ with half sleeves .
It worn with long sleeves even during a hot summer.