Japanese Clothing.

Now everyone who loves Japan knows how the clothing is and such. Surely some of the greatest fans are cosplayers, not everyone may find it impressive or awesome to dress up like characters and get some of the coolest looking outfits ever, but that's fine because there are a bunch of other ways to show your love for Japan. Ways I'll cover later on, for now let's stick to our topic of cosplay and just roll with it. :D

When you cosplay, you have to be prepared to not be shy about it! If you look great in your cosplay, you'll be stopped countless times to get a photograph, might even make a few fans and forever love cosplaying as that character. But the key is DON'T BE OVER CONFIDENT! You have to be in character when cosplaying, this is very important! Sure, you can break your character when you want, but it ruins the purpose if you act normal and not like a diva if you're dressed as Sheryl Norm from Macross Frontier, or if you're dressed as 'female' Ciel Phantomhive and you're not acting bashful about having to wear a dress~ I have to say, I have met a girl who looked perfect dressed as Enma Ai from Hell Girl, but she was so shy and sweet, I just felt disappointed! Cosplaying is about being something or someone else, so have fun and don't be afraid to practice a new accent or two, nee? ;D

But, of course cosplay is not the only thing Japanese culture is known for producing.  School uniforms have been made extremely popular by how the Japanese make them so adorable. Sweater vests and plaid skirts are just too much to ignore! In a good way, duh. As much as the school uniform has been made popular, a type of fashion called Lolita has made it's way to America and though most might not know they are wearing something considered 'Loli' it is easy how to identify if you are and if you are a particular style. Gothic Lolita is known for having dark colors but something that looks very sweet and cute. Such as puffed skirts with white lace on them, or shirts/pants with belts holding it together here and there. Even the colorful tutus one might find in Hot Topic are inspired from Lolita fashion! My favorite part to Loli though is the shoes, as typical as it may sound of a girl, the shoes are awesomely... well, awesome! Knee high leather boots covered in belts and straps are very usual to see in Japan, along with brown leather boots and things of that nature. Heels that are five inches tall and platform boots that are nine inches tall sometimes! Tiny hats that look like they belong to itty bitty teddy bears, that's how cute they are. Bunny ears, cat ears, maid suits, everything you could think of that looks cutesy and out of place is probably Japanese!

Now with all the girly stuff out of the way...
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Kimonos are something still traditionally worn in Japan, and they get more and more beautiful. Though Geisha's and their disciples, Maiko, are not frequently seen any longer, their beauty remains imprinted on the many kimonos that can be located in Japan and sometimes imported to America. (would one be interested, Kimono in Japanese translates literally to ki 'wear' and mono 'thing') Now a Kimono has a way to wear and many parts you must put on correctly. Such as, a Kimono must always be worn with the left side over the right, and are often wore with traditional shoes called a geta or a zori, and of course split-toed socks called tabi. Now, there are different types of kimono. Such as an unmarried woman wears a furisode where the sleeves nearly reach the floor. And in spring, normally during firework festivals, etc. girls wear a thin Kimono called a yukata with often bright colors and designs upon it. Now, there are many parts to a Kimono, but I will list them from the top of the Kimono to the Bottom, first in Japanese then in English. 
Doura, Eri, Fuki, Furi, Maemigoro, Miyatsukuchi, Okumi, Sode, Sodeguchi, Sodetsuke, Susomawashi, Tamoto, Tomoeri, Uraeri, Ushiromigoro.
(upper lining on kimono, collar, hem guard, sleeve below armhole, main front panel, opening under sleeve,  front inside panel, sleeve, sleeve opening, armhole, lower lining, sleeve pouch, collar protector, inner collar, main back panel.)

Kimono's have a long history and a lot more parts and instructions to them, and I can go on all day about them, really. But if you honestly have more interest in learning about the history of the Kimono go ahead and google it or put it in on wikipedia. I'm sure you'll find something. :)

So I shall leave this topic at that for now, perhaps I will do a single post strictly about the Kimono and more of it's history, but for now I must start working on the next post which will most likely be about Japanese musical styles and instruments. So I hope you enjoyed this post and I hope it helped you a little bit to learn more about Japan and it's clothing styles. 

また来て、読んでくれてありがとう友人

(thank you for reading, come again, my friend)