I've got a contest going over at the club.

I've always been intrigued by the idea of mixing the art of other cultures with the kimono. And seeing as I was so psyched over my Africa trip, the contest theme was African inspired kimono.

This is the design I completed for the contest. It's inspired by a tribal woman I saw while working in Angola. I believe she was from the Mukubal tribe. Mukubal ladies have a very striking appearance. Most noticably because of their hair. They wear it in a sort of mohawk fashion with dreads ending in pompoms hanging down the sides of their head. They lighten their hair to make it a lovely reddish brown too. Then they take a sort of red stone and grind it up into a powder which they put on their skin. This makes their skin look almost the same colour as their hair. A lot of their clothing tends to be a similar colour as well.

So, using that earthy pallet I came up with this design. I chose a tayuu-esque sort of kimono because I wanted the obi to give the effect of a wrapped African skirt. Also, I thought the wing sections in tayuu hairstyles would look nice with the Mukubal hairstyle. The cloth patterns and some of the jewellery here were inspired by other tribes, unfortunately I don't know their names. I think the overall effect of this design resembles the ancient Chinese clothing ancestor of the Japanese kimono.

The voting period for the contests going on at my clubs is now open. Yes, two of the contests are Africa themed. XD Anyways, anyone from DA is allowed to vote, so please go check out the entries and help decide the winners!


African Kimono contest
[link]
Please vote in the poll located at the side of the page.


Off to Africa contest
[link]
Please vote in the poll located at the side of the page


Maple Leaf contest
[link]
Please vote by sending the club a note with your choice of the winning entry included.