英語で日本を伝えよう！古民家での着物暮らし：毎日ごはん、和風ヘアメイク

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wooJkkppb7M

こんにちは！SAYURIです。

こちらは私が作成したYouTube動画で話した英語のスクリプトです。

日々の着物暮らしのこと、いつもやっている和風のメイクアップや髪結いのやり方をお話ししています。

夜ご飯は、地元呼子のイカシュウマイと蒸し野菜、味噌汁です＾＾

それでは、どうぞ！

"Good evening. Tonight, I'd like to invite you into my kitchen

— and into a rather ordinary evening here in Nanayama."

"Before I begin cooking, I do something that women in Japan have done for centuries. 

I tuck a hand towel into the　front of my obi, to use as an apron. 

And then I take a cord and cross it over my

back — like this — to keep my kimono sleeves out of the way.

It's called tasuki-gake. 

Simple, practical, and

— I think — rather lovely."

[Milling the rice]

"Now, one of my small rituals in this kitchen is milling our own rice. 

We buy brown rice — genmai — and mill it ourselves at home, just before cooking. 

This little machine is a home rice miller. 

It removes the outer bran layer and turns the

brown rice into white rice — hakumai."

"And the bran that's left behind — I never throw it away. 

It goes straight into this compost bucket. 

I use an EM bokashi system — 

bokashi is a Japanese fermentation method that turns kitchen scraps and organic material into rich compost. 

This goes into our kitchen garden out front, and into our natural farming plot as well. Nothing is wasted."

"You might wonder — why mill the rice at home? 

Well, once rice is milled, it begins to lose its freshness quite quickly.

Milling it yourself, just before you cook it, makes a remarkable difference to the flavour. 

It's one of those small things that I really believe in."

[Washing the rice]

"And then, of course, the washing. 

I rinse the rice gently,

until the water runs almost clear. 

There's something very calming about this part."

[Setting the rice cooker]

"Into the rice cooker it goes. 

We eat rice with almost every meal here — it's the heart of the table."

[Preparing the vegetables]

"Next, the vegetables. 

Tonight it's cabbage and spring onion

— both from the season. 

I cut them into generous pieces

— nothing too fussy — 

and lay them on a sheet of baking paper

inside the steamer. 

Steaming keeps everything tender and sweet,

without losing any of the goodness."

"I put the lid on and let them do their thing."

[Reheating the miso soup]

"And the miso soup — 

this is yesterday's, kept in the fridge overnight. 

In our house, miso soup is often made in a larger batch and enjoyed over two days. 

The flavour actually deepens a little by the second day. 

I bring it gently back to heat on the stove — just a low flame, not boiling."

[Sayuri leaves to bathe — time passes]

"While the vegetables steam and the soup warms, 

I slip away to have a bath and change out of my kimono. 

A little pause in the evening."

[Returns in pyjamas, holding the baby]

"And here I am again — 

pyjamas on, baby in arms. 

This is usually how the second half of my evening looks."

"The vegetables are ready, so I take them out of the steamer.

And now it's time for the last thing — 

frozen squid shumai. 

I take them straight from the freezer and into the steamer they go."

"Shumai are a type of Chinese-style dumpling — 

very popular in Japan. 

These ones are squid-flavoured, and the children absolutely love them."

[Dinner is complete]

"And just like that — dinner is ready. 

Rice, miso soup, steamed vegetables, and shumai. 

A simple meal, but an honest one. 

This is what an ordinary evening looks like for us."

SCENE ② — Morning Breakfast & School Send-off (3 min)

======================================================

[Opening shot — Sayuri already preparing breakfast]

"Good morning. 

By the time the camera starts rolling, I'm

already well into it — 

jam on toast, yoghurt set out, and a

sandwich on the way. 

Mornings here don't wait."

"Each of my children has their own preferences, 

so breakfast is always a little bit of everything.  

I find it rather lovely,

actually — this small act of knowing exactly what each one likes."

[Washing and filling the water bottles]

"Next — the water bottles. 

I give them a good wash, then fill them straight away with ice and fresh water. 

This is something I always do just before they head out — 

fresh and clean, every morning."

"The water, by the way, is drawn up from our own well — 

pure, natural groundwater from beneath this house. 

Honestly, it's one of the reasons I chose to live here. 

There's something deeply reassuring about knowing exactly where your water

comes from."

[Eldest son comes to collect his sandwich]

"And here comes my eldest son — 

ten years old, and already very particular about his sandwich. 

I ask him what he'd like,

and hand it over. 

He's off in a flash."

[Time to leave — handing over the water bottle]

"Just like that, it's time. 

I pass my eldest son his water bottle and send him on his way."

[Eldest daughter has forgotten her water bottle!]

"And then — my eldest daughter has left without hers. 

I call out to my eldest son just in time, 

and ask him to bring it to her. 

He obliges, bless him."

"And that's the morning. 

A little chaotic, a little rushed

— but full of life. 

I wouldn't have it any other way."

SCENE ③ — Hair Styling (5 min)

================================

[Applying wax]

"With the children off to school, the house is quiet at last.

And now — a little time for myself."

"I start by working a small amount of wax through my hair.

It's made from natural ingredients, 

which matters to me. 

I take my time with this, 

smoothing it through from root to tip,

until everything feels soft and manageable."

[Brushing with the boar bristle brush]

"Then I use my boar bristle brush to smooth the surface. 

This kind of brush is wonderful for Japanese hair — 

it distributes the wax evenly and gives a beautiful, polished finish."

[Gathering the hair]

"I gather everything to one side — the knot will sit justhere, on the lower left of the back of my head. 

A slightly asymmetric placement, which I think suits the kimono rather well."

[Kururinpa — threading the hair through]

"Now for my favourite part. 

I loosen the elastic just slightly, 

press my fingers into the root to open up a gap,

and feed the hair upward through it. 

In Japan, we call this kururinpa. 

It creates a beautiful twisted effect with very

little effort."

[Creating the thin braid]

"I take about a third of the hair that falls through, 

and braid it into a fine plait. 

This will be used later to finish the style — just set it aside for now."

[Adding the dabo and forming the bun]

"For the remaining hair, I smooth the surface gently with my hands. 

Then I add a dabo — 

a traditional Japanese hair tool, made from a soft, cotton-like black material. 

It adds volume and shape from the inside, giving the bun that full, rounded

look you see in classical Japanese hairstyles."

"I wrap the remaining hair loosely around the dabo, 

tucking and shaping until it forms a neat bun."

[Finishing with the braid and pins]

"And finally — the little braid. 

I drape it over the top of the bun to conceal the elastic underneath, 

and secure everything with pins."

"There. A traditional Japanese updo, 

ready for the kimono.

It takes a little patience — 

but I find the process itself rather meditative."

==============================================

End of Scene ③

SCENE ④ — Japanese-style Make-up (5 min)

==========================================

[Opening — skin already prepped]

"And now — make-up. 

My skin is already prepared. 

I blend my own base — 

a mixture of sunscreen and nourishing skincare ingredients — 

and apply it before the camera begins. 

It's one of those small rituals I rather enjoy."

"Everything I use — skincare and make-up alike — 

is completely natural. 

One hundred percent. 

It's a choice I've made both for

my skin and for the environment around me. I've found that what is gentle for the earth tends to be gentle for me, too."

[Concealer]

"I begin with concealer. 

I pick it up with a small brush

— just a little — 

and press it carefully onto any uneven

areas. 

A touch here, a touch there."

"Then I pat it gently with a sponge to blend it into the skin.

No rubbing — just soft, gentle tapping."

[Powder foundation]

"Next, a powder foundation — 

a pale, rosy pink. 

Quite light in coverage, 

but it evens the complexion beautifully and gives the skin a soft, porcelain quality that suits the kimono."

[Drawing the eyebrows]

"Now, the eyebrows — 

and this is where the character of the

look really begins to take shape. 

I use an eyebrow pencil to draw a gentle, rounded arch. 

The tail extends a little longer than you might expect, drooping softly downward. This style is called tare-mayu — 

downward-sloping brows — 

and it gives the face a soft, graceful quality that feels very much in keeping with the world of kimono."

[Lip colour and blush]

"And the red. 

This is the heart of the look."

"I apply the lipstick directly to my lips, 

then blur the edges softly with my finger. 

And with the colour that remains

on my fingertip, 

I press it lightly onto my cheeks — 

just a whisper of warmth, 

blended gently with the hand. 

Then a touch above the outer corner of each eye, patted on in the same way.

This technique ties the whole face together — lips, cheeks,

and eyes all singing from the same palette."

[Cherry blossom clips]

"Almost done. But just as I finish — 

I notice a few loose strands. 

So I reach for these — 

two small clips in the shape of cherry blossoms. 

One on each side, just to catch those

little wisps. 

A small detail, but a lovely one."

[Final look — thumbs up and smile]

"And there we are. 

A natural, Japanese-style make-up look

— soft, unhurried, and just a little red. I hope you enjoyed spending this time with me today here in Nanayama."