Tsumami Kanzashi for Maiko in Autumn season-Momiji (Japanese Maple)

[COLOR]
Red, Yellow, Green, Gold

[SIZE]
Momiji (Japanese Maple)leaf:Approximately 1.5 inches=4cm
Width of entire Kanzashi:Approximately 4.75inches=12cm
Height of entire Kanzashi:Approximately 4inches=10cm
Length of entire Kanzashi:Approximately 7=18cm

[MATERIAL]
Habutae（羽二重）silk dyed by Atelier Kanawa
Aluminum Hairpin made by Atelier Kanawa
Aluminum Chirikan/Ginbira
Metallic Yarn

[DESIGN]
* Momiji (Japanese Maple) Tsumami Kanzashi for Maiko-san during Autumn season.
* You can enjoy the beautiful color change of the Momiji.
* This design can be found exclusively at Atelier Kanawa. Please don't miss it (^-^)
* The Chirikan/Ginbira beautifully swing according to your movement. You will love it!

[ATELIER KANAWA'S TSUMAMI KANZASHI CAREER]
Atelier Kanawa has been making both traditional & modern Tsumami Kanzashi since 2004. In the Summer of 2007, she was accepted as a private pupil and was professionally trained by one of the ONLY 15 acknowledged Tsumami Kanzashi artisans in the whole world.

[ABOUT HABUTAE(羽二重)SILK]
A plain woven silk textile of authentic Japanese vintage Kimono.
Habutae silk has a very smooth textures as soft, light and shiny, so they are used as Kimono linings. In Japan, we say "the best silk starts with Habutae and also ends with Habutae". Habutae silk proudly represents Japan.

[ABOUT TSUMAMI KANZASHI]
TSUMAMI (pinching) is the technique which to pinch/pick up a two dimensional piece of silk fabric to construct a three dimensional object. TSUMAMI consists of only two types of method called MARU-TSUMAMI (round pinching) and KEN-TSUMAMI (sword pinching).

Traditionally, we use Habutae silk to make TSUMAMI, but there is an artisan who uses Chirimen silk. Atelier Kanawa uses both and some other types of silk:)

Since the middle of Edo period(1603-1867), this handcraft technique has been traditionally utilized by maidservants in the imperial court as their hobby. Eventually, this beautiful technique was recognized by the Japanese society, then it began to be used to produce KANZASHI hairpins, sticks, combs and so on. You can see TSUMAMI KANZASHI in Ukiyoe picture. During that time period, Beethoven was quite active in Music industry.

Today, not only MAIKO wear them, but they are worn by Japanese women for new year celebration, celebration for children called "shichi go san", a coming-of-age ceremony, wedding, and those people who perform traditional Japanese dance.

TSUMAMI KANZASHI are made to show the beauty of four seasons. For example, MAIKO wear plum flower in February, cherry blossom in April, and chrysanthemum in October.

Today, there are ONLY 15 acknowledged artisans of TSUMAMI KANZASHI in the whole world. They don't really have anybody who will carry out this traditional art. I will take a class from one of them sometimes this year because I strongly would like to preserve this artwork and carry this out to the future generation:) IT MEANS A LOT TO ME TO HAVE YOUR PURCHASE because YOU ARE SUPPORTING US and YOUR PURCHASE COULD BE A VERY PRECIOUS CULTURAL HERITAGE.


[ABOUT GEISHA, GEIKO, MAIKO, OIRAN]
People tend to have a hard time distinguishing MAIKO, GEIKO, GEISHA, and OIRAN. So here are the descriptions about them for you.

MAIKO who wear these beautiful TSUMAMI KANZASHI are the age of between 15-20 years old young girls to add to the fun to banquet by singing, dancing, and playing Shamisen. They are under the training to become GEIKO.

GEIKO are advanced version of MAIKO that you can become after 5 years of training. They also add to the fun to banquet by singing, dancing, and playing Shamisen.

Both MAIKO & GEIKO are registered in "Okiya" in "Hana-machi" in Kyoto, such as Gion, and sent to "Ocha-ya".

GEISHA means a person who entertains with her artistic skills. GEI means art, SHA means a person in Japanese.
The root of GEISHA goes back to Heian era. There were harlots and Shira Byoushi performing songs & dances that were in fashion during that time period. Eventually war era started so they had to disappear. But peaceful Edo period came. The waitresses at Mizu-Chaya for visitor of the shrine/temple in Kyoto imitated Kabuki, then performed Shamisen and dance.
This custom was handed down to Edo(Tokyo of today) and gradually formed the style of GEISHA.
Today, GEISHA add to the fun to banquet by singing, dancing, and playing Shamisen. Even though GEISHA system was constructed in a licensed quarters, they are strictly distinguished from harlot. For example, they wear Tabi socks (harlots don't wear Tabi) and hold the side of Kimono by folding to the left so that the man can't slide their hands into GEISHA's kimono.

OIRAN　is the highest rank of harlot in a licensed quarters, with the highest education of classical scholar, calligraphy, tea ceremony, a 31-syllable Japanese poem, Shamisen, the game of go, and also entertainment accomplishment. In order to be steady with OIRAN, men needed to spend a vast sum of money.

Memoirs of a Geisha-my second opportunity

After regretting that I could not really greet Mr. Ken Watanabe the better way when I met him through my first background work for Memoirs of a Geisha, I passionately hoped that I would be given the second opportunity to work for this movie.

I thought it would never happen again.....But I still hoped.

And it did happen. I was very lucky, or it meant to happen or I don't know.
I was booked again for this movie for the Sumo match scene, if you remember the scene.

I remember that my call time was really early in the morning, about 3:30a.m. This is because when the production deals with many background, they have to make us perfectly ready before they start shooting. That day, I think there were almost 500 background people.

I got to the wardrobe department, and they dressed me in Kimono.

After we waited all morning, we finally moved to the studio to shoot.

I was very amazed how art department built Kokugi-kan, the Sumo match field. I thought I was in Japan.

Assistant directors began to place us to sit at the audience seat. I was told to sit where nothing was special about it which was fine for me, and I started to chat with other people.

And a little later, this dignified lady came to me with one of assistant director or something, and kept looking at me, and finally told me to come with her. Later on, I found out she was Ms. Colleen Atwood, a costume designer who won the academy award from Chicago.

I just followed her, and.....

I was placed right next to Principal booth, where Ken Watanabe, Kouji Yakusho, Michelle Yoh, and Ziyi Zhang.

Wow! How lucky I was!

Not only I got to observe and learn how they act right by them, which is a great opportunity for actors, but I was given the opportunity to once again, to possibly say "hi" to Ken Watanabe IF he smiles to me again (I don't talk to celebrities unless they talk to me).

Many people told me that I will be seen when the movie comes out to the theater since I was right next to these principals and camera was right there aiming this way.
And the hair, make up artist, and wardrobe people kept coming to me frequently to retouch.

Well, do you see me in the movie?

Unfortunately NO (haha)

They cut the frame right at the tip of my shoulder. (haha!) You can see two gentleman sitting right next to principal booth on their left, and I was right next to these gentlemen in that booth.

This is what happens in making movies, you never know how they edit the movie.
Everybody thought I would be in it, then I was not.

On the other hand, when I didn't even know when the camera was shooting me, later I happened to find out I WAS featured.

You can not seem me in Memoirs of a Geisha, but you can in the movie Flight Plan starring Jody Foster, and also Common's music video called Testified.

In Flight plan, there is a scene towards the end that this female flight attendant gets arrested at the lobby of the airport.
I was a passenger there coming back from Russia wearing a thick brown coat & green sweater with Long beige skirt. You can see me talkng to some other people at the right corner of the frame and
removing globes and stuff starting at 2:38 in this YouTube video clip:)

http://youtube.com/watch?v=eZj0AoTNoZo&mode=related&search=

Then interestingly, I jump from behind the male principal actor to beside the wall reading a book, when Jody Foster stands up and carries her daughter in her arm around at 3:51. This is the editing error, but most people don't notice, I guess.

This scene was shot in extremely hot studio, so everybody wanted to go home as soon as possible. This is why I did not even know I was featured since only thing it was in my mind was "I want to take all these clothes off, and go home!"

In Common's music video "testify", you can see me in Jury section in the front row, second from the left. I was the only one Asian female jury, so you won't miss it.

You can visit YouTube.com
http://youtube.com/watch?v=WebILJKDms8

*I was fat back then. So please don't laugh! (^_^)

I have heard I was in "Gilmore girls", and Disney TV show "Life" by my friends before, but I have not watched them yet and do not have the video.

If I can think of other things, I will post again in the future:)

I hope to have much bigger role sometimes soon!!!