Kimono vs Hanfu

So, you know I love kimonos, but do you know why I love them? You may not care, but I fell in love with Asian things at a very young age. I stayed up late watching Kung fu theatre with my mom and asked her to buy me anything Asian I could find, which was very few in the Midwest. It was anime and my research of martial arts that led me to Japan and the kimono. I thought ancient Japanese and Chinese dress were so beautiful. These being the kimono and the hanfu, both are similar and very beautiful.

The Chinese hanfu, is flowing and graceful. It's fluid movements of satin and chiffon make a girl look like water flowing. It's graceful and light fabric; freely play along the wind when a woman walks along the shores of the Long River. Its colors range from deep red to all the pastels. It was the very source of elegance in Asia thousands of years ago. Although many see the cheongsam as the traditional dress of China, the hanfu has an even longer history and in my opinion is a more lovely dress.

The kimono is Japan's version of the hanfu. It is a more constricting dress. The soft flowing sleeves of the hanfu, were replaced by the stiff silk sleeves that hung by one's side. They did exceed the hanfu in the ornate embroidery and fascinating dyes on the silk, making them beautiful and colorful. Therefore the movement's of women were short and staccato. Everything was precise and very determined. Even now the grace of Geisha's is not the graceful or fluid motions of ballet, but an exact dance performed with perfection and a stoic "noh" like mask.

Either way, both dresses reveal the beauty of Japan and China. In SL there are incredible dresses for both; these are a couple of examples of my favorite Kimono and Hanfu.