Yikes Stripes! Obi & obijime arrived today

Whoohoo! I love to get stuff in the mail, especially on a Friday!
I haven't shopped on ebay for over a year (I'm being very good!)...but couldn't resist these two cute accessories, both striped and reasonably priced!

New striped obijime

How cute is this obijime? The red is really a very deep magenta or rubine red. It's a brand new obijime, so the white is crisp and clean. I love that the stripes are vertical rather than lengthwise. It reminds me of the red-and-white stripes you see at Obon on the yagura, on a cart at matsuri, or on the paper lanterns. I don't know the significance of the red and white stripes, but it does look very festive and reminds me of being a kid at the county fair.

New hanhaba obi

This beautiful obi I picked up has a just enough bling to take it out of the everyday hanhaba category. It's actually more elegant than I thought it would be. The fabric is high-quality and has a nice drape. It's woven with three different patterns and is reversible, with pink and blues on one side and yellow and blues on the other. The gold threads soften the whole obi and the colors look frosted and shimmery rather than too loud and shiny. It seems to be a silk blend but it might be all silk. It's so pretty I think I will wear it more with komon kimono rather than yukata unless I want to really doll up a yukata!

I will have to spend some time soon coordinating both of these new items soon and post some photos...a kimono wearing event is coming up at the end of the month. Oh whatever will I wear??

More soon,
~Rebecca