Hakama for Women With Hips

**GreenArrow** · 23rd May 2006, 04:01 AM

Hi ladies.

I've had a few thoughts about other information useful to women.

The issue of shinais has been discussed at length (I may move the ongoing discusison about sourcing ladies 39 shinais over here some point).

How about hakama and gi? Reason is, the shinai, hakama and gi tend to be the first things we all need to get, just when the trepidation is at it's greatest...

OK, my experiences with hakama/gi.

First out, I'm not small any more. Running at UK dress sizes 16-18, and I have classic hourglass figure- i.e. something up front and hips to match...

Hakama.

This site has a few interesting observations about fitting of hakama for ladies

http://www.bujindesign.com/whakama.html

OK, their stuff is expensive- the Chibabogu equivalent of hakama- but info is also useful if you decide to re-engineer a cheaper set.

Or you can make hakama- they are surprisingly easy to make actually. For future reference, I got a pattern from RoundCircle publishing http://store.yahoo.com/roundearth/hakformarar.html. Carol, who runs the site, is very helpful, and had this to say when I commented on the usefulness of her hakama patterns:

Ahh!!! Mission Accomplished!! May I quote you??
I was trying to resolve Bad Fit, Bad Construction, Bad Information,
and high cost -- especially for grown-up women with Real Hips.
I can die happy now. ;-)

The pattern also comes with "fitting instructions" very useful. Alterations to the pleat positions and angle of the side vents make a huge difference to the fit.

Fabric to make: If your dojo allows you to wear white hakama it's REALLY easy as white cottons are readily available. If not (ours doesn't let us wear white unfortunately) the best source I've found is navy sheeting for a lightweight set- or you can get white cotton drill and dye it (Dylon machine dyes), at least you won't go smurff. I haven't found a source of indigo-dyed fabric yet.

Gi.

Not found a ladies Kendogi yet. Bujin does a ladies gi supposedly for iaido/kendo/aikido- (http://www.bujindesign.com/wdogi.html) but not in indigo or navy. Not in rice-grain pattern either.

RoundEarth also does a gi pattern http://store.yahoo.com/roundearth/gipattern.html- same issue with fabric as above.

My conclusions to date:

1. Using standard kit: Get a big size for a gi- and tie it tight, hakama- get a decent one- will have more material in- and re-engineer if you want pleats to look good
3. If you feel creative- make your own
4. Save pennies for Bu-Jin kit!

Anyone else have experiences to share?

**Solinde** · 23rd May 2006, 05:48 AM

I don't really feel that this is a big issue for me, although obviously my clothes would probably fit better if I looked more boyish. What came across my mind though was this NineCircles hakama that I noticed a few days ago. According to the info on the site it has "special features including reinforced back plate and side slits, extra long ties and wider front section for western hips". Has anyone tried it and can tell us if this makes it a better fit for women?

**tantadi** · 23rd May 2006, 05:56 AM

You can try this:
http://home.att.net/~daimyo.outfitters/open.html

or this: http://www.kyotokimono.com/WhatsForS...MadeItems.html
or this: http://www.shop-japan.co.jp/english-...ndex.3html.htm
or this: http://sdksupplies.netfirms.com/cat_reberuniforms.htm

**Commander** · 23rd May 2006, 05:59 AM

I noticed that the #8000 indigo dyed hakama i bought from kendo-bogu is very baggy and long, i need to wear it quite higher

Though the white hakama i got from kendoshop fits perfect and its the same size...

Strange.

**LarsCW** · 23rd May 2006, 07:09 AM

Originally Posted by Commander

I noticed that the #8000 indigo dyed hakama i bought from kendo-bogu is very baggy and long, i need to wear it quite higher

Though the white hakama i got from kendoshop fits perfect and its the same size...

Strange.

My hakama was too long too so I washed it and then dryed it 1 third of the cycle to check if it had shrunk enough and placed it back for another third which made it shrink enough.

Now I can wear it as I should.

Maybe an idea for you too Sarah. Just be carefull when you do it.

**Alison2805** · 23rd May 2006, 10:12 AM

for some reason my hakama hems always end up higher at the front than at the back, god knows why, I dont have a beer gut or anything! And they always work their way up during training so they look too short. Ill just buy a longer hakama next time. I sewed an extra set of ties inside my gi to stop it from moving around under my do, which works well.

**Fonsz** · 25th May 2006, 02:28 AM

I thought I would like to add to this thread with some words about the Hakama from my favorite supplier who has got it covered well in this page:
http://www.chibabogu.com/catalog/inf...b2f7018e113b8e
Hope this is any help and I'll be out of here in a jiffy.
Cheerio!

**GreenArrow** · 25th May 2006, 02:49 AM

Originally Posted by Fonsz

I thought I would like to add to this thread with some words about the Hakama from my favorite supplier who has got it covered well in this page:
http://www.chibabogu.com/catalog/inf...b2f7018e113b8e
Hope this is any help and I'll be out of here in a jiffy.
Cheerio!

Errr.... no mention of hips there though eh...??? You know, the bits that stick out at the sides, not the bit that sticks out front- that's the "Beer Gut"

**Fonsz** · 25th May 2006, 03:40 AM

Originally Posted by GreenArrow

Errr.... no mention of hips there though eh...??? You know, the bits that stick out at the sides, not the bit that sticks out front- that's the "Beer Gut"

You're right I just looked it over more closely and you're right. Since (I'm lucky) I don't have a beer gut or hips it's never been an issue. I don't suppose that Chiba's mentioning of how to measure can also be applied to hips? Just guessing here.

**Budo Angel** · 25th May 2006, 05:42 AM

well ladies I think you're being very brave anouncing your vital statistics to the whole wide world

...and I weep to read the hakama abuse/issues... its sacred peice of clothing !!! (just kidding) a purist here.

Nope bujin are making women's widths. But otherwise that old broken record...custom cut/order. But be careful on this one - a good maker will understand you want the width of EVERY front pleat wider and in proportion. I know someone who tried this, it was better but still not right. Good luck !

You know, any more of these sort of wimins threads, and the blokes out there will think we're not from this planet

**Alison2805** · 25th May 2006, 04:16 PM

what?? they dont already know?

**Commander** · 29th May 2006, 07:13 AM

I've noticed my hakama really spreads out, looks bulky compared to my white one...strange.

I've also noticed that the himo are thicker and quite stiff, i've worn it alot but i cant seem to soften them to tie easier. Any suggestions?

**Budo Angel** · 31st May 2006, 01:30 AM

Himo width and stiffness depends on the density of the cotton count is it #7,000 ? (easier to wash) or #10,000 (normally the top thickness, great for gradings/taikai, heavy going for everyday)...sweat breaks it down if you wash it out after each use (not wash with soap, not every time) I mean just water...

**neko** · 7th September 2006, 10:18 AM

hi all,
just wanted to tell you all a story about my quest to find hakama that fit.
the first pair of hakama i bought was from ebogu. i bought the correct length for my height, but it never fit quite right because well, i have hips. so i then bought a woman's cut bujin hakama in the heavy duck. the fit was great, but the damn thing was soooo heavy. not to mention that it wasn't indigo....just blue cotton duck. so i started thinking that surely the longer the hakama are (from ebogu), the wider the hips must be. so i emailed ebogu and asked what length would i have to buy to have the hips be **in. across (measuring across at the bottom of the vents). they emailed me back and i bought the length they told me.

well, today i shortened them to the correct length and they fit just great. the pleats hang nice and the waist needed zero alterations. it actually fits better than my bujin one! man, i am so happy!

**rottunpunk** · 7th September 2006, 05:46 PM

hakama seem to fit ok on me.
theres a bloke at the dojo who may find these useful though

the annoyance i have is the baggy bit of keikogi just above wher the sword goes. i have a womens kimono which should aid it, but the whole jackets a bit big.
i just adjusted by jubon so they took on a more figure hugging fit.
chidokan sent me this link a while ago, i want the two-tone pretty purpular ones
http://www.shop-japan.co.jp/english-boku/hakama5.htm

hey neko, i got my kendo ones from ebogu too-very happy with the. i also got them on a get the keikogi free (the amount save went on shipping and tax) deal they were doing at the time. they do seem to have their sizes sorted