最近マイブームは浴衣です。
Saikin maibuumu wa yukata desu.
My recent obsession (or "my boom") is yukata.


Yukata are cotton kimonos worn in the summertime, usually when going to festivals or going to see fireworks. I have two yukatas, the strawberry one shown in the photo, and I recently got a sky blue yukata with a hydrangea and dragonfly design. I really like my silver obi with a floral design, so I wore it with both yukatas. I wore my yukata to see fireworks in Ise city 2 weeks ago, and to the Tourou (lantern) Festival in Kii Nagashima last weekend.
Because I've been kind of obsessed, I've been looking up yukatas online and reading webpages in Japanese and English about how to properly wear yukatas. It's somewhat challenging for me, because my body is not a good shape for yukatas (in other words, I have curves), but I am trying my best to achieve a nice look. I can put on my yukata and tie my obi (the long sash worn around the waist) by myself now, which seems to surprise the Japanese people I've told! I definitely need more practice though. I got a komono set (accessories), which includes a yukata obi ita (a board worn in the front, beneath the obi), and the obi ita helps the look of the obi a lot! It's kind of a complicated dressing process, definitely more so than you can tell by looking at someone who looks carefree in their pretty yukata! I am really interested in learning about kitsuke (wearing kimono), but perhaps I should wait until it gets cooler outside! It's too hot really for yukata even, I don't want to think about all the layers involved in wearing a kimono!