Kimono Pajamas

Kimono Pajamas: Crossed-Collar Sets for Calm Nights and Slow Mornings

A crossed collar settles into a gentle v neck, and getting ready for bedtime suddenly feels more intentional. That one fold is what Kimono Pajamas at Zen Kimono are built around. These are kimono style pajamas in the simplest sense: a crossed-collar top with pants or shorts, comfortable enough to sleep in and tidy enough to answer the door in. Pull it on at night, and you'll still like it at breakfast.

Why Kimono Pajamas Replace the Old Sleep Shirt

Most of us sleep in leftovers. A drawer of faded tees, a baggy nightshirt, old sleep pants, nothing you want seen. Even proper pajamas fuss with a notch collar and a button down placket. Kimono sleepwear keeps it simpler: the crossed kimono neckline gives the top a quietly flattering shape, and shape reads as put together before you've even brushed your hair.

The same shape shows up outside the bedroom, too. Samue, the cotton work clothes of Zen monks, pair a crossed-collar top with drawstring pants. Put a kimono pajama set next to them and the silhouette is the same. So the set is less a novelty than a practical garment shape, put to a gentler use: rest.

Kimono Pajama Sets in Shorts or Pants

• For her: a kimono pajama set women can live in, the crossed-collar top paired with pajama pants or easy pajama shorts. Florals in full bloom bring a softer, more feminine mood.
• For him: our men's kimono pajamas keep the same clean collar, with pants or shorts, and make a neater swap for an old tee and boxer shorts. For daytime, the same fold carries on in our Male Kimono collection.
• Patterns: calm solids, a floral print, crisp striped sets, and checks with the cozy feel of old-school plaid pyjamas. Stripe or floral, the collar stays calm, and no leopard or loud polka dot shouts at you at 6 a.m.
• Shapes: each kimono pajamas set is a two piece, a top plus pajama bottoms, so a short set for hot nights sits beside pants for cooler ones. Own two sets? Mix and match the tops and bottoms.
• Sizing: most sets run M to XL, some start at S, and plus size sleepers get a few sets reaching 4XL.

Cotton, Gauze and Polyester in Kimono Sleepwear

Mostly cotton, the same fiber you trust in your bedding and towels, which is good news for any hot sleeper under the duvet.

A cotton kimono pajama set is breathable in the way you want at 3 a.m., letting heat escape on the nights you go to bed already too warm.

Some styles use cotton gauze, a loosely woven cloth that lets air move straight through. Think of the airy ease of linen, with more softness against the skin. It feels more open than a stretchy cotton jersey knit, and hangs rather than clings.

A few sets are polyester, which tends to crease less in a suitcase.

Cotton won't give you the cool slip of silk pajamas in charmeuse or silk satin, and it never pretends to be silky. Most sets also sit lighter than the flannel pajamas or polar fleece you pull out in January. What you get is the plain comfort of good cotton pajamas, night after night.

Wearing Kimono Pajamas Past Bedtime

• Wear the top with your favorite denim for a slow coffee run.
• Add slippers, tuck the top in at the waist or leave it loose, and the set becomes weekend loungewear, as easy as any lounge set for puttering around the house.
• Roll the pant hem into a single cuff at the ankle when you want a neater line. Long sleeves? Turn back the cuffs too.
• Wearing the top out? A ribbed camisole underneath keeps the crossed neckline modest, so nobody mistakes it for lingerie.
• On cool evenings, throw one of our Kimono Jacket styles over the top, or a soft sweater or hoodie for extra warmth. For ten minutes on the porch, that's all the outerwear your nightwear needs.
• Split the pair. The bottoms pass as lounge pants under a sweatshirt, in place of joggers or sweatpants. The pajama top looks deliberate with cropped wide leg trousers or plain black leggings from your wardrobe.

Kimono Pajamas for Slow Sundays and Hotel Weekends

A slow Sunday. Toast, a crossword, no robe sleeve trailing through the jam. You skip the dressing gown altogether, because the collar already sits neatly.

A weekend away. The set folds flat in your luggage next to your swimwear and sunglasses, then covers lounging around the room and the hallway walk to the ice machine.

A cold morning at home. Pull a bathrobe or a waffle robe with a shawl collar over your pyjama top, snuggle back into the pillows, warm and cozy, and let someone else boil the kettle. His version: a striped set, one of our Male Kimono Robe styles on top, and the first coffee finished before anyone wakes.

A gift for Christmas. Choose a women's set and a men's set that sit well together and you have matching pajamas, far calmer than most novelty Christmas pajamas. Same trick for a bridal morning, with a satin robe saved for the photos.

Before You Order Kimono Pajamas

What size should I choose?

Start with your usual size and check the size details on that set. Like space to sprawl? One size up gives a loose fit, roomy and a little oversized. If you like it snug, stay put.

Why a set instead of a nightgown?

Long nightgowns can twist around your legs every time you turn over, and a short nightie tends to ride up. Two-piece pajama sets stay in place better, and on hot nights a short set keeps your sleepwear light.

Take your time with Kimono Pajamas. Good jammies are a small thing, really. Still, the collar you fall asleep in is the first thing the mirror shows you next morning, so let it be one you like.