Black Crane Long Japanese Robe 'Tsuruyoru'

White cranes with pink wings on a long black satin robe, the evening version

On black satin, to the ankle, the cranes become an evening. This long Japanese robe carries them across its lower half, white with pink wings and red crowns, flying in a loose flock, with sprays of gold blossom scattered over the chest and the sleeves, and the black ground makes every one of those colours brighter than it is. The belt is cut from the same cloth and ties at the front. Wide sleeves to the elbow, a crossover front, and a hem that swings.

It is the long robe for after dark, and the one in the family that looks most like something to be seen in rather than to hide in. Black satin has been the colour of the dressing gown since the dressing gown was invented, and this one adds birds.

The name, Tsuruyoru, means crane night, the bird at night, and the robe is the night.

The cranes are printed, not embroidered, on a polyester satin with a smooth, glossy face and a fluid drape, chosen because satin is what makes black shine rather than absorb, and because a long robe should fall straight. It is unlined and not sheer.

Cross the fronts left over right, wrap the belt once at the waist and tie it at the front or the side. The length gives it a sweep, and the elbow sleeves keep it practical, which a long robe is not always.

Up close the cranes show every feather and the pink shows its gradation from the wing edge in. From across a room it is a long black robe with pale birds at the hem, and it reads as a garment rather than nightwear. It is also the longest shadow in the wardrobe, and it moves like one. Wear it slowly.

It washes cold, inside out, and dries in an hour on a hanger. Kept on the back of the door rather than folded in a drawer, the satin stays smooth and the print stays where it was put.

It goes with nothing, with a black slip when the room is cool, and with a glass of something. Of the long crane robes, this is the one for a night in that has been planned.

Sizes run from M to XXXL. It is cut to Asian sizing and runs small, so take one size up from your usual. Between two sizes, take the larger.