New tabi

[Ishida Kentarou Mitsumasa]

So far, I had only been able to find black and white pre-made tabi. My sense is that no Sengoku period samurai would be boring enough to wear just black or white all the time, so in Japan I went on a search for colored tabi. This led me to two discoveries.

1. No stores in Japan have tabi that are neither white nor black.

2. No stores in Japan carry tabi big enough for my gaijin feet.

Bokunan-do is the only place on the internet that sells colored tabi, and they had to make them especially for me. They told me this would take three weeks, during which they sent me four (!) e-mails praising my incredible patience for putting up for the delay. I got them today along with a hand-written note about how wonderful I was and how much of a pleasure it was to serve me. Crazy.

So anyway, tabi:


New tabi from Bokunan-do by tomlapille, on Flickr

These are 100% cotton with the standard hook closures. They're not quite as gaudy as I want to be eventually, but at least they aren't as boring as I had before. (While I know modern tabi aren't quite right for us, they're close enough that I feel like I can spend my time better on other projects.)

Now to find someone who will make tabi for me out of deerskin...

[Deleted]

Great stuff! Awesome service.

Jul 12, 2011 0:43:10 GMT -5 Ishida Kentarou Mitsumasa said:

These are 100% cotton with the standard hook closures. They're not quite as gaudy as I want to be eventually, but at least they aren't as boring as I had before.

A little fabric paint will gaud those right up.

(While I know modern tabi aren't quite right for us, they're close enough that I feel like I can spend my time better on other projects.)

The thing that takes the most time with making tabi is modifying the pattern. The first pair you make, skip the lining and use long stitches because they will be unwearable anyway. The second pair will be wearable, but uncomfortable. By the third pair, you'll have a working pattern. The third pair and all subsequent pairs will only take a few hours. Just made my fourth pair about six weeks ago, and I was amazed at how quickly it went and how comfy they turned out.

If the "modern tabi" thing ruins your "look" for you, sew two pieces of trim around the very top, and knot them in front.

Now to find someone who will make tabi for me out of deerskin...

I spoke with an experienced leatherworker about that once. His concern was that deerskin tends to stretch out.

[nana]

I found some on etsy....ha ha ha- and in my favorite signature color- PINK. Thought you'd like a look. Also sells bright red dyed jikatabi. Not too bad of pricing either. (Please note I put all of this up in a joking manner...)

www.etsy.com/shop/tabilady?ref=pr_shop_more

[Saionji Shonagon]

The colored jika tabi look a lot like the ones from CoolEast Market.

And I'm a proponent of the fleece ones available from Sol Socks for cold weather wear.

[Deleted]

Aug 3, 2011 12:01:20 GMT -5 Saionji Shonagon said:

The colored jika tabi look a lot like the ones from CoolEast Market.

According to her Etsy profile, "tabilady" runs "cooleastmarket.com".

[nana]

www.sousouus.com/category/tabi-shoes/split-toes/ Here's some even crazier tabi....

[Suzuki Ken'ichi]

Well, if you like the way those tabi fit, you could always take one of them apart and use it as a pattern.