I had been eyeing the beautiful Japanese fabric from the shop called Asayake for a while. You know my love (my passion, my madness 😂) for Japanese fabric, and it’s more than hard not to give in when I have a huge stock to offer you... Anyway, it became obvious that I was going to sew a piece with this fabric, and if I’m going to use Japanese fabric... why not fully embrace the traditional style with a kimono? 

So I invite you to dive with me into creating my new favorite kimono!

First, a bit of clothing history and some clarifications

Because my kimono, well... it’s not a kimono but a haori. Haori? You might ask... Let’s take a closer look together. 

A haori (羽織) is a traditional jacket characterized by a loose cut. The word haori comes from the verb haoru, which means to put on a robe, coat, or jacket. This Japanese garment is therefore worn over another piece of clothing it covers; it can be compared to a jacket or cardigan worn in the West. It is very different from the kimono, which is a complete outfit (which you could compare to wearing a dress in the West). Also, the kimono is worn with a belt, which keeps it in place on the body, whereas the haori is worn without a belt or ties since it can be worn open. The most traditional ones may have a small sewn-in fastening system called a haorihimo. These cords allow the panels to be secured to the jacket’s lapels. Nowadays, you can also find belts to wear over the haori; this is a very contemporary way to wear it. 

In Japan, traditionally, the haori is used for warmth, ceremonial purposes, to show belonging (samurai/clan), religious reasons (priests), and increasingly simply for fashion because they are very beautiful (especially vintage haoris, which are very popular among stylish young people). 

The origin of the haori is not entirely certain, but it is believed to have originated during the Sengoku period (around the 16th century), worn by Japanese warriors over their combat armor to protect against the cold. A few years later, this traditional garment became popular among women, especially geishas. They wore it over their elegant kimonos.

Over time, the haori became more common and was worn by everyone from craftsmen to university professors. They often bore family crests, clan or artisan guild symbols, and were sometimes patched with sashiko embroidery because a haori was precious and kept for many years in poor families (sometimes passed down through generations; the sashiko embroidery making it even more valuable over time). Today, men still wear a traditional black haori at Shinto weddings, and the haori is an integral part of Shinto priests’ attire; finally, embroidered vintage silk haoris are highly sought after by fashion lovers who want to add style. 

In the seamstress’s basket to sew a kimono, well... a haori 😊

To make a haori jacket, you will need:

• preferably Japanese fabrics for the traditional touch
• matching thread
• light fusible interfacing if desired for the collar and possibly the belt
• your sewing machine (and serger if desired) 

The Japanese fabric is standardized with a width of 110cm. So to make your haori, you will need to add the following lengths:

• the front length 
• the back length
• sleeve length
• seam allowances and 2 to 3% shrinkage

For my haori with elbow-length sleeves (and my height of 1.53m), I needed 1.8m of Japanese fabric and a spool of matching thread. I chose a fabric with a lot of durability and plenty of gold accents for a chic look. The gold stands out very well against the black background. You can also choose indigo fabrics to create a traditional haori, or why not with geometric patterns (like nami, seigaiha, asanoha...) or floral (sakura, plum blossoms...). It’s possible to create very different haoris by playing with the patterns!

By the way, don’t hesitate to read the articles about Japanese patterns that I wrote 😊. They are available on the blog. 

My haori / kimono 

For my haori, I chose a Japanese fabric with a crane pattern and prominent gold accents for the very chic look it gives. I decided to make a removable belt so I can wear it open or closed depending on the occasion and the temperature. 

After drafting the pattern and thinking about the pieces (pattern direction, aesthetic aspect), we decided to test it, and it was my "apprentice tester" who sewed it entirely! Well done Dylan! 

Creative experience

First of all, I have to say it was really nice to work as a duo on this project. The reason for working with Dylan is that I wanted to create a kimono workshop. As usual, I test all my workshops to provide quality teaching (that’s my perfectionist side talking 😂). So Dylan tested all the beginner workshops and started sewing with me during April/May. Today, he is testing the "intermediate" workshops including this famous kimono workshop 😊 which you can now find in our course offerings. 

Back to the sewing experience...

After tracing and adjusting our pattern to my size, we got down to sewing. I often like to sew the back in two parts... but to preserve the pattern, I finally chose to sew it in one piece to keep the design intact. 

We also had to puzzle a bit over the sleeves to keep the pattern direction and not "decapitate" the cranes. After some "Tetris" and cutting, the challenge was met; the sleeves have the patterns in the right direction and without too much "guillotine".

We created the facing and chose to make beautiful interior finishes. 

We made adjustments as we sewed to honor this magnificent fabric! 

Finally, we opted for a completely black belt to mark the waist rather than cutting it from the same fabric. This helped to "break up" the already busy pattern. 

And here is our pattern approved in size S... all that’s left is to grade it to sizes M, L, and XL for the workshop... Would you like to come sew a haori jacket with me?

Then grab your needles, it’s right here!