Suki's Kimono by Chieri Uegaki and illustrated by Stephane Jorisch

I love Suki’s Kimono! Suki is so cute you want to take her home. Written by Chieri Uegaki and so very charmingly illustrated by Stephane Jorisch, the book is about Suki’s first day at school, when she decides that the special day warrants a special outfit: the kimono her grandmother gave her during her visit that summer. While her older sisters pretend not to know her and some of the other kids snicker, Suki is undeterred.

That reminds me of seeing a few little girls wearing kimonos when we were in Kyoto. How darling they looked! In fact, many women in Kyoto wear their kimono daily. Our tour guide explained that in an effort to encourage traditional Japanese culture in the face of modernization, the Kyoto government has passed a law that offers a discount on public transportation and taxis to any woman wearing a kimono. How great is that?

Our tour guide also insisted that kimonos look best on petite women. We visited a textile center one afternoon, where there was a short kimono “fashion show” for us tourists. She told us to pay particular attention to the vertical lines created by the drape of the kimono, and the aesthetic difference between the shorter women and the taller women. While they all looked pretty much equally beautiful to me, I will admit that the little girls we saw earlier that day were the cutest. Maybe it’s only obvious if the kimono wearer is less than three feet tall?

Suki's Kimono by Chieri Uegaki and illustrated by Stephane Jorisch


Kiyomizu-dera Temple, Kyoto


Outdoor Corridor at the Todai-ji Temple, Nara


Curtain Call at the Fashion Show

Tags: kimono kyoto Chieri Uegaki Stephane Jorisch