The Hand Beaded Kimono

The Japanese kimono is one of the world's instantly 

recognizable traditional garments. 

The word kimono literally means "clothing"

and up until the mid 19th century 

it was the form of dress worn by everyone in Japan.

Myrle's large kimonos are about 22"wide  x 30" high

while her smaller ones are 8"wide x 10" high. 

When she was just beginning to bead, Myrle visited a museum 

and saw a piece of material from an old tomb displayed between 

two pieces of glass. It set her to thinking... 

what a good way to show both sides of a flat piece!  

So she immediately proceeded to display her small one-sided  

kimonos between two pieces of Plexiglas. 

This means of display wasn't well suited to many exhibitions 

so Myrle went to free-standing, clear Lucite stands. 

With her new kimono stands, she was able to actually make 

more realistic beaded kimonos with both fronts and backs. 

Myrle never named her pieces unless they were in a show
which requested a title for each work entered.
One of these beauties was in The Freed Bead Exhibition in 2002,
Torpedo Gallery, Alexandria, VA.
Her large kimonos were made for herself and her children.