Senior Prom Kimono Progress

The deadline of May 16th for Katrina's Prom is fast approaching and the kimono I'm sewing for her is really beginning to take shape.

This is the inner vest that gives the illusion of an undergarment worn beneath the kimono. It's primary job is to display the crossover collar, just like the one that will be on the kimono in gold.

The rear of the vest shows the high collar in the back, which is supposed to tilt back a little like this. Unlike in this picture, Katrina's hair will have to be worn up in order to keep from covering the design nuances of the kimono.

Here is the main kimono worn over the undergarment-vest, with the long furisode sleeves that hang low on her arms. The crossover collar hasn't been made up and stitched in place yet.

All of the cloth is some form of brocade. The pale, shimmering gold for the main body of the kimono is turning out to be a nice choice.

Keep in mind that the kimono hasn't been pressed yet, so the seams and wrinkles are very visible. The furisode sleeves are sewn closed on the bottoms and all the way around to her wrists, but you can see that the part of the furisode sleeves that are closest to Katrina's sides are actually open and lined with the same black brocade that was used for the undergarment-vest.

Since I have posted this, the collar for the kimono is almost done, then the bottom hem will be sewn to finish it off. After that, I will start working on the Obi, which is the wide waistband, back pillow and cascading 'plume' of cloth that will waterfall down her back. In doing further research, the Obi is supposed to be a of strong contrasting color and cloth against the main kimono. We chose a brilliant blue brocade and instead of the dragon/phoenix bird pattern stitched into it, we chose a chrysanthemum pattern with light purple flowers on it. This should stand out like it is supposed to!