A Lord Sesshomaru costume is probably one of the most advanced costumes you could make. Before you begin, you should set out a plan of what it is you want to do. Decide ahead of time, which items you will make by hand and which items you will buy ready made and which items you will have made on commission.

There are many factors to deal with including:

Creating a pattern from scratch.
Learning to sew and wear a kimono.
Sewing slippery silk.
Dyeing and painting said silk.
Stitching long-pile fur.
Embroidering imperial crests.
You should have at least a minor understanding of Edo Japanese fashions and their construction.
Learning to pleat and fold a hakama and bind it at the ankles.
The creation of haramaki (battle armor) with battle spikes.
Not to mention the creation of not one, but two custom swords.
Finding or making a custom wig.
Also you'll need to know about the application of theatrical makeup.

Keep in mind that the more accurate you plan to make the costume, the more details you will need to focus on, and if you plan to go a step past the comic books and cartoons, and strive for historical accuracy as well, than you will be opening up a whole new list of details you will need to add. The more details you add to this costume, than the more advanced your sewing skills will need to be. In short, this is not a project for a beginner, not to say a beginner should not attempt it, though. Overall this is not a difficult costume to make, just that it has a lot to it and it does require some prior knowledge in the basics of costume making. I would not recommend Lord Sesshomaru, if this is your first time making a costume, but if you have already made a costume or two, or if you have sewed up a few smaller projects, say doll cloths, than you should have no major problems making this one. As long as you know what steps you need to take to complete your costume, you should be fine.

InuYasha, Volume 27

A major stumbling block here, is that no pattern exists for this costume and if you want to create it from scratch (rather than from a kit) you must have enough knowledge of fashion design to be able to make the pattern yourself, determine how much of which fabrics is needed, and than assemble them, all without the help of any instructions from anyone.

Japanese Fashions

And yes, there are kits available for this costume, and if you are a beginner in the craft of costume creation, it may do better to start with a kit first, or try a less complicated costume before moving on to Lord Sesshomaru. Basically a kit version includes a white kimono and white harem pants, (which not by the way Sesshomaru does not wear harem pants) both already sewn, which you would than embellish as desired. Often these will include a black vest/corset without any armor attached. The kits usually recommend buying two yards of white fur and draping it over your shoulder like a shawl. I have never seen a kit that included the armor and never are there instructions as to how to make armor either.

One thing that stops many CosPlayers in their tracks before they even have a chance to get started is the fact that there are so many separate items in his outfit, and before they can start sewing, they must first seek out patterns and instructions for each and every one of these items. Often they are not ever sure what articles of clothing they actually need or what the names of each item is, and so they are not certain what exactly they should be searching for to begin with. The amount of research required before the project can even start, scares off many, and results in them instead creating an easier to make costume, even though they had their heart set on Lord Sesshomaru.

Why have I made this lens?

Well, because I am making a Lord Sesshomaru costume, and I know a commonly asked question CosPlayers have, is: Where can I find instruction to make a Lord Sesshomaru costume? The answer they get is: nowhere. Nowhere on the Internet is there a site that goes into any detail with helping CosPlayers to recreate a Lord Sesshomaru costume. There is a need for such a site and therefore I am going to make an attempt at filling in the need.

Japanese Warrior Costumes Paper Dolls

Why am I the right person to tell you how to do this?

I sewed my first cloth doll at age six. At age 12 I sewed my first ball gown. At age 14 I enrolled in a two-year college course in pattern making and fashion design. At age 16 I sewed my first dress made from my own pattern designed by me. Today, 13 years later 90% of my clothing consists of historical re-enactment costumes designed and sewed by me, made from my own patterns. And starting in spring of 2008, I will take on my most ambitious project ever: to create from scratch, the most accurate Lord Sesshomaru costume ever created.

To complete this goal, I have done what I have done in the past with my other projects and am consulting with history books. I am currently reading three dictionary-sized books on the history of Japanese fashions.

Make Your Own Japanese Clothes:
Patterns and Ideas for Modern Wear

Lord Sesshomaru is a character born Feudal Japan in approximately 1240 - 1370 A.D., with the time of InuYasha books and show being set (according to author Rumiko Takahashi) during 1482 - 1558 and so from those periods I find myself doing the most research. (Sesshomaru is approximately 250 years old at the time of the story). My personal goal here is not, just to create a CosPlay costume, but to recreate the actual costume this man would have worn had he been real, so I'm taking the high road an going a much more advanced rout than the average CosPlayer would take. I estimate that this project will take a year or more to complete. Well, not a year or more to actually make. Once I have everything gathered up, it should take me less than a week to sew it up and assemble it, but finding the supplies to recreate this costume in historically accurate detail . . . that could take a while as some of the items I'll need are quite expensive. The tail for instance, I don't see any way around paying less than $400 for the fur, and the metal spikes for the battle armor will be $10 to $20 per spike, than there's the leather for the armor itself: about $200 per yard. In short, this project could easily surpass well over a $1,000 before I get done, and that, could be a set back, but I can wait. I'm not in any hurry to get this finished, so long as I do get it finished. Slow and steady wins the race.

And so it begins.

~~Wendy C. Allen (March 7, 2008)

Becoming a costumer, first and foremost means you will need to learn to sew. As you may have noticed, I have not included any sewing instructions on this lens. The reason for this is because Sesshomaru is a costume that is open to personal interpretation, and will be as unique as it's creator.

My goal here is not to teach you how to sew, but rather, guide you through the steps needed to bring your Lord Sesshomaru costume from an idea to a reality. I have done this by detailing each article of clothing needed to complete your costume. Along with studying in detail each item, I have also included links to suppliers who sell the materials necessary to create those items. However, if this is your first time creating a costume from scratch than you may find yourself needing help along the lines of sewing instruction.

Even if you have never threaded a needle before, you have no need to fret, anyone can learn to sew, and before you know it, you will be sewing up your costume.

For those of you new to sewing and costuming, I will be listing links to sites to help you learn to sew and items needed to help you reach you goal of becoming a costumer.

Before I go on, let's first do a quick run over of what you'll need to know before starting.

Below is a list of a few basic things to follow, when making any costume. I know, they seem so simple that it would seem I would not need to list them, but hey, even a professional costumer needs to be reminded of them every now and again.

Might as well start off with this first and get it over with and out of the way. :P

The reason Lord Sesshomaru attracts more oogle-eyed, love-struck, crazed fan girls than any other Bishie boy is: his mokomoko, that big furry fluffy thing, that is the cause of so many battles and debates among his fans who fight fang and claw over what in the world a mokomoko actually is.

I once saw a fan created picture that quickly explained the fan girl obsession with Lord Sesshomaru. It was screen shot taken of Lord Sesshomaru while looking very fierce and was combined with a second screen shot of a woman "in love". Over this altered picture was the words: "Fear me, damn it!" followed by: "But you're so cute and fluffy!".

Women love furry things. Women love all things cute and cuddly. Women love all things soft and fluffy. Women go wild over men draped in fur boas. Wait, why is a man wearing a fur boa?

Of course those of you who only know Lord Sesshomaru from the TV show and not from the book, will be interested to know that while the show portrays him as a man wearing a 4 foot long fur boa, the book from which the show was based on, portrays him as a man with an 8 foot long tail which he drapes over his shoulder to keep it from dragging on the ground. (See Picture below.)

Also in the book, but not on the show, is the fact that he can only be mortally wounded if his tail is injured, which has happened twice resulting in his near death each time, again, not in the show, only in the book. (See second picture below, with Sesshy and his bloody wounded tail.)

Another thing that points to the fact that the mokomoko is actually a part of his body, is the fact that when he transforms back into his natural state (that of a 40 foot tall white dog) he still has the mokomoko, which can be seen to be some sort of a lion's mane.

If you've never seen the difference between the skimpy boa of the show, than you'll be quite shocked at the sight of the monstrously huge tail of the book version of Sesshomaru.

I got to say, the original book version of Sesshy is much better than the "edited" tv show version of him that came along seven years later.

Kimono:

Kimonos are T-shaped, straight-lined robes that fall to the ankle, with collars and wide, full-length sleeves. Kimonos are wrapped around the body, always with the left side over the right (except when dressing the dead for burial) and secured by a wide belt called an obi, which is usually tied at the back.

Making Kimono & Japanese Clothes

Nagajuban

Nagajuban or simply juban are kimono-shaped robes worn by both men and women beneath the main outer garment. Since silk kimonos are delicate and difficult to clean, the Nagajuban helps to keep the outer kimono clean by preventing contact with the wearer's skin. The sleeves of the Nagajuban are 3/4 length and do not have the long drapes as a Kimono does. Only the collar edge of the nagajuban shows from beneath the outer kimono.

Sessho-Maru-Sama's Kimono

Besides being the world's most powerful demon, Lord Sesshomaru is both a warrior and nobleman, a wealthy and powerful Feudal overlord,The Ruler of The Western Lands (believed to be somewhere in China or Mongolia) and a much feared (a murderously violent) aristocrat and as such wears a style of ceremonial Kimono which is only worn by the elite few of his social standing. This can be seen by the fact that he wears white, a color reserved only for royalty, brides, and the dead, and by the fact that there are so many imperial crests embroidered onto his Kimono.

Sesshomaru's Kimono is a very ceremonial style, of solid white, with full swinging sleeves that sweep in lengths just above his ankles. The lower quarter of each sleeve is dyed red, and the left shoulder is also dyed red.

On the front and back of each sleeve, near the boarder of the dye are embroidered three family crests (twelve in all). The crest is repeated on the neck and shoulder of the left side.

Each crest consists of a triple hexagon with a six petaled white plum/cherry blossom in the center of each red hexagon, surrounded by a white boarder.

There is some debate among fans as to the lower edge of the kimono and what it should look like, since the hem of Sesshomaru's kimono is never seen in either the books or the show. There is also question as to just how long the kimono he wears is; again, he wears a hakama over his kimono, so we never see the hem edge of it.

In the areas of Lord Sesshomaru's costume where we do not have a visual reference to go by, we must instead look to the history books and find out what a real warring lord of Endo Japan would have done, and in doing that, this is what my research told me:

When worn by common folk, soldiers, and laborers, the length of a kimono worn under a hakama would have been knee length. However, the kimonos worn by noblemen, lords, and aristocrats would have been long full length kimonos.

The length of Lord Sesshomaru's kimono should be long: very, very, very long. My study of Japanese fashion history tells me that a war lord of Sesshomaru's status, would have worn a kimono of overblown proportions, not only are the sleeves abnormally long, but so to would have been the length of the kimono, which in some cases would have a train several feet long in the back! All of this extra fabric however would not be seen, because it would be girdled with a braided cord, and stuffed into the legs of the overlaying hakama, thus helping to give the hakama it's huge ballooning pant-legs-effect.

Additionally, my research tells me that the hem edge of the kimono would be patterned and decorated to match the pattern of decoration on the sleeves and left shoulder. Note that the fact that the pattern is ONLY on the left shoulder, is an indication that this is not only a lord, but a lord of near Shogun status. Lord Sesshomaru is a very high ranking lord.

So my advice? I would say to make his kimono at least 4 inches longer than floor length for the wearer, and dye the lower 8 to 12 inches red to match the sleeves, and add imperial crests staggered at the same intervals as on the sleeves..

Beneath his Kimono Sesshomaru wears a white (or sometimes red flower print) Nagajuban.

This is the ONLY version ever to be drawn by Sesshomaru's creator Rumiko Takahashi. All other versions of his costume were created by the tv anime artists and manga inkers.

On occasion, Sesshomaru is seen wearing a slightly different kimono. This can be considered either a mistake on the pat of the anime artists, or an indication that he has not one, but four different kimonos.

Alternate Kimonos #1 and 2 are essentially the same as his regularly worn kimono, the only difference being the color of the dye and patches.

Alternate Kimono #3 is completely different and is much less formal as is has no crests on it at all.

If you want to make one of the alternate kimonos, they are described as follows:

Alternate Kimono #1:

Sesshomaru's Alternate Kimono #1, is a very ceremonial style, of solid white, with full swinging sleeves that sweep in lengths just above his ankles. The lower quarter of each sleeve is dyed purple, and the left shoulder is also dyed purple.

On the front and back of each sleeve, near the boarder of the dye are embroidered three family crests (twelve in all). The crest is repeated on the neck and shoulder of the left side.

Each crest consists of a triple hexagon with a six petaled white plum/cherry blossom in the center of each purple hexagon, surrounded by a white boarder.

Beneath his Kimono Sesshomaru wears a white (or sometimes purple flower print) Nagajuban.

The Hakama worn with this is usually pale lilac colored, while the battle armor may be black, purple, or sky blue in color. When wearing black or purple armor, the yellow Heko-obi is worn with this, however, when wearing the sky blue armor, the blue Heko-obi is worn, as are a pair of sky blue shoes.

This is a rarely seen alternate version of Lord Sesshomaru's kimono. This is the second most commonly drawn version featured in non-cannon daijoshi manga.

Alternate Kimono #2:

Sesshomaru's Alternate Kimono #2, is a very ceremonial style, of solid white, with full swinging sleeves that sweep in lengths just above his ankles. The lower quarter of each sleeve is dyed blue, and the left shoulder is also dyed blue.

On the front and back of each sleeve, near the boarder of the dye are embroidered three family crests (twelve in all). The crest is repeated on the neck and shoulder of the left side.

Each crest consists of a triple hexagon with a six petaled white plum/cherry blossom in the center of each blue hexagon, surrounded by a white boarder.

Beneath his Kimono Sesshomaru wears a white (or sometimes blue flower print) Nagajuban.

With this version we see Sesshy wearing either his black armor or his purple armor.

This is a rarely seen alternate version of Lord Sesshomaru's kimono, however, once it surfaced, it quickly became the most beloved one used by fans, as when wearing blue, Sesshomaru seems less fierce than when wearing red. This is the most commonly drawn version featured in non-cannon daijoshi manga.

Alternate Kimono #3:

Sesshomaru's Alternate Kimono #3, is of a less formal style than the other three. This is the kimono we see him wearing before he became a Lord, seen only once during a flash back. This kimono is the one he wore when he was still quite young, aged at about 14 or 15 years old in "human years". Once again, it is of solid white, with full swinging sleeves that sweep in lengths just above his ankles. The lower quarter of each sleeve is dyed a deep-bright reddish-rose pink, more accurately called a shade of magenta.

On the front and back of each sleeve, floating just above the boarder of the dye, is painted three very large and bold lotus flowers (twelve in all). The flower pattern is repeated with yet another large lotus flower on the neck and shoulder of the left side extending down to the sleeve.

Beneath his Kimono Sesshomaru wears a white (or sometimes lavender flower print) Nagajuban.

With this version we see Sesshy wearing his purple armor, and dark blue velvet Heko-obi.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

UPDATE ADDED: June 4, 2008:

If you've been reading my blog, you know by now that my silk has arrived from Japan (was lost by our local post office) and after much debate over how to handle said silk, work is now underway on the construction of this pink furisode kimono.

This being Lord Sesshomaru's Court Outfit, which he wears at home in his palace, I am taking a more dramatic road with this one, and embroidering it in the 16th century Noh Theater style.

The white sections are going to be completely embroidered in an overall pattern of chrysanthemums and butterflies, embroidered all in white.

Because Lord Sesshomaru's palace is in China and not Japan, and because Sesshomaru is a Prince, I am taken a huge leap of liberty and turning the blocks of rose color on the sleeves and hem, into the traditional "ocean wave" pattern seen on the Dragon Robes worn by Chinese Emperors. These will be done in multiple shades of rose and mauve.

I have found a picture of a real medalion of a lotus flower, which looks an awful lot like the one on Sesshy's kosode, and have traced the design, and am going to use that for the giant lotus blossoms, changing the colors from the original medalion, to deep magentas and rose for Sesshy's fuisode.

All in all this is a majorly advanced embroidery project and will take me at least 3 or 4 month to complete before I well be able to begin constructing the kimono. (Historically, the cloth is embroidered, before being cut and sewn, so that is how I am making this one.)

****************************

UPDATE ADDED: June 21st, 2008

I still have quite a ways to go on the pink flowery Court Robes. The cloth was cut out and the pieces pinned together, so that I could hand draw (in pink tailor's chalk) the giant lotus blossoms, and butterflies (in blue chalk). The butterflies are being done tone on tone, the same color as the silk, so can only be seen up close. I ran out of floss today, so had to go the Micheal's to buy more.

Right now I am working on the collar of the kosode, which has butterflies along the edge, and the partial piece of one of the pink flowers at the shoulder. Starting at the lower left side and working up to the top and down to the right, I am right now, 3/4 to the top of the left side. Each butterfly is approx. 2" x 4" and takes 3 hours to fill in using the satin stitch and the long & short stitch. I have been sewing approximately 1 1/2 butterflies per day (that's me hand sewing 4 1/2 hours per day!), so I'm guessing that my original estimate that it'll take me 3 to 4 months to embroider the entire kimono, was pretty darned close! I just started my 7th butterfly today.

Alternate Kimono #4:

I have only seen this one in VIZ's promotional "Chibi-art" These pictures show Sesshomaru as a Chibi, or a small child. This kimono is the one he wore when he was very young, aged at about 7 or 8 years old in "human years". This one is of Kosode style, with smaller sleeves than we normally see him wearing. The fabric is a pale mint green.

On the front and back of each sleeve, near the boarder are embroidered three family crests (twelve in all). The crest is repeated on the neck and shoulder of the left side.

Each crest consists of a triple hexagon with a six petaled white plum blossom in the center of each green hexagon, surrounded by a white boarder.

With this one we see Sesshy wearing a hakama made of the same mint green cloth. He wears neither armor, nor shoes, with this, but is shown wearing a yellow unpatternd Heko-obi.

Interestingly in these Chibi pictures we see VIZ portraying him both as a demon with a tail, and as a demon wearing a fur stole.

Well, this started out as me just planning a simple "CosPlay" costume. I originally planned just to do a quick, "once-over-look-like-the-guy" costume, like I normally would do for any other character. You know, the average type of CosPlay costume.

Than I started planning. And planning. And studying. First thing I realized, is that I picked probably the worst nightmare of a costume I could have picked to make. This costume, consists of a kosode, a furisode, a hakama, an 8 foot long "tail-thing", a suit of armor that's absolute hell to recreate, and all kinds of little weird details and things, that most other characters would not have had. So I started writing up a list of all the things I needed, (which was the start of this lens, BTW), and the next thing I know, not only am I planning this costume, but now I'm surrounded by huge library books on the history of Japanese clothen in the 1500's.

Next thing I know, my goal is no longer to make a Lord Sesshomaru costume for CosPlay.... no, now I'm going to recreate his entire wardrobe, 0_O including all 4 of the different costumes we see him wearing... no wait... did I see a fifth costume? He was wearing head to toe green in an official VIZ corp calendar I saw the other day: green kimono, green hakama... must look into this new costume. Thing is, I'm not just creating the wardrobe we see on the anime and mangas anymore, now I'm recreating what he WOULD have worn, had he been a REAL lord in ancient Japan.

The end result of this is a costume that is going to cost me a fortune and take about 3 or 4 years to make, because I'm doing the whole thing by hand, including the embroidery of the 4 kimonos.

My Lord Sesshomaru costume has gone from a CosPlay costume, to a historical reenactment costume fit for the SCA! LOL!

When I get done, it'll still be easily recognized as Lord Sesshomaru, but it'll be changed from the norm, being less fantasy and more real and will more closely resemble a real nobleman's outfit than a CosPlay one.

Oh yeah... and when I get done with his wardrobe, I'm planning to do Rin's, Inu-no-Tasho's, and SesshyMom's too. Hey, I'm doing this much already, I might as well do the whole family right?

How you choose to make your Lord Sesshomaru costume and it's various parts well depend upon many factors, including where you live, where you plan to wear this outfit, and how often it well be worn. An additional factor to consider is: will any parts of this outfit be worn separately from the rest?

As for myself, I wear kimono as part of my daily wear and I can not see making something that will only be worn once. Since this outfit is not all together different from what I wear every day anyways, it well become part of my daily wear as well. Taking this thought into consideration, means that I will not be making this as a costume quality outfit but rather a daily wear quality outfit. For my personal costume I will require the construction to be made to withstand the rigors of being worn every day in my active lifestyle.

Next I must consider where it is that I live. I live in Maine. Right now during the 4th of July week, it is hard to think about the temperature and weather we have during the rest of the year, because right now it is 97F. It has been in the 80's and 90's F all week. Here I am dieing from the heat, and thinking about making a double lined kimono. Nice. However, as I said, I live in Maine, and for 7 months of the year the temperature doesn't rise over 60F, and 3 months of the year it stays well below 20F, with the temps going to -15F for a few weeks each year. It's rare that we get temps over 70F. It's a heat wave when it hits 80F, and weeks like right now, I'm wishing I lived on the North Pole, because I really can't take it when the heat gets over 60F. I am not used to the heat and I do not like it one bit. I love our nippy cold weather and can't wait for it's return. I live in Maine. Our winters are long. Our winters are cold. Our winters last for 4 to 6 months of the year. And so, taking our weather into consideration, I am planning to make my Lord Sesshomaru kimono double lined, which got me to thinking: Does Lord Sesshomaru wear a double lined kimono?

I for one think that he does. Why? Well, for one thing we are talking about a mountain dwelling nobleman from the Momoyama Era who hails from "The West" (China).

1) Historically a lord would wear more layers of fabric than a commoner, just because he could afford to do so.

2) The mountain regions are cold, some of them snow capped. Mountain dwellers, historically wore double lined kimono, because it was a practical thing to do.

3) In the Momoyama Period, bling was king and wearing multiple layers of bright colored linings inside your kimono was the "in thing to do" and thus would be historically accurate for Lord Sesshomaru. The linings tended to be brighter colored, fancier, and much more elaborate than the outer layer of the garment.

4) Sesshomaru , Lord of the West, wears an outfit that tells us he has lived in China, and that some mountain range in China is very likely to be the "Western Land" which he rules over. (When one lives in Japan and one speaks of "The West" one is usually referring to the Qinghai or Tibet region of China.) The mountain range in this area is of course the Hymalayas, which in the lower levels has weather patterns that are nearly the same as Maine: from October to March we both have snow, blizzards, and very cold temps, and during our warm seasons our warm days are not really that warm. Sesshomaru dresses for and grew up in weather that closely mimics weather I dress for and grew up in here in Maine. Higher levels on the mountains are unthinkable to live on, with the highest peak of course being Mount Everest itself. Logic tells me that Sesshomaru wears a double lined kimono, because he roams around in mountain regions prone to snow and hash temperatures.

Well, that is my logic and how it is I came to the conclusion that Lord Sesshomaru wears a double lined kimono.

I have written more detail about what a double lined kimono is and how they are made. That info is posted on my "How to Sew a Kimono" lens (see link below or click here to read it.)

~~ EK (July 8, 2008)

The answer to this question lies in the thread you plan to use. All threads have varying thicknesses. Machine spun thread is going to have a much more even consistency of strand thickness, than hand spun threads will. Likewise, cotton thread from one company will have thicker strands than another company, just as cotton threads may be thicker or thinner than silk threads.

Another factor will be the amount of strands you use per stitch. Most embroidery floss is sold "6 strand" which means that for most of your projects (including kimono embroidery) you will be dividing the strands up, and sewing with a single strand. In other words, when you cut an 18" thread off of your skien of floss, you now have six 18" strands to sew with, not 1.

Your design choices will also affects how much thread you'll need to buy, as well you stitch choices. For example, a raise bullion stitch, takes from 4 to 7 times as much thread to cover the same amount of area as the satin stitch would use.

Here is how I determine how much to buy:

I am currently sewing up my Lord Sesshomaru costume, starting with his pink flowered court robes. These robes, being the ones he wears at home around his palace, are much more elaborate than the ones he wears while traveling, and will require much more floss than the other kimono will and as such, I started on this one first. On this particular kimono there are 31 very large lotus blossoms, each blossom approximately 8" across. These blossoms are scattered at precise points across the kimono, to give the appearance of be swirled up and around it by a gust of wind. Running down the collar is a row of tone on tone butterflies the same color as the delicate silk being used as the body of the kimono. Along the bottom of the kimono hem and sleeves is a band of "dragon robe" ocean wave stripes.

The blossoms are being made in 3 color patterns: a deep magenta (for 16 blossoms), a dust rose (for 5 blossoms), and a dark-toned pink (for 7 blossoms). Each blossom uses 6 different colors of floss. I am using DMC 6 strand cotton and 6 strand rayon/satin floss and DMC light effects precious metals for this project. All of these are sold in 8.7 yard skeins. The cotton and satin threads are being divided into single strands, while the gold metal floss is not being divided and the entire 6 strand thread is being couched down.

The silk I am using is very thin and very close woven, so no more than 2 strand thickness could be used at all, and 2 strands have a hard time going through the weave.

I started by buying one of each of the 6 colors needed for one of the blossoms, and than mounting up the cloth and stitching one blossom. Each 2"x4" petal took 4 hours to fill in using a single strand in long and short stitch. When I got done I had used the following:

one entire skien of 3607
one entire skien of 917
one half skien of 915
one half skien of 30915
1/4 skien of E3821
one 18" strand of 30744

In other words it took 3 1/2 skeins to make one flower for this kimono. However, 3 1/2 skeins are the total of 6 different colors, so it actually took 6 skeins to finish one flower.

I took how many flowers I need to make, by how many colors needed and came up with the following total:

16 DMC 3607
16 DMC 917
8 DMC 915
8 DMC 30915
4 DMC E3821
2 DMC 30744
5 DMC 3806
5 DMC 3687
3 DMC 3805
3 DMC 30899
2 DMC (# not decided on yet)
7 DMC 718
7 DMC 915
4 DMC 3687
4 DMC 33607
2 DMC (# not decided on yet)

That is the list of floss I will be taking with me to JoAnne's when I buy my floss.

That list considers only the large flowers that make up most of the design. It does not consider the butterflies, which are sewn at a rate of 2 butterflies per skien, nor does it take into consideration the large expanse of background covered in the dragon-robe stripes.

The flowers alone, require 95 skeins of floss, butterflies will add another 20 to that list, while the dragon robe stripes will add an addition of no less than 180 skeins to the list, for a grand total of more than 300 skeins of floss to be used on this one kimono. And this is not even a fully embroidered kimono. The colors I am using cost from .35c to $2.09 per skien, bring my cost for thread total for this kimono to just under $200.

When you look at a fully embroidered kimono (one that has every inch of the cloth embroidered), and think you want to make one, consider how much floss it requires to make and how much said floss costs. If I was making this kimono fully embroidered, I would need 4 times the amount of floss I am using now, some 1,200 skeins at a cost of nearly $800.

OMG! I can finally get started on my Lord Sesshomaru costume. YAAA! All these weeks of talking about it, and I'm finally getting the fabric to make it! (picture at right --->)

OMG! You have no idea how hard it is to locate historically accurate 15" wide handwoven white silk, like what would have been used in the 1500's to make Lord Sesshomau's costume! I'm so happy! It's coming from Japan though so will take about 5 weeks to get here! Must find something to do to keep myself busy while I wait.

I was just planning on making one costume, but hell, I bought 5 bolts of the fabric, so now I'm making ALL FOUR of them! WOO-HOO! I only need to make one hakama to use with all 4 costumes, but each costume has a different kimono. I bought enough fabric to make all four kimonos and the hakama. I have never bought so much fabric all at once like this before. I don't even know where I'm going to keep it once it gets here!

High Quality White Tetron (Traditional)Hakama

Hakama are a type of wide, skirt like pants worn by men. There are many types of Hakama, wore during various periods throughout history by different classes at different time.

Lord Sesshomaru is both a warrior and nobleman, a wealthy and powerful Feudal overlord (daimyo) and much feared aristocrat and as such wears a style of ceremonial Hakama which is only worn by the elite few of his social standing. The type of Hakama worn by Sesshomaru is known as the Karusan-bakama or Sashinuki Hakama.

Karusan-bakama

Some hakama during the Sengoku period had the hems made narrower than the body in imitation of the ballooning trousers worn by the Portuguese. This style carried on into the Edo period and became called Karusan-bakama. In addition to the taper, they had a secured band of cloth - looking rather like a pants cuff - sewn around each leg's hem, so the ballooning fabric would not open out like regular hakama.

Sashinuki Hakama:



Traditional Hakama




Sashinuki are a type of hakama that are meant to be worn blousing over the leg and exposing the foot. To accomplish this, they are somewhat longer than normal hakama, and a cord is run through the hem and drawn tight, creating a "ballooning" effect . To allow for the body required, more formal Sashinuki were six-panel hakama rather than four panels. Technically, this cord around the ankle makes sashinuki a type of Kukuri- (tied) hakama. The earliest forms of sashinuki were cut like normal hakama (albeit a bit longer) and have a cord running through the hem of each leg. These cords were pulled tight and tied off at the ankle. This was the form commonly worn during the Heian period. Sashinuki were worn by court nobles with various types of leisure or semi-formal wear.

If you've scrolled down through this lens, you may have noticed by now, that though there are several pictures of Lord Sesshomaru costumes made by various fans, but most of them are not actually wearing a hakama. Still, with or without the hakama, all have pulled off the correct look, and so it is not necessary to wear a hakama, if you don't want too.

As I mentioned, hakamas are not exactly easy to wear, especially not if you are someone used to wearing khakis and jeans. It can ruin your day if you are all dressed up but not comfortable and thus can not have any fun. Since wearing a hakama is something that does require a bit of practice, most CosPlayers are content to just wear a pair of wide legged white pants. Harem pants are another common option. Your best bet, if you want to look like you are wearing a hakama without actually wearing one, is to wear a Tribal wear Belly Dance Tribal Pants. (I have included a link to the best pattern of this type below.)

There are many reasons why a CosPlayer would wear pants instead of a hakama:

1.) Pants are going to be cheaper to make, requiring only 2 yards of fabric as opposed to the 5 to 7 yards needed to make a hakama.
2.) If you are buying instead of making, you could buy white pants from your friendly neighborhood Wal-Mart for $10 - $20, as opposed to the having to search high and low for a specialty shop that sells hakamas which typically sell for $60 to $400.
3.) When wearing pants there is no worrying about a hakama's inconspicuous openings or inadvertently flashing the crowd, a definite problem for CosPlayers who partake in battle scenes re-enactments.
4.) Unless you wear hakamas, palazzo pants, or floor length skirts on a daily basis, pants may be just plain easier for you to walk around in.

Well, whatever your reason may be, for most CosPlayers who take on the role of Lord Sesshomaru, wearing pants instead of a hakama may be a better option.

So, should you choose to wear pants or a hakama? That is a choice that is entirely up to you.

What am I going to do, you ask? Well, considering that I haven't worn pants in over 20 years, and that my daily wear consists largely of ethnic costumes and medieval gowns, you know that for me, pants are NOT an option! I'm going with the hakama. As a general rule, everything I wear, was worn in a time before pants were invented, and since I am a living re-enactor (meaning I wear re-enactment clothing 24 hours a day 7 days a week), for me, wearing anything that is not historically accurate is not an option. I won't even consider it.

The difference between re-enactment and CosPlay is re-enactors wear the cloths as their normal daily wear, while CosPlayers wear the cloths only one or two days a year to parties and conventions.

So when considering which route you should take in making this costume, you need to ask yourself, why are you making it? When will you be wearing it? How long will you be wearing it? What will you be doing while you are wearing it? And how important is it to you personally, to be historically accurate? There is no right or wrong answer here, and the only answer you should go with, is the one that is best for you.

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EDIT ADDED: June 26, 2008

It's no longer a case of what will I do, but what did I do, as today I made my hakama, out of crepe-backed-satin; crepe side out, satin side in. From start to finish (including cutting fabric into 17" wide strips and hemming the sides before starting) it 8 hours to make. This leaves yet another step closer to being finished. These are very comfortable made out of crepe-backed satin reversed like this, I think I'm going t go back to JoAnne's and get some more of that fabric in every single color and make a bunch more hakama and start wearing them every day.

Over his Kimono, Sesshomaru wears a very formal Hakama, a black obi