First of all, choose the style of kimono as there are many different types available. The most formal are usually black with a gold obi that is tied around the waist. The exciting part of the kimono is the jacket that is laid over the top of the main part of the kimono.
So here are the steps to follow. The First layer is a white cotton sleeveless garment that is a bit like a tunic. There is usually some colourful silk embroidery that is on one side. The idea is that it is visible when you wear the jacket over the top. The sleeveless vest is fastened to the body with a lightweight band that is fixed tightly above the waist.
The next step is to wrap the kimono itself around the body. The kimono I wore was long enough to reach my ankles and needed to be wrapped around twice until it was tight. The difficult part is fitting your arms into the sleeves. They are very loose and baggy – half-sewn up so that your arms can fit through them easily.
A thick braided sash called an obi is then tied tightly over the kimono so that it acts as a belt to keep the kimono in place. I felt very warm by the time this had been done. The obi is always tied at the back – this was done for me but I’m sure that you could do this yourself with practice. The ladies obi is really impressive – almost like a handbag that is attached to the lower back.
You’re almost there. The final part is to where the jacket over the kimono. This is the most delicate and elaborate part. There is a great choice of kimono styles and motifs. Various birds, flowers and Japanese symbols are sewn on to the jacket rather than being printed, this gives them a wonderful decorative flourish. I saw several different colours with many in deep greens and golds and reds. Most would be worn on formal occasions such as weddings and graduation ceremonies. It is also common for children to wear kimonos on their fifth birthdays.
Wearing a kimono for the first time is a special occasion, if a little daunting because of the choices available. Even in Japan, its fairly unusual for people to wear them very often. This being said, I did enjoy wearing it. I had to be extra careful not to damage or stain the sleeves when eating, but it felt great to open the jacket loose and let the sleeves puff out. It certainly is an impressive garment, and the wide sleeves give the wearer plenty of impact.
There are resources on the history of kimono available on line, and the V&A is holding an exhibition of kimonos from 7 August. Titled Kimono – Kiyoto to Catwalk*, it will look at how the style of the kimono has evolved over the years.
Various kimonos are available to hire from kimonodego** in London.
I like to watch porn, and as I have a liking for Asian women, I like to see some Asian porn from time to time. If I’m interested in women from a particular country, I will tailor my search to find porn that matches exactly the Asian nationality I am looking for.
I know I’m not alone in my preference. For example, visit pornhub and you will see Asian as one of the first categories that people can search for. Not merely because it begins with A, but simply because Asian is probably the most popular category there is. And although some would call it a fetish, its more that men prefer to watch Asian women above women of any other nationality. I’ll reserve the term fetish for the category of more extreme stuff which tends to involve Asian women.
What I’m more concerned with here is the standard of the pornography (Asian) that is produced and the possible messages it sends to the user. Let’s say for simplicity sake that the user we are talking about is a white male. He probably meets few Asian woman IRL, unless he happens to be travelling to an Asian country or living in one. And let’s also assume that he doesn’t have an Asian girlfriend. His first exposure to Asian women is likely to come from pornography – and this may shape his ideas about Asian women.
Generally the nature of Asian pornography tends to put an emphasis on the Asian ethnicity of the performers first and foremost. It’s as if the main appeal of these women is their Asian-ness. This is of course true of many women in porn – women being sold on the basis of where they come from, body type – but it seems especially true of Asian porn. Then there is the perceived ‘foreign’ appeal that these women have. For example, films typically emphasise their foreign ethnicity in many ways. It’s common for titles to reference particular cultural symbols – the fortune cookie, sakura for Japan – or simply references to Asian food (one series being called Asian buffet).
For most American pornography the titles reflect the desire white men have for Asian women. Most pornographic film scenarios combine an Asian woman with a white man, but it’s becoming more common to see black men with Asian women too – even becoming a sub-category in its own right. In spite of the fact that many Asian women may never date a man outside their own race – from watching these films you get the idea that all Asian women are desperate to have sex with he first white or black man that the meet. One thing that is less common is any reference to Asian genitalia being any different from other women’s – and here the makers may be doing some service to Asian women in refusing to spread this trope. It’s also less common to see Asian women being depicted as submissive. Perhaps this isn’t such a good stereotype to use if you want to show a confident and sexy woman.
On the other hand – If you’re an ASian woman, you might worry more about the damage these films do in a general sense. For example – the sheer quantity of porn produced in Japan must have an effect on the way Japanese women are viewed by outsiders – and not all of it is positive. Then again – I wonder how many men have watched these films and thought that they would like an Asian or in particular a Japanese girlfriend. Here it’s worth pointing out that of all the pornography produced in Japan (known as AV) – it’s always Japanese women and Japanese men (or occasionally a white woman and a Japanese man). this gives the impression (rightly or not) that it’s harder for foreign men to have sex with Japanese women or have them as partner.
Examples of typical Japanese erotic films known as AV. Japan has shown a remarkable acceptance of pornography – with magazines and DVDs sold openly; many of the performers are given a a positive public profile and have a large following.
If there’s a category of Asian porn that is likely to harm Asian women the most, it is the films that show older western men in poorer Asian countries seeking out usually younger Asian women and filming them for sex. My biggest concern for these films is that the women are greatly disadvantaged economically and cannot truly give their consent. Pornographic websites producing this content send out the message that women in Thailand or Vietnam are so much easier to have sex with; and are not concerned even with sexual health or protection. They spread the troubling belief that women can be bought and used purely for men’s sexual pleasure. Once the women are filmed in these situations, they lose all control over their freedoms: the information is able to spread across the internet. It’s probable that the companies which take the money from the subscribers paying for the content are seeing the profits from this exploitation. If these women had more power – they could find away to generate income through producing their own media and by having control of its distribution. We are already seeing this happen with Asian performers in the States – with adult actresses such as Vina Skyy and Cindy Starfall producing their own material which they can promote through fan only websites. Sadly, the woman in poorer Asian countries have no such option for their work.
Asian Sex Diary features hundreds of sex videos, filmed mainly in Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines. Of all the Asian pornography , these films are probably the most degrading and exploitative – with little evidence of consensual activity.
If they wanted to, the women in amateur sex videos which are shown online could use the videos as promotion. If they could find a way to target the users directly – treating them to self-produced content. Every time a new video is uploaded, it gets harder and harder for men to see women in poorer Asian countries as having much choice over what happens to them. Men will continue to travel to these countries because the women are seen to be more sexually promiscuous – and the advantage on most occasions comes from simply having a foreign passport. It will only change when the women
If there is a positive side to all of the Asian pornography, it’s that men will continue to seek out Asian women for sex, companionship and perhaps marriage. The demand for Asian porn is amply met by supply which seems to show no signs of slowing down. If anything, there is more pornography than ever before – the huge amount of Asian performers is evidence of this. And with so many white men favouring Asian women, how much of this is down to the rise of Asian pornography is obviously difficult to say. At it’s best, pornography can help to teach people about sexuality. The best films show sexuality in a positive light and I will continue to watch films which I believe send out positive messages.
Until they do, the men who make this material will continue to exploit these women due to the economic advantage they have over them.
