Japan in the spring; a travel wardrobe

So, we’ve just recently returned from a fabulous holiday in Japan! had the most wonderful relaxing time and have come back all rejuvenated and charged up ready to dive enthusiastically back into the wedding-related maelstrom that is currently my life…

My typically bloggy habit is to do a bit of reflection and analysis of my travel wardrobe and think about what was good and what… was not?

Time away:

17 days

Where to:

Japan… time spend in each of Tokyo, Kyoto, Kanazawa, Matsumoto, and up in the Kiso Valley area

Season:

early spring, expected daily temperatures of around 4C-ish up to 24C-ish

Expected activities:

as much viewing of cherry blossom as possible! with tonnes of hiking, some biking, visiting the studio Ghibli museum and a hedgehog cafe, shopping for fabric and wool – obviously! and hanging out with my lovely friend Yoshimi

Colour scheme:

mostly pink/red and whites/ivory, with splashes of blue and yellow/mustard….

What I packed:

all items are linked to their original construction post. I made everything here except for the shoes, handbag, and the apricot scarf was a gift from my Mum…

from L to R, top to bottom, the numbers in brackets after are the number of times each item got worn;

yellow/white sundress (2)
apricot scarf, a gift from my Mum (4)
cream infinity scarf (5)
striped sweater (4)
lt blue jacket/cardigan (9)
cream beanie (2)
pale pink raincoat (3)
lightweight ivory sweater (3)
white polar fleece turtleneck (8)
pale pink twist top (5)
pink mohair sweater (5)
jeans (7)
gold handbag (every day)
lime-green hand warmers (5)
3 x pairs of socks, plus 1xsockettes (11)
two lightweight white T-shirts plus lightweight striped T-shirt (every day as thermals)
red mini-skirt (4)
mustard skirt (4)
blue bathers (not even once)
pink thongs (none)
hiking boots (8)
2 x prs of black tights (10 days, sometimes doubled up)
little black walking shoes (3)
black ankle boots (5, plus most evenings for dinner)
(not pictured) my pyjamas, knitting bag, toiletries bag and a selection of (me-made) underwear

My daily outfits:

Thoughts:

After a few weeks of obsessively stalking the weather forecast in Japan, I packed both wintery things and a few warmer weather things too, since it all seemed quite variable. So, it seems like a lot of clothes… but I needed everything!! For most of our trip it was absolutely freeeeeeezing!! and by freezing I mean, yes it actually snowed several times! Those expected temps of 5C to up to 24ish? well, it plummeted to 1C and highs of 11C on a coupla days! brrrrrr… So even my warmer weather lightweight T-shirts got worn every day, underneath everything simply for thermal purposes, and my just-in-case jumpers got worn layered and oftentimes doubled up too, just to stay cosy enough. Several days that you see me wearing tights above, well I’m actually wearing BOTH pairs of tights, doubled up!!

My white fleece turtleneck that I made for our Alaska trip was a lifesaver; it’s funny, I never wear it at home but it’s got worn a tonne on two consecutive holidays now. I know lots of people loooathe fleece, and I’m not the biggest fan either; but for warmth and the fact that it weighs practically nothing, it’s so easily washable in a hotel sink and very fast drying… well it’s a traveller’s no-brainer really.

In retrospect, I should have taken a coat, but you know what? I survived! My old woolly blue cardigan was kind of a coat substitute and I carried it nearly everywhere. It was ok, and I enjoyed that I could get by with what I had brought, but I have to admit I was bored to tears with it by the end of our holiday.

The weather was just so cold I thought I wouldn’t get to wear my yellow/white sundress at all… and I hate it when I think I’ve brought something for naught! but fortunately on our last two days the bitterly cold winds abated, the sun blazed delightfully and I joyfully freed it from its cobwebby corner of the suitcase and wore it two days in a row… yes, I still needed the tights and the trusty blue cardi but still; hurrah!!!

I wore my hiking boots for hiking and biking, my little black walking shoes for city walking, and brought my heeled booties for the plane and for dinners every evening. I love having smart shoes, just in case! and these ones are both stylish and comfortable. I took my bathers and thongs, again just in case! and didn’t even wear them once. Oh well, at least they don’t take up much room… Each of the hotels we stayed in had Japanese style, segregated public baths and I did take my bathers down with me the first time as a precautionary measure, but embraced the Japanese bathing way when I saw I would be the literal only person in bathers. And I didn’t die of embarrassment!

The one thing I really wish I’d brought?? a pair of gloves. My arm warmers were great, but one day biking in Kyoto it was like 3C and sleeting rain and my hands got SO COLD. Craig kindly let me wear his gloves … btw; I think I did an excellent job choosing a husband who has perpetually warm hands and doesn’t need gloves. Very good planning on my part, if I say so myself; hehe.

So that’s that! Now please allow me to bombard you all with a million cherry blossom laden holiday snaps, ahem…