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Picture Lozenges Silk Ama Kimono Coat
  •   A deep, burnt orange, hitoe (unlined for summer wear) pure silk ama kimono coat, with picture lozenges in a very dark purple. The pictures are of the fronts of gosho guruma (Imperial carts).
  • The orange is a bit less bright than it appears in some of the pictures on my monitor, it's burnt orange colour.
  •   Made in Japan
  •   Ama kimono coats have kimono sleeves and the fronts overlap and fasten, usually with buttons or press studs. They are quite long coats and are intended to be worn over a kimono but look wonderful with western clothes, dressed down with jeans or dressed up with a dress or skirt for the evening. One does not wear a sash over them
  •   The Japanese take great pains to store their traditional garments with the utmost care, which is why they stay in such exceptional condition. Some of my Japanese garments have large, white stitching (shitsuke) round the edges. The Japanese put these stitches in to keep the edges flat during long periods of storage, these stitches just get pulled out before wearing the garment


Please be aware that different monitors display colour slightly differently. Therefore the colour in the photos and description is a guide only

Condition:
Excellent

Measurements:
Sleeve end to sleeve end 124 cm
Shoulder to shoulder seam (known as yuki) 60 cm
Length (known as mitake) 126 cm

Japanese clothing is usually of adjustable fit, being mostly wrap-over or tie-to-fit items, so most garments fit a range of sizes (although this applies a bit less to michiyuki). Because of this (and only really knowing my own size anyway) I can't really advise anyone on the fit. Please judge from the measurements given.

 

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wm42/05/09

Picture Lozenges Silk Ama Kimono Coat

SKU: wm42
£47.00 Regular Price
£39.95Sale Price
  • Ama Coats are Japanese coats designed to be worn over kimono, made from textile with a tight weave, to make it slightly showerproof, designed as street jackets to be worn on top of kimonos but they also look great with western world style clothing, over casual jeans, with smart trousers or dressed up with a skirt or dress.

     

    Fastening: Ama Coats, Michiyuki and Dochuugi do not require an obi or sash. Ama Coats, Michiyuki usually have press studs and dochuugi have one tie on the inside and one on the outside

     

    Storage: Hang up your garment for a few hours prior to wearing, to remove fold creases. They should also be hung out to air 4 times per year, if not worn frequently. Hang your garment to air for a day or so immediately after purchase too, as it will have been stored for a while. The Japanese take great pains to store their traditional garments with the utmost care, which is why they stay in such exceptional condition. Some of my Japanese garments have white stitching (shitsuke) round the outside edges. The Japanese put these stitches in to keep the edges flat during long periods of storage, these stitches just get pulled out before wearing the garment.

    Cedarwood or lavender essential oil keeps moths away, but don't get it on the fabric, apply near it, on the box, wrapper, drawer etc. or on a tissue nearby.

     

    Cleaning: Be very cautious about washing kimonos. All cleaning is done entirely at your own risk, as is standard with all vintage garments and items. I would advise only dry cleaning for silk ones and for most synthetic ones, cotton ones may be dry cleanable too but select your dry cleaner carefully and take their advice before deciding if you want to try dry cleaning it. Some synthetic textile or cotton kimonos can be gently hand washed but the dyes can run even in some of those, so consider that before washing but, if you decide to wash, only cool hand wash very gently, do not rub, just gently squeeze the water through it a few times, do not wring, Use a detergent made for colours, not one for whites, as they contain bleaching agents. Do not machine wash, it can rip off the sleeves, but if you hand wash you can briefly machine spin it to remove excess water before hanging it to dry but do it on its own, separately from other items. All forms of cleaning are done at own risk. In Japan many kimonos, especially silk ones and any ceremonial ones, are cleaned by specialists in kimono cleaning, often by a special method called araihari, where they take it completely apart, clean the pieces, then sew it back together again.

     

    Colour: Please be aware that different monitors display colour slightly differently. Therefore the colour in the photos and description is a guide only.

     

    Additional Information

    One must bear in mind that most are vintage items, which I strive to describe accurately and honestly. Most are in excellent vintage condition and therefore look virtually new but all are vintage, even the unused garments, which are or deadstock. A very, very few smell of mothballs or a touch of vintage mustiness but that is rare. This can be aired out and can sometimes be speeded up by tumble drying the dry garment at cool, but it should be put in a pillowcase in the dryer and is done only at your own risk. I have also had success at removing it by turning garments inside out and spraying very lightly with Oust, then letting them hang for a couple of days, but you do this at your own risk, as I can’t guarantee it won’t damage some fabrics. I found Oust to be much better at it than Febreze, even though Febreze is intended for some fabrics and Oust is an air freshener. Some synthetic textile and cotton kimonos can be hand washed but do this entirely at your own risk and only use a detergent for colours, as all other detergents contain bleaching agents to brighten whites. I usually mention any mothball or musty smell, if one does have it, but one must bear it in mind it is a possibility, even if not stated in the description, whenever buying vintage and antique textiles.

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