A view onto an exquisite kogin kimono: white cotton thread-counted embroidery on indigo dyed hemp.  Kogin were made on the northernmost point of Honshu, in remote and cold Aomori Prefecture; their production heydey was the late nineteenth century and the locus was Aomori’s Tsugaru District.  The Mingeikan or the Japan Folk Craft Museum in Tokyo–the international mecca for Japanese folk craft–shows a remarkable kogin which can be seen here.

Sashiko stitched patterns varied from place to place in Aomori Prefecture and precious white cotton thread–cotton was a luxury in that area in nineteenth century Japan–was thought to be reminiscent of the deep snow of Tsugaru.

It is the bodice that is stitched.  The skirt and arm areas are applied to the bodice and can be replaced.  Certain stitched patterns were thought to have the power to ward off evil.

Hinagata are miniature articles of clothing which are used to teach ladies how to create garments.  These are particularly interesting because they are all made in Japan, most likely during the Meiji era (1868-1912) or just thereafter, and they are all fashioned after Western styling.  Have a close look at the detail photos below and enjoy looking at the machine stitching, the tiny buttonholes, the smocking, the fastidious tailoring.

On the Sri website we list some hinagata, however we show tiny, practice kimono, as the one shown here.

These are absolutely wonderful to see in person.   Even though these tiny garments are Western-styled and mostly created from cotton, some of these garments are made of traditional Japanese asa (hemp or ramie) fabric, which makes this hybrid even more interesting.

On the dress below, note the tie: it’s made of very traditional Japanese fabric showing the asa-no-ha (hemp leaf) pattern, which is in sharp contrast to the otherwise Western pattern of the cotton dress.