Oriental luxury has long attracted fashionistas. However, it is not at all easy to name the moment when the breath of the East began to be traced in European fashion for the first time. Every time an oriental style has an impact on Europe, a new date is given for its impact on fashion. We will not go into now when and how this happened. The main thing is that oriental luxury is known for its unique trends. And one of the trends of the East has become all kinds of jewelry.
Today we will consider jewelry for creating hairstyles in the Japanese style - kanzashi. It is these decorations that I would like to highlight, as they borrow beauty from nature. Hana kanzashi correspond to seasons, and even months. They repeat the flowering of plants at certain times of the year.
For example, during the period of May, when wisteria blooms, girls make kanzashi from bright silk, purple ribbons. By the way, blooming wisteria is an extraordinary sight. May kanzashi are complemented by small silver butterflies. The main color of May decorations is blue. June kanzashi symbolizes green willow, carnation, sometimes hydrangea, etc. There are special kanzashi - for celebrations and holidays.
Flowers are often made of brightly colored silk or silk ribbons. Japanese women in their national costumes wear different kanzashi depending on their status. Maiko, geisha apprentices, wear the most luxurious kanzashi, cascading garlands of flowers that hang right over their faces.
It is believed that these decorations were invented by geishas. In a Japanese women's costume, jewelry on the arms and neck is not used, but hair styled in complex intricate hairstyles, on the contrary, can be decorated. Sticks, scallops, hairpins serve as decoration, and kanzashi are an addition to them.
In earlier times, kanzashi testified to the status and age of the girl, they reflected her taste and skill, because the girl made these jewelry with her own hands.
For the manufacture of kanzashi, not only ribbons were used, but also wood (sakura, boxwood, magnolia), silver, gold, tortoise shell, brass, and wire. Plastic reigns in modern fashion, so many elements of kanzashi are now made from this material.
Kanzashi is part of Japanese culture. These decorations must be appropriate for the age and social status of the woman. There are many varieties of them.
Japanese hair ornaments
Tama Kanzashi. These are wooden sticks-hairpins, at the visible end of which a ball is put on. There are very expensive Tama-Kanzashi - made of gold and precious stones. If a Japanese woman has a kimono in her wardrobe, then such an ornament is a must, even if made of plastic.
Hirauchi Kanzashi. Everything is the same as in the first case, only instead of a ball there is a circle or a small disk, which is made of the same materials and is an obligatory accessory of the image with a kimono.
Kanoko dome kanzashi. Ornaments of small size in the form of flowers or butterflies. These kanzashi are made from jade, coral, pearl, quartz, agate, gold, silver, or tortoiseshell.
Bira kanzashi. (fluttering kanzashi). They decorated the hair of unmarried girls of the merchant class. These decorations were in the form of butterflies, birds with hanging chains.
Ogi Kanzashi or jewelry for princesses. Here the shape of the main part is similar to a fan (ogy) with metal pendants. All this is attached to a long hairpin.
There are also other varieties such as bira birareminiscent of Ogi Kanzashi, kogai kanzashi - in the form of a sword tsumami kanzashi - flowers made of silk, with origami-type technique. These Japanese ornaments amaze with their magnificence. With the help of kanzashi on the head of a girl, you can create a real work of art.
Over the centuries, certain traditions of wearing kanzashi have developed. Most loved in European countries Hana kanzashi or kanzashi with flowers whose content, shape and color depend on the season and month of the traditional calendar.
Each time the East makes itself known differently - Asian style comes to us from movies, or in the form of tea ceremonies that help to relax and think about the meaning of life. The martial arts of the East and relaxation techniques are not the last among fans of a healthy lifestyle. Philosophical teachings and the luxury of the East have always had and still have an impact on Europe.
