Hello everyone, this is KOTO Kyoto.

It’s already in June this year, and half a year has passed. Recently we feel at how quickly time flies.

Now, June is the months of seasonal clothing change in Japan. (That’s called “Koromo-Gae” in Japan.) A school uniform etc will change to summer clothes from June.

And also Kimono as well, it depends on the season to change the fabric material. From June to September, when the temperature rises from spring to summer, it choose single-layered fabric. ( it’s not with a lining.) Especially July and August, it choose a single-layered fabrics with sheerness that called “Ro”, “Sha”. These are a typical Kimono’s fabrics in the midsummer season.

From the left is “Ro” (3 pics), the furthest on the right is “Sha” the listed above. ( This was quoted from a book “Fujin Gaho”)

“Ro” has a space between the threads in a woven cloth on a linear, and the space is called “Ro-me”. It has several types about the space of Ro-me. Look at the Ro-me on the left side of the picture, the sheerness is stronger the narrow of Ro-me’s space.
Generally, the fabric is made by passing Ro-me through the horizontal row, but there are also fabrics that are vertically Ro-me, such as the second from the right, which is called “Tate-Ro”.

Ro” has not only silk but also hemp and cotton. The silk “Ro” is most often used as fabric to dyed kimono for summer season.

“Sha” is a mesh fabric with a stronger sheer than “Ro”. It has a solid-color kimono, and also has a ground pattern of Monsha on the right side of the picture.
Like “Ro”, “Sha” is also widely used in dyed kimonos.

And, it’s not only the fabric but also the Obi and Neckband, they are quite different in summer and winter.

We’ll introduce about Obi and Neckband of kimono next time.

Don’t miss it!