Reversible green asanoha squares hanhaba obi

Description

Reversible green asanoha squares hanhaba obi

A reversible hanhaba (half wide) obi with a asanoha pattern in gold and silver, with dynamic squares  in synthetic fibres. In very good condition.

15 cm wide, 345 cm long, made of synthetic fibres.

• Asanoha: The Asanoha pattern is one of the most popular traditional patterns often seen on Japanese kimono.  Asanoha means: Asa = hemp: no = of: ha = leaf. The regular geometric pattern, though abstract, represents overlapping hemp leaves. Asanoha can be combined with other seasonal motifs including ume and kikko, or feature as the primary element of the design. In ancient Japan, hemp, along with ramie, linden, elm, wisteria and mulberry, were used for making clothing, fibers and paper.

The wives of merchants would wear it, to bring good fortune to the wearer. Because hemp was known for its rapid growth, the pattern was often used for clothes of newborn children.

“…[p]arents hoped that infants wearing it would develop with the vigor and toughness of the hemp plant.” The Book of Japanese Design, Kyusaburo Kaiyama.

• Hanhaba Obi: The hanhaba obi is half the width of other obis, one of the hoso obi types, and is a single layer obi. The hanhaba obi is a casual obi for wear at home, under a haori (kimono coat), with children’s kimono or with summer yukata. It can be tied with a smallish, flatter knot, such as a clam knot

• Hanhaba obi (半幅帯^[or 半巾帯 , “half width obi) is an unlined and informal obi that is used with a yukata or an everyday kimono. Hanhaba obi are very popular these days. For use with yukata, reversible hanhaba obi are popular: they can be folded and twisted in several ways to create colour effects. A hanhaba obi is 15 centimetres (5.9 in) wide and 300 centimetres (9.8 ft) to 400 centimetres (13 ft) long. Tying it is relatively easy, and its use does not require pads or strings. The knots used for hanhaba obi are often simplified versions of bunko-musubi. As it is more “acceptable” to play with an informal obi, the hanhaba obi is sometimes worn in self-invented styles, often with decorative ribbons and such.