Figure 1.-- A reader tells us that this is a Kodomo no hi portrait. Children also commonly dress up in traditional costumes for Shichigosan. The same costumes may be used for both holidays.

I am not entirely sure how children are dressed for Kodomo no hi. A reader has sent us a portrait of a boy in traditional clothing. There is another hiliday for children--Sichi-go-san. This is 7-5-3 day, referring to the age of the children. We know children now dress up in traditional outfits for this holiday. Children may also dress up in traditional clothes for Kodomo no hi. We do not know if there were differences in the way the children were dressed between the two holidays. We notice that after World War II that boys dressed up in Western-styled suits, the girls always dressed up in traditional outfits. These traditional outfits now seem more popular. They are also quite expensive, so here income level may be a factor. A reader writes, "Notice that for boys, the colors are very different than girls kimonos. The dark blue has no adornment except for one dragon image. This is a jacket to be worn over the kimono. Under it the actual kimono has a geometric which is typical for boy's kimono (or men too). The pants definitely has the geometric beige color as does the sash. It is possible that the actual kimono is navy without any kimono since the pants are worn over the kimono. The inner pants are very colorful. That seems to be a pattern in male kimonos in general. The socks and shoes are traditional too. "

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Created: 2:21 AM 12/3/2006
Last updated: 5:45 AM 12/5/2006