"My major work serves as a costume to be worn at the Japanese Tanabata Festival. Therefore, it draws a lot of inspiration from the story the Tanabata Festival honours, which centres around the Milky Way, and the common motifs of the festival such as bamboo. The centre back of the kimono-style jacket features a hand-embroidered design including a crane motif, bamboo and stylised Milky Way design created using gold embroidery thread on sheer organza. It is needle-turn appliqued to the back and further decorated with hand-beading. The hand-embroidery proved to be the most time-consuming and challenging process of creating my major work due to its size. However, it was enjoyable to gradually work on and once completed, its the aspect Im most proud of. The collar style and hanging sleeves draws from the recognisable design of the traditional Japanese kimono. The jacket features gold cut lace applique and hand-beading, and the black lace sleeves constructed with French seams are worn under hanging satin sleeves. The inclusion of lace and beading takes historical inspiration from Victorian lace and Art Nouveau and adds texture. The hanging sleeves includes an opening from the middle of the sleeve head, creating a new innovative, contemporary design for Japanese kimono sleeves. The waist corset is a modern interpretation of the traditional obi worn with kimonos, allowing for an alternative style that has ease of wear with a zipper in the back, while also taking inspiration from Victorian waist corsets. It is top stitched along both sides of the boning channels. It proved difficult to achieve even stitches, but with enough practice I managed to get to a point where I was satisfied. The cord tie is hand-braided using a series of red and gold cords and decorated with a traditional Japanese knot. Colours like red and gold also hold great significance in Japanese culture. The black fitted jeans include waist darts and flat felled side seams. The combination of different fabric textures and the contemporary style of including pants and an asymmetrical skirt draws inspiration from Japanese singer Shouta Aoi, who is known for his androgynous style and bold outfits, also often inspired by traditional Japanese clothing. This major work gave me the opportunity to learn many new techniques too. I learnt how to make pants and insert boning, and I self-drafted all my own patterns for the kimono-style jacket which I am extremely proud of."
