Shiroiume

Shiroiume - White Plum

This is one of my newest aquisitions, and it appears to be a Meiji Period (1868-1911) bridal donuki. Basically, a long time ago, white furisode like these would be layered with matching red and black furisode to create a wedding ensemble. This likely would have been the bottom most layer. Unfortunately, like my other bridal donuki, this one has lost its sisters. I love the bold plum blossoms and luxuriously padded hem on this one. I think this piece is likely from the end of the Meiji Period, maybe right on the cusp of the Taisho Period, because large, bold designs like this seem to be more characteristic of the Taisho Period. Designs in the Meiji Period tended to be softer and smaller. However, this piece is made from shusu silk - popular in the Meiji era, and features very large crests (4cm + in diameter) also a characteristic of Meiji kimono. Speaking of the crests, I LOVE THEM! They feature wisteria and orange blossom. I think they're beautiful.

Unfortunately, there is quite a lot of patina and staining on the sleeves. I didn't notice such damage in the listing photos, so I hope it's not something that happened in the mail. Also, the silk on this piece is in such wonderful condition. It's so strong, that it feels almost new (incredible for a piece that's about 100 years old). So I'm really sad to see that the staining is so prominent.