Waso Myself project

 

 

 

One day, a girl who was about to turn 20 asked me:

 

"Can you really dress yourself in a furisode?!"

 

It seems she also believed that "even if you can dress yourself in a yukata, you can't in a furisode."

 

The reason she gave was:

"Tying a furisode's obi is not easy."

 

 Of course, it's not easy.

However,

if you use the "mae-musubi" dressing method, where you tie the obi in front and then rotate it to the back,

it is possible.

 

So, she, along with a friend who shared the same desire to "dress herself in a furisode and attend the coming-of-age ceremony,"

challenged the "Furisode Myself Project."

 

 

 

The "Furisode Myself Project"

 

is a much more meaningful and significant project than other Kimono Myself projects.

 

～"Becoming an Adult"～

 

It's a grand rite of passage that everyone goes through,

only once in their lives.

 

It is the first of the "four ceremonies of life" (coming-of-age, marriage, funeral, ancestral rites): the "coming-of-age" ceremony. 

That is the coming-of-age ceremony.

 

Celebrating that important day and attending the ceremony

is the first step towards embarking on life as an "adult."

 

And the experience of attending that ceremony, dressed by yourself in a furisode, the most formal attire for an unmarried woman,

will be greatly beneficial in their future lives.

 

That's why,

instead of simply mastering the skill of wearing a furisode,

to make it a place to learn something far, far more important,

all members together set clear "goals" and "objectives."

 

 

 

"Goals"

To dress oneself in a furisode

To express gratitude to parents with proper demeanor (and appearance)

"Objectives"

To convey Japanese culture and kimono culture learned through the experience of dressing oneself,
using their own words and gestures.

 

By clarifying the "goals" and "objectives,"

a solid "plan" was also made.

 

"Plan"

By the goal,

What to use

What to learn

From whom

What to learn

 

This includes:

What and how much is needed (time, cost, etc.)

  

Their approximately one year of "learning" and "discoveries" are recorded here:

instagram "Furisode Myself Project"
⇩
Click here for more details

 

 

Through a year of acquiring skills and cultural knowledge,

they learned not only their initial "goals" and "objectives,"

 

 

・The importance of expressing sincere gratitude to parents and family through the respectful attire of a furisode.

・The self-awareness of growing into an adult, moving beyond their previous dependence on parents, gained through the experience of dressing themselves in a furisode.

・Acquiring manners and dignity appropriate for formal attire, and the consciousness of developing kimono culture as individuals who will lead the coming generation.

 

They learned these things on their own,

 

and on the day of the coming-of-age ceremony,

they wrote letters of gratitude,

and presented them to their parents.

 

 

Their challenge in this project

was not just about acquiring the skill of wearing a furisode,

but also a time to learn "important things"

in life.