You are someone who cares deeply. Whether you are caring for your family or a stranger, you take on the role of caretaker in almost every situation. You have cooked epic dinners for your girlfriends, played matchmaker, led the PTA, booked the romantic vacation for you and your sweetie, on top of a million other small things that you do daily to take care of others. In other words, it’s important to you that you participate in life with kindness and care. Your values run deep, and they lead you in everything you do.
You take care of others, and we take care of you. At KIM+ONO, we’re a small team who’s just like you. Young parents, family people, and kinkeepers in our own communities. So we know the power of living in accordance with your values. When people talk about values, it can sound constraining. It can sound like obeying the rules or not falling out of line. But when you define your life values for yourself, and then you live them in integrity, you end up feeling joyful, spacious, and centered. Living in accordance with the values that you have for your life is an act of self-care. It’s a way to take care of your mind and body, led by your spirit. When we created our collection of silk floral robes, we knew that we weren’t just speaking to how women felt on the outside, but how they felt on the inside. How we created our flower kimono robe collections was just as important as the design. Our values, from our family heritage and history to maintaining fair wages for our workers, are stitched into every single flower kimono robe.
And this just feels good. Living one’s values just feels good. It gives you a boost of energy, a dash of confidence, and the resilience to keep on going when life gets a little chaotic. So today in the journal, we’re going to investigate a handful of ways to improve your life by living your values and adding even more beauty and joy to your everyday life.
When founders, sisters Renee and Tiffany Tam, were little girls, they traveled with their parents to Asia. It was there that the sisters fell in love with the handcrafting process of beautiful long kimono. The young girls were curious. They peeked into the shops. Spied on the artisans. They touched the beautiful silk fabrics of the floral kimono and became completely absorbed by the watercolor and garment dying process. This curiosity is what led them to make their own line of silk floral robes once they became adults. Approaching life with childlike curiosity is the best way to connect with what truly speaks to you. Instead of only pursuing hobbies or careers that mean something to someone else, following your curiosities creates a direct link between your values and your daily life. Your curiosity shows you what is valuable to you. It shows you what you love. Just like the Tam sisters, approach your life with curiosity and who knows where you’ll end up? But one thing you can count on: it’ll be somewhere that feels wonderful when you’re there.
Staying connected to your values and letting every day of your life feel like a dream isn’t just a once and done act. It’s a constant process of becoming who you truly are. When the Tam sisters created their silk floral robes, they knew that they wanted each customer to feel confident in their own skin. They wanted each flower kimono robe to be a beautiful reinforcement of the beauty inside each person who wears one. When you feel confident, you can withstand anything. The resilience you need to move through your days and weeks in integrity, without giving up, and staying true to your values, comes naturally when you believe in yourself. Surround yourself with people who believe in you, too. And this resilience will help you build a life that’s fully integrated with your values.
We have always loved the quality of handcrafted products. Whether it’s the long kimono robes in our online store or the wellness goodies in our brick and mortar shop, the quality of every item is imperative to us. In your own life, invest in quality products that bring you joy. Avoid stockpiling, and instead give and get with intention. Let the quality of the things you surround yourself with reinforce your values of sustainability and care. A white silk robe you wear on your wedding day can last a lifetime — through your honeymoon, nursing, trips with girlfriends, and even a gifted heirloom to a treasured member of your family. When you invest in quality items, you are reinforcing to yourself that you care about the quality experience of your everyday.
You take care of so many people in your life. And while that can sometimes take a toll, it can also be energizing. You can gain so much by treating others with respect, love, and compassion. Avoiding gossip, being kind — these are all characteristics and values that add to your life, not just others’. Gifting someone a flower kimono robe to say how much you care, bringing them soup when they’re sick, showing up for them when they need support — all of these things bring value to their life and yours. And if you gift yourself a beautiful white silk robe when sending one their way too, it can serve as a reminder that taking good care of yourself and others is paramount to your everyday happiness.
These are just a few ways to align your values with your everyday life and lead a life that you can feel proud of and excited by. When you feel your inner and outer worlds align, there is nothing quite as beautiful. You can wake up every morning, slip into a beautiful silk floral robe, and look out at the day knowing that good things are coming, because you’ll make it so.
