Coveted Kimono: Spiders + Toads, Oh My!

This gorgeous kimono must have been made for someone very special! The details are incredible, even masterly. There is no doubt that this costs someone a fortune! And rightly so.

Spiders and toads are extremely unusual on women's clothing. I love the late Fall scheme (evidenced by golden and red momiji and gingko leaves). The toads look annoyed or bored- maybe the spider is stealing their lunch? After all, a toad only has one sticky tongue, while a spider has hundreds of threads to capture his meals. Perhaps they should just move away from each other.

The spider mostly blends into his surroundings, which is ideal for a spider to do. The inclusion of bright purples and olivey greens at the bottom make this outfit stand out even more, I think. It's the small details that make the overall image really 'pop'. Really, I can't think of anything that would make the image and feeling more perfect.

The construction itself appears to be a relatively recent make, due to its short sleeves and white interior. As for its length, it appears to be a standard kimono, which would be tied at the ankles, but it's done in a hikizuri fashion on the hakkake lining. Normally, modern kimono have a flat-colour panel at the bottom, but some higher-end ones (and many antique ones) will have the pattern from the outside dyed on the inside lining as well. Or perhaps this *was* a hikizuri for a particularly petite geiko. As I haven't seen the original listing, I cannot say for sure.

I wonder what obi someone would wear with this?

Maybe something repeating the scenes of falling orange leaves on a black background...

How is it that I'm so nostalgic over something I've rarely seen in my life?