What are kanzashi?
One of my specialities is tsumami* kanzashi (hair ornaments). These
labour-intensive and lavish floral hair ornaments traditionally grace
the coiffures of geisha and maiko (apprentice geisha). I have
simplified the traditional designs in order to make them more wearable
and easy to fit into a modern wardrobe, and I use a glue that's much
sturdier than the traditional rice glue so you don't have to worry
about handling your flowers.
Each petal is cut and folded by hand, making every flower one-of-a-kind! Most are made of habotai silk hand-dyed by yours truly.
*tsumami: meaning 'pinch', a traditional Japanese craft which makes flowers out of squares of fabric, similar to origami
Some examples of my previous work: