Why are kimono sleeves so long?

Kimono sleeves wasn't used to be that long! This is kosode, the precursor to a Kimono. This one dates from the late 1600s. The longer sleeves in present-day kimonos owe its existence to the evolution of fashion during the Edo period. read more

As “so as not to be hampered in their movements,peasants and fishermen in the old days wore working kimonos with sleeves tapered round the wrist” (Kimono by Sophie Milenovich) , the impracticality of the long sleeves makes a point about the specialness of the occasion and the wealth of the family that can support a daughter who doesn’t work, however temporarily. read more