There’s a sewing machine on a table behind the counter with a fire roasting next to it. That sewing machine, when driven by talented theater costume-maker, Nina – the other half, and designer, behind this outfit – creates the vibrant robes that hang like colourful rivers from a rack in the boutique. They’re the Yukatas. And they’re God damn beautiful.
What’s a Yukata? It’s a casual summer kimono, a robe to wear around the house. Think of it like sweatpants for the Japanese. The loose fitting garment has found its way into the world’s fashion bloodstream of late, and you’ll often see them out on the street being worn as a Spring jacket in New York and Paris.
Meanwhile, the Vienna-based Yukata’s unique take on this ancient Japanese garment makes me decide on the spot that I will buy one and never wear anything else. Ever again. But then I think of my hairy legs poking out from underneath and think again.
Made out of pure cotton or silk, rich in colorful batik or floral patterns, lined with tints of gold – distinctly the striking patterns of Indonesia and the rest of South East Asia. They give me the smell of frangipanis, sunscreen and far off places. But the real twist in their design is revealed when Klaus draws my attention to the lining of one of the robes; it’s made out of traditional Blaudruck (indigo) material sourced from upper Austria, while the outside is a floral Indonesian print.
“Nina’s creations try to combine Austrian with Asian material,” Klaus tells me before turning the jacket inside out, “and many of them are reversible.”
I think of getting out of bed each day and deciding whether I’m feeling more Japanese or Austrian. I can’t even choose what coloured socks I’ll wear in the morning. Klaus talks with a passion, and as if there’s an endless supply of it, both for the fabrics and the Yukatas. He talks about the different places he’s traveled around South East Asia, seeking out workshops where he can witness the different weaving and printing techniques.
“We never wanted to just buy the fabric and sell them – we always wanted to see the story behind it,” Klaus explains before he jumps from a story set in Burgenland, Austria, where they sourced one material, to one in Cambodia where they hope to travel to next and spend time with an organisation trying to revive the weaving craft in the war ravaged country. Klaus keeps pulling piece after piece of beautiful fabric out to show me and begins to explain, “I fell in love with this fabric when …”
No matter how hard I try, and how interesting the contents of our conversation is, the robes continually nag my eyes back to them.
“Do you know there’s a silk made out of mussels?”
No I don’t, I answer. But I’m impressed that he does. I continue looking at the robes.
Nina and Klaus came together in a theater. He was working as a theater technician, while Nina was a costume maker. The concept of making Yukatas was something that developed on its own after Klaus started collecting all this material he fell in love with along his travels.
“I simply fell in love with the fabric first and asked Nina what she could do with it,” he explains. So as you can see, two passions came together to create Yukatas. The result is a garment that has the delicate beauty of a Japanese garden, and the vibrant feeling of Spring.
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