Kids Web Japan

b) The kimono must be tied with the right side on the inside.

The photo shows shichi-go-san, when families dress up in kimono and go to a shrine to wish for children's health and happiness. (PANA)

Kimono is the famous traditional dress of Japan. There are many different types of kimono, including ceremonial kimono, wide- and long-sleeved kimono (furisode)worn by unmarried women, and haori (traditional jacket worn over a kimono) and hakama (pleated loose trousers) worn by men. The most glamorous of these is the colorfully patterned women's kimono. The kimono is a rectilinear dress made with sewn strips of cloth, but when worn and tied with a rope and obi (sash), it curves nicely around the body. When putting on the kimono, the right side is folded underneath, closer to the skin. The left side is only folded below when dressing persons who have died, and doing so in daily life is thought to be a bad omen.

Because kimono are expensive, restrict the range of motion, and take a long time to put on, most Japanese people wear western-style clothing in their daily lives. However, children and young people can be seen wearing kimono during special occasions like shichi-go-san (The Seven-Five-Three Festival), the Coming-of-Age Day, and weddings.