This is Hijiri Fujishima from Jibunrashiku LLC. I'm here to bring you an interview report.
Last month, I visited "Ochicochiya" for an interview for "Gomigen" (Kyoto City Waste Reduction Promotion Council)'s newsletter, "Kogomi Biyori". I can't go into detail as I'd like you to see the actual article, but as it's written on their official website, I truly reaffirmed that "Kimono is a sustainable garment!" The reasons why are a secret for now, as I'd like you to read the article (laughs).
On a personal note, my late mother loved kimonos, and when I was a child, she often wore them as if they were everyday clothes. I used to feel a little embarrassed when she came to ordinary parent-teacher conferences, not even ceremonies, in a kimono. My grandmother was also a professional Japanese seamstress. Thanks to her, I had the luxury of choosing fabric from bolts and having my grandmother sew yukata and furisode for me.
However, my mother was meticulous and always dressed me perfectly and tightly, so for me, "kimono" meant "painful." I didn't wear them very often.
But after my mother passed away and I moved here to Kyoto, her memorial kimonos and paulownia chest also moved with me. Since I was living in Kyoto, I actually started wearing them a little more than before. Still, I was afraid of being scrutinized by the older generation, who are sometimes called the "kimono police," for comments like "your way of wearing it is wrong," "it's not the right season," or "it's not appropriate for your age." To avoid this, I tried wearing hakama.
However, the concept of "Ochicochiya" is "We want people to feel free to wear kimonos." As I listened to the owner, I sincerely thought, "No, I definitely need to wear kimonos more often!" "Ochicochiya" specializes in "cotton" kimonos with this concept in mind. The patterns are incredibly cute, and there are many fabrics that look like Western clothes! I really hope everyone will visit them.
This time, the interview and writing were done by a student from Kyoto Seika University. This student has a strong sense of valuing the environment, instilled by their parents. E-kun, who came to the "Kyomachiya Tour" co-sponsored by NPO JapanCraft21 and Gion Naito Construction, excitedly told us, "Traditional architectural machiya are truly sustainable!" He is currently helping with the Kogomi Biyori article, and I am supporting him.
It will be published next month, so please be sure to check it out. By the way, I was in charge of the interview and writing for the special feature article. We also interviewed the very charming "Kyoto Beer Lab".
I will let you know once it's published.