Usage

Kimono are never wasted. Old kimono are recycled in various ways: they may be altered to make haori or to make kimono for children; the fabric may be used to patch similar kimono; larger parts of fabric are used for making kimono accessories such as handbags; smaller parts can be used to make covers, bags or cases for various implements, especially things like the sweet-picks used in tea ceremony. Kimono that are damaged in the lower portions can also be worn under hakama to hide the damage.

Today, kimono are usually worn only on special occasions, and mostly by women. A few older women and even fewer men still wear kimono on a daily basis. Men wear kimono most often at weddings and at the tea ceremony. Kimono are also worn by both men and women in certain sports, such as kendo. Professional sumo wrestlers are required to wear kimono whenever they appear in public outside of the ring.

There is a large number of kimono hobbyists in Japan, where it is possible to take courses on wearing kimono. The classes cover selecting seasonally and event-appropriate patterns and fabrics, matching the kimono undergarments and accessories to the kimono, selecting and tying an obi, and other topics. There are also clubs devoted to kimono culture, such as Kimono de Ginza.