Happy Monday! I had a lovely weekend, and so did Michael in Tokyo. He spent much of the weekend with our client, Mr. Hirayama. Mr. Hirayama works with many large department stores in and around Tokyo. He opens temporary jewelry stands in the mall and has a few permanent locations.
We have been selling to him for many years and have become friends with him. Whenever Michael is in Japan, Mr. Hirayama wines and dines him, and we do the same when he is in NYC. On Saturday Michael and Ariel, my husband and daughter, went to the Isetan center, a mall in Tachikawa, and saw our collection on sale. The customers were very happy to see Michael, and most likely thought he was the designer. People confuse us very often since our names sound so similar. All the saleswomen were wearing our jewelry and Michael said they were thrilled to meet him. He is getting lots of attention in Japan, he will come back with a big ego. Here are some pictures..
After that Mr.Hirayama took them to see the kimonos of Itchiku Kubota. He is a very famous artist who works with fabrics and dyes. Last time I was in Japan I went there also. It is absolutely breathtaking, the kimonos themselves are art pieces.
He set out to create 80 kimonos to represent the 4 seasons and the universe. Sadly, he died before he could finish, but what he did complete is on display in a beautiful museum near Mt. Fuji. Each Kimono takes about a year to complete! And I thought my pieces were intricate. If you are ever in Tokyo its worth the hour long drive. The museums also has a tea house, that faces onto a beautiful garden. They serve green tea and tradition sweets like red bean soup with rice dumplings, yum!
-Michal