Windsong Dojo has always enjoyed a very relaxed, friendly atmosphere, and has never been heavily concerned with following many of the more traditional formalities. The use of the hakama (the black, pleated pantskirt worn by many aikido practioners today) is not required and is simply not worn that often (although students of shodan rank or higher are certainly welcome to). Likewise, a student may arrange and fold their gi and obi in any way that works best for them.

But for those who are interested in the more formal Japanese traditions, we've included here a series of illustrated demonstrations in PDF format (requires the Adobe Acrobat Reader software, which you can download for free here).

Tying the Obi

Folding the Gi

Tying the Hakama

Folding the Hakama