Last week, I posted this photo and asked you guys to guess what baito (part time job) I went to:

And, +Whitney Yee got it right! Dingdingding *throws confetti*

By the way, this is an excellent time to circle me on Google+. I share loads of things there, not just about Japan, but also about reading, writing, cooking etc. Ok, self-promo part is over. 

So this story starts with Meinohama station. I was at Meinohama station waiting for the train one day when I spotted this poster.

Poster not taken at Meinohama Station.

So after doing some due diligence about the company, I went to apply for the modeling baito. And yay, I got it! I was so so excited!

How the selection process went:

1. Apply online. By the way, this this their website.
2. Get a phone call and make a date for the interview.
3. Interview – The interview was mostly questions like “why do you want this job” and “how do you find Japan”, like the website says, it’s really just a chat.
4. Wait.

Oh, and I know they have stores in Yokohama and Fukuoka. I think the main branch is in Yokohama. But it seems like there’s none in the kansai area, since my cousin tried to apply too, but was asked to go to Yokohama.

So on the day itself, I went back to the shop, got my hair and face done, was dressed in a furisode and photos were taken. It took less than 2 hours, which was much shorter than I expected.

The place.

By the way, I read online that you weren’t allowed to choose what you wanted to wear, but this wasn’t the case for me. I got to choose between a furisode and houmongi, as well as the pattern of the furisode that I wanted to wear. 

My camera was kept with my other belongings, so I didn’t get to take many photos. But someone took a picture of me after the event, so here I am with makeup and hair in (relatively) pristine state.

I really wanted to get the catalog to show you guys, but apparently it’s not for external circulation. I’m guessing it’s like those catalogs they use when they show you the kimonos as you sit in the office wondering which one to get.

But, they did give me all the shots (printed copy), and I can choose prints if I want. But my mom says my face looks very round in the photos, so I guess I’m not getting any.

Hi!

The first photo was basically me holding a whiteboard with my name and date. The rest were posted photos, with multiple shots of the same pose. But apparently, I blink a lot or something, so they weren’t very nice. Here are the best two (from 3 sheets of paper!) 

Does my head really look big? ><

I’m guessing everyone would rather see a full body shot, since most of the pattern is in the bottom half:

I love the pattern of this furisode!

This was a really unusual, and fun baito. I’ll be blogging about my regular baito sometime in the future, so do keep watch for it. I’ve also got pictures from last Sunday, when I went back to the kimono place to wear a Yukata, take photos and eat, but that’s another story for another post.