Category: Textiles

New Quilts by Sarah Nishiura and Thoughts on the Humble Thimble

By:
Textiles Sarah Nishiura

Today I’m very excited to let you know that we have new quilts by Sarah Nishiura in our shop->

Quilt by Sarah Nishiura, 2023
Sarah made this quilt because she hadn’t made a yellow quilt for Entoten in a while and she was also in the mood for some sunshine after a long gray winter.
Quilt by Sarah Nishiura, 2023
This quilt was made as part of a series of blue and white line of work that Sarah has made for Entoten over the years. Each work of this series has been created through a different approach using these colors.

 

Right around the time I received these much-awaited quilts, Sarah was announcing her hand quilting workshop in Chicago that begins registration on June 21st through her Instagram account. “What’s the best way to learn to hand quilt?”, she wrote. “First, buy a thimble; Second, find a teacher who can give you a few tips; Third, practice, practice, practice!”

This got me thinking about thimbles. About how the thimble that my mother showed me to use in Japan is different from the ones used here in the U.S.

Thimbles in Japan are called yubinuki and they provide the same function in hand-stitching as western thimbles to push the end of the needle through fabric and to protect your finger. But while a typical Western thimble is worn on top of the middle finger, Japanese ones are worn between the first (DIP) and second (PIP) joint of the middle finger like a ring. You can watch a short Japanese YouTube video on how to use a yubinuki here->

The Western cap-shaped thimbles are also available in Japan, but all the kimono sewers that I have known wore these ring-shaped thimbles. I would often walk into a tea break that my mother was having with her sewing buddies and everyone had these rings still attached to their fingers as they sipped tea from a cup; like it was some sort of a fellowship ring of sewers.

Yubinuki that my mother uses to sew. They can be purchased for less than a dollar a piece.

 

According to the encyclopedia Nipponica via Kotobank, the majority of pre-Meiji (1868-1912) period yubinuki were made from layered fabric in the shape of a triangle or a circle and were worn at the base of the middle finger with a string. This is because people used long thick needles to sew work clothing that were mostly made from rough linen or cotton. After Meiji, when sewing became part of the school curriculum, shorter needles and ring-shaped yubinuki became more common.

I first learned to use a yubinuki when I made a summer kimono many years ago under my mother’s instruction. It was very awkward and uncomfortable to use at first, but when I got used to wearing it, I couldn’t sew without it. I haven’t had the courage and patience to make a kimono since then, but the yubinuki has stayed with me and I look for it even when I have to occasionally re-attach a button.

Sewing set that was used by my niece in school when she was about 11 years old. The same yubinuki is in the set because they can be adjusted to fit the small fingers of children with a string. Sewing is still a part of the Japanese primary school curriculum.

 

Once, I purchased a nice ring-shaped metal yubinuki for my mother because I noticed that she was using cheap leather and plastic ones that needed replacing regularly. She was very happy when I gave it to her, but I soon noticed that she wasn’t using it. When I asked why, she hesitated, then told me that she prefers the soft adjustable ones because the bony knob on her finger joint was getting bigger as she got older, and it was difficult to put the ring through. I was embarrassed that I didn’t realize this without her telling me. Just because it was durable and more expensive, it wasn’t better for her working hands.

Many years have passed since then, and these days my mother has difficulty remembering how to sew a kimono. But she still loves stitching and when I see that brown, slightly tattered yubinuki on her finger, it makes me happy because I know that she is having a good day.

Rakugo Tenugui by Harada Fumiko: The Edo Storytelling Tradition in Your Pocket

By:
Design Harada Fumiko Textiles

Tenugui by Harada Fumiko in our shop ->

Kabuki is one of Japan’s most well-known arts around the world, but rakugo, the traditional Japanese performing art of comic storytelling, is probably the least known outside Japan. Inevitably so, because humor is so challenging to translate into other cultures and languages, and I know this firsthand because I have often attempted to bridge this gap myself. Which is why I’m very pleased to introduce a new tenugui design by Harada Fumiko that allows me to give you a small glimpse into the world of Edo-rakugo.

Edo-rakugo tenugui by Harada Fumiko

In rakugo, the performer sits on a cushion on stage and tells a funny story to the audience by using minimal props, namely a fan and a tenugui. The origins of this art form can be traced to the mid-Edo period (1603-1868), and by the end of 1700s, there were regular rakugo performances attended by ordinary people at venues in Edo, Osaka, and Kyoto.

Only Edo (Tokyo) and Kamigata (Osaka) styles of rakugo currently remain, and while some performers specialize in telling classic stories that were first recited during the Edo period, others create new comic stories and perform them on stage. Classic Edo-rakugo is told in sharp downtown Tokyo dialect called beranme (pronounced like bay-run-may), the language of the working class, which is similar in connotation to the Cockney accent of East London. You can also find examples of Tokyo dialect spoken on screen by the famous Tora-san, and more recently by ‘Master’, the popular chef protagonist in Midnight Diner on Netflix.

If you hang around the old shops in Asakusa, you will be able to meet people who speak in classic Tokyo downtown dialect.

And if you have traveled to Japan, you may have noticed that Japanese people love puns and often tell the same jokes. This is because puns and repetition are important Japanese humor traditions and therefore they are prominent in rakugo. The punchline is called ochi, which means “the drop”, and this is why it is called raku (drop) go (words). People enjoy great rakugo performers telling the same story even if they all know the punchline because how well the story is told is the most important part of a rakugo performance. Even young Japanese children know the classic rakugo tales like “manju kowai (I’m scared of manju).” 

You can watch an English version of “manju kowai” performed by Matthew Barbee in this YouTube video.

In rakugo, a single storyteller sits in the seiza position on stage and plays multiple characters by changing the tone of their voice. Photo courtesy of my high school friend Agatsuma Yasuhide whose hobby is performing rakugo. Storytelling is an art form that requires many years of training.

Harada-san designed the rakugo tenugui to commemorate the promotion of a Edo-rakugo storyteller, Daidokoro Osan, to the master level called shin’uchi. Rakugo performers have strange names and his means “Kitchen Osan.”

Appropriately, the storyteller depicted in the tenugui is an iron-pot yokai monster performing in front of other familiar kitchen utensil monsters. The yokai is reciting the well-known classic tale of “tokisoba,” which can be literally translated as “time soba,” about a man taking advantage of a soba hawker who flourished during the Edo-period. The highlight of this story is the spectacular soba slurping using a fan as chopsticks.

You can watch an English version of “tokisoba” told by Kimie Oshima in this YouTube video.

Kitchen utensils like iron pots, tokkuri bottles, coopered cypress rice containers, and grinding bowls used to be very popular in the past, but not so much now.

The art of soba eating is also worth a brief digression because soba is Tokyo’s original and quintessential fast food. It also has a special place in my heart and stomach because my grandparents used to have a soba shop in Tokyo. San Diego has many good Japanese restaurants, but I have yet to find a good soba shop here. If you know one, please Email me.

In Tokisoba, the soba is topped with hanamaki (roasted seaweed) and chikuwa (fish cake). I never had soba with these toppings but it was delicious when I tried it.

Soba makes me very nostalgic about Tokyo. I often think back to the times when many of my uncles and aunts were still alive and we all gathered to have soba. They inhaled soba with spectacular slurping sounds like in the rakugo, because they said that soba had to be enjoyed “as it passes the throat,” and it was “unappetizing” to eat soba quietly.

In recent years, with an increasing number of tourists visiting Japan, there has been abundant coverage in the Japanese media about whether the slurping sound of noodles being consumed was offensive to foreign ears.  But I will tell you that when I hear a great rakugo performer like Yanagiya Kosan V (1915-2002) slurp soba and tell the story of Tokisoba in his rhythmic and down-to-earth Tokyo dialect, I sure crave a good bowl of soba and miss Tokyo very much.

If you understand even a little Japanese, I highly recommend listening to Tokisoba performed by Yanagiya Kosan V, the Japanese Living National Treasure. You can hear it on YouTube by clicking here.

Guardian of a Craft: ‘Kata-e-zome’ by Esteemed Textile Designer Yamauchi Takeshi

By:
Textiles Shizuoka Mingei Yamauchi Takeshi

Kata-e-zome by Yamauchi Takeshi in our shop ->

Entoten is over the moon to be able to introduce a collection of work by renowned Japanese textile designer Yamauchi Takeshi, who has been designing and dyeing textiles for over 60 years in his studio, Atelier Nuiya, in Hamatsu City in Shizuoka.

Soba cups noren door hanger by Yamauchi Takeshi on woven hemp.

Yamauchi-san creates work featuring bold designs of his own creativity, and also motifs inspired by traditional patterns and family crests. His colorful ideas are turned into tenugui towels, cushion covers, furoshiki wrapping cloth, and door hanging noren.

Furoshiki with a circular crane (tsurumaru) motif inspired by a traditional Japanese family crest. The crane logo of Japan Airlines was also inspired by the crest.

Yamauchi-san’s work is known as ‘kata-e-zome’ (pronounced kata-eh-zomeh). You may have heard of the term ‘katazome,’ which means a traditional method of dyeing fabrics by brushing on a resist paste through a stencil.

Thistles patterned tenugui by Yamauchi Takeshi

‘Kata-e-zome’ was coined by the Japanese government to recognize the achievements of Yamauchi-san’s teacher of 6 years, the legendary textile designer Serizawa Keisuke (1895-1984), who was awarded a Living National Treasure title in 1956. Serizawa carried out all of the processes of traditional stencil dyeing himself and created a more pictorial style of textile design, which became known as kata-e-zome, meaning stencil-picture-dyeing.

Yamauchi Takeshi carries out every aspect in the design and production of his textiles 
Photo courtesy of Yamauchi Takeshi, Atelier Nuiya

Yamauchi-san, following in the footsteps of his revered teacher, still carries out all aspects of the production processes by himself. This involves highly labor-intensive work routines that includes creating the stencil, applying resist, and finally dyeing the textile. In a traditional katazome studio, the work is divided between several craftsmen.

Yamauchi-san’s daughter, Yoko-san, said that at this time her father does not take long breaks from his work because, “he worries that his muscles can’t keep up if he rests too much.” Yamauchi-san is 81 years old this year.

Kata-e-zome master Yamauchi Takeshi working at his studio
Photo Courtesy of Yamauchi Takeshi, Atelier Nuiya

Despite his age, Yamauchi-san’s enthusiasm to his craft is limitless. He creates the small tenugui towels with many different designs even though the work involved in creating them is no less than making much larger and expensive pieces. “He wants to make sure that there are pieces of his work available for every budget,” Yoko-san said.

Tenugui designed and dyed by Yamauchi Takeshi sold at Atelier Nuiya. Yamauchi-san creates many different patterned tenugui because he wants to make sure there are pieces of work available for every budget.

If you are ever in the Hamamatsu area of Shizuoka, I urge you to visit Yamauchi-san’s atelier, which is within walking distance of Hamamatsu Station. In addition, Yamauchi-san’s door hanging noren of red mount Fuji is on display at the Japan House in Los Angeles as part of the Japan 47 Artisans exhibition that runs until January 5, 2020 coordinated by D&Department.

Kata-e-zome master Yamauchi Takeshi’s Atelier Nuiya in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan

Being in the company of Yamauchi-san’s textiles brings such joy and comfort to me, and a little part of Yamauchi-san’s creative world can be viewed in San Diego throughout November when his noren will be displayed at the Entoten Gallery. I hope that you will make time to come out to the gallery and see his special work in person.

New Quilts by Sarah Nishiura: After England, Inspiration Comes From Home

By:
Textiles Sarah Nishiura

New quilts by Sarah Nishiura in our shop ->

“I’ll be working on the quilt designs while I’m here. They may have a lot of gray in them if the weather has any influence,” Sarah Nishiura wrote tongue-in-cheek from Liverpool in England, where she and her family were spending this past summer. So when the finished quilts arrived this fall, I was so excited to see what England had inspired in Sarah.

Quilt by Sarah Nishiura, 2019

Sarah said that one of the quilts was inspired by knots and woven lines that has been a longtime interest of hers. I immediately thought of the ornamentations depicting knots that can be found in many old church architectures in English and Anglo-Saxon Stone carvings.

My husband (a British born Chinese from Exeter in deepest, darkest Devon who goes through life dripping with sarcasm) saw it and happily exclaimed “it’s so green like England!”

Quilt by Sarah Nishiura 2019

The green, though, was not by any English horticultural influence, but from a stripy linen pillow in Sarah’s living room in Chicago, which is one of her favorites. She feels that its colors shout out the “1960s”.

Quilt by Sarah Nishiura 2019

The other quilt, Sarah said, was inspired by her two cats, April and Lucca. The browns were inspired by April’s pretty fur, and the pink by Lucca’s cute pink nose.

April and Lucca, aka quilt models, on Sarah’s favorite pillow

Sarah said that she designed the quilts when she was traveling in England, but did not settle on the colors until she got home. She said that maybe it was the feeling of being happy to be back at home that made her choose fabrics that are so reflective of her domestic environment.

I often want to write about my travels because I have the opportunity to visit foreign places quite often. But writing about such experiences is so difficult because it involves expressing a vast range of emotions and experiences. It is amazing that artists like Sarah can convey so much of her feelings and observations directly and elegantly through her work. And in these quilts, she makes a very telling point, that the best journey takes you home.

Quilt by Sarah Nishiura 2019

Read more about quilt-maker Sarah Nishiura ->

 

New Quilt by Sarah Nishiura: Inspired by Taisho Design

By:
Textiles Sarah Nishiura

Quilts by Sarah Nishura in our shop->

How cultures and designs inspire beyond time and borders is fascinating and eye-opening. Across the ages, early Greek artists were attracted by the ancient Egyptians, French impressionists were influenced by Japanese woodblock prints, and old Korean ceramics inspire today’s Japanese potters.

Sarah Nishiura’s quilt was inspired by a Taisho era kimono pattern

So I was intrigued to hear that Sarah Nishiura’s new quilt was inspired by a Taisho era kimono, with its bold and also slightly nostalgic pattern. Sarah says that she is really interested in the scale of the designs in the Taisho era kimono and the way its [large] scale allows the whole garment to come alive with the movement of the body. A quilt is much more like a kimono than a painting from the perspective that they twist and roll as they cover the body.

Quilt by Sarah Nishiura. A quilt is much more like a kimono than a painting, because it twists and rolls as it covers a surface

The designs from the Taisho era are eclectic mixtures of traditional Japanese designs with influences from contemporaneous Western design schools like Art Deco. Taisho was a unique time when Western and Japanese designs influenced each other simultaneously. And fortunately, because Japanese do not throw away kimono easily (mottainai), many examples of the patterns from the Taisho era are still easy to find.

Taisho era kimono with a large scale “Yabane” arrow feather pattern from my closet. This kimono belonged to my grandmother and is paper thin now, but I still wear it as “jyuban” -inner wear- for my kimono.

To provide a little background, Taisho (1912-1926) was a short era right after the better known Meiji (1868-1912) and just before Showa (1926-1989). Taisho was a time when liberalism flourished, popular culture was spread by mass media, café culture blossomed, and the new world opened for women to work and declare financial and spiritual independence. It is the equivalent of the “Roaring Twenties” in the West.

And the Taisho era continues to influence people today. If you ask a Japanese what comes to mind when they think of the Taisho era, they would probably say “Taisho Modern”.

Tokyo Station on the Marunouchi side. Originally opened in 1914, the station is a well-known and iconic brick structure from the Taisho era. The facade was restored to its original outlook in 2012.
Photo by J. Evans

The term “Taisho Modern”, or also called “Taisho Roman”, refers to spaces and designs that conjure up the culture of Taisho. I think of strikingly patterned kimono, cafes with high ceilings and stained glass windows, and old Japanese-Western style architecture that can still be seen in the high-end Ginza and Nihombashi districts of Tokyo

My great-grandparents, my grandparents, and my mother. Meiji, Taisho, and Showa eras on display in one photograph. My parents always talk about the generations who survived the Taisho era as tough and brave.

Most important, “Taisho Modern” carries an inherent feeling of resilience because Japan survived the Great Kanto Earthquake (1923) during Taisho, which was the country’s worst-ever natural disaster in which more than 100,000 people lost their lives. My parents always talk about the generations of people who survived the Taisho era as tough and brave. So I feel that it is a perfect sentiment for a lovely quilt that stands up to use and protects us from the cold, and does it in great style.

The Fabrics of a Craft: Quiltmaker Sarah Nishiura

By:
Design Textiles Sarah Nishiura

Quilts by Sarah Nishiura in our shop ->

When I first saw a photograph of an inventive quilt made by the Chicago-based quilter Sarah Nishiura, I thought I was looking at an abstract painting. The fascinating geometry, surprising lines, and the hues of colors enticed me to feel something completely new.

2017 Quilt by Sarah Nishiura.
Photo courtesy of Sarah Nishiura

Sarah, who is both an accomplished painter and dedicated quilt-maker, distinguishes between the two forms. “A painting is flat,” she observes, ”a quilt on the other hand is never flat. It may be presented that way in a gallery or in an image on-line, but the surface is textured from the stitches. There is always some kind of wave or wiggle to it, and, if it is used on a bed or a lap, it changes constantly as it is folded, draped, or left in a lump on a piece of furniture.”

quilt by sarah nishiura
A quilt changes constantly as it gets used in our everyday life

A quilt has much more purpose than a painting in Sarah’s view. “Quilts are meant to be touched while paintings are generally not. As a painter, the brush was always an intermediary between me and the thing I was making. When I quilt, I touch every inch of my work as it evolves. And similarly, touch is a very important part of the viewer/user’s experience,” she explained.

Sarah was taught to quilt by her mother, whose own mother made quilts by piecing together feed sacks during the Great Depression in the late 1920s and early 1930s. Sarah’s Japanese-American father’s family was held in an internment camp during the Second World War, where they gathered wood scraps to create altars for people.

Sarah hand-quilts all of her work instead of by machine because she likes the way the lines look. It is a slow process but she feels that the pace of quilting is what makes the final product so special.  
Photo courtesy of Sarah Nishiura

By creating beautiful quilts that provide warmth through the piecing together of otherwise discarded fragments from the past, Sarah finds a connection to the ingenious creativity of her ancestors who created useful and beautiful things out of nothing.

Sarah Nishiura and her shelves of inspiration at her studio in Chicago
Photo courtesy of Sarah Nishiura

Sarah gets her greatest inspirations from quilt history. “I love looking at quilts made in the past, analyzing their designs, how they were made, and also thinking about the context in which they were made”. She occasionally takes a deep dive into the collections database of The International Quilt Study Center in Lincoln, Nebraska where traditional quilt patterns can be searched with examples of hundreds of variations of the same pattern.

“One thing I love to do when designing is to challenge the geometric relationships that have traditionally been used in quilting. Figuring out how to warp a grid or shift proportions within a composition is a really fun puzzle and can open up endless possibilities and create some really dazzling effects,” she said. Indeed, a quick Internet image search of Sarah’s name will pull up quilts with numerous innovative designs that she has created. Given Sarah’s gift and passion for geometry, it is no coincidence that her father was a mathematician.

Quilt designs by Sarah Nishiura. She loves figuring out how to warp a grid or shift proportions.
Photo courtesy of Sarah Nishiura

Yanagi Muneyoshi, the founder of the Mingei movement once wrote in an essay titled “Nature of Folk-Crafts” that the most essential quality of folk-craft is its nationality, because it directly reflects the life of that nation. When Sarah remarked that  “a quilt is made of many different materials that all have to be made to play nice together”, this made me think about the openness and inclusiveness of quilts and how synonymous it is with America, where the quilting tradition thrives to the present day with more than 16 million quilt makers.

A quilt’s most special quality is its intimacy. “The desire to play with geometric pattern is only one part of the game” says Sarah Nishiura.

I understand why Sarah does not want her quilts high up on walls, but want you to keep it close and take them into your hands. It is because the most special quality of her beautiful work is in its humility and intimacy.

Patterns that have Enchanted Generations of Tastemakers: Fukusa Textiles by Kitamura Tokusai in Kyoto

By:
Textiles Kitamura Tokusai

Silk fukusa by Kitamura Tokusai available in our shop ->

Tucked into the mesmerizing narrow backstreets of Kyoto’s historic Nishijin area and just a few steps away from the headquarters of the two grand, centuries-old Japanese tea schools of Omotesenke and Urasenke, there is a humble little shop with a curious square of orange silk hanging at the front entrance of the store.

At first glance, the elegant, spare shop exterior could seem daunting, even to a Japanese. But on the contrary, the bright silk square is a symbol of hospitality in the all-inclusive practice of tea. And passing through its doors will allow you to discover an important connection to the textiles of highly ritualized, yet fascinating, tea preparation.

Kitamura Tokusai fukusa shop in Nishijin, Kyoto
The Kitamura Tokusai Fukusa shop in Nishijin, Kyoto, with a single fukusa hanging in the storefront

This is the shop of Kitamura Tokusai, who has been making fine silk cloths, known as fukusa, for practitioners of tea since 1712. Kitamura Yumiko, the wife of the current shop owner, warmly and enthusiastically explains why the fukusa came about and its utility. “The fukusa was born from the people’s desire to cushion, wrap and protect valuable things”. She adds that “it symbolizes the spirit to cherish objects,” a concept worthy of reintroduction into our contemporary materialistic culture.

Kitamura Tokusai fukusa shop.
Inside the Kitamura Tokusai Fukusa shop. The building is a registered traditional architecture of Kyoto

In Chado (The Way of Tea), a double-layered, square piece of fukusa silk cloth is used by the host during tea preparation. Larger fukusa, approximately 11.25”x10.8” in size, are used for purifying utensils and are usually made of solid colors, such as red, orange, or purple. This cloth symbolizes the cordiality of the host and is put on the waist, ready to be folded and used in front of guests.

fukusa
A fukusa on the waist of a host preparing tea for guests.

The smaller fukusa, called kobukusa, is approximately 6.5”x 6” in size and is typically used as a setting to present utensils and to carry tea bowls. Kobukusa are made of fabrics featuring antique designs that can be divided into three main types: golden brocade (kinran), damask (donsu), and striped cloth (kanto). Designs on some of the kobukusa are known as meibutsugire, or “textiles with special names” or “textiles of special significance.” The originals were mostly brought to Japan from China between the 14th and 18th Centuries.

Kitamura Tokusai makes over 400 designs of fukusa
Kitamura Tokusai makes over 400 different patterns of kobukusa

The meibutsugire are significant because these patterns were selected by some of the earliest tea masters who were widely considered to be the top tastemakers of the time. The originals arrived in Japan when the Japanese did not yet have the technology to weave such elaborate types of textiles. The patterns first appeared in Japan in the form of stoles for Zen monks, or as coasters for Buddhist alter fittings and as such, were highly prized.

These snippets of textiles were very valuable in Japan and were only available to the aristocracy, samurai class, and monks. The original meibutsugire often accompanied distinguished (meibutsu) tea containers in the form of pouches, a practice continued to this day. Because these meibutsugire had been stored in wooden boxes by their owners for generations, many are preserved in excellent condition.

"Kofukuji Kinran" (興福寺金襴) a type of gold brocade meibutsugire kobukusa reproduced by Kitamura Tokusai. It depicts golden phoenix on purple twill. The original of this pattern from the 14th century is said to have been used as a hanging in front of the alter at Kofukuji temple in Nara. "Kofukuji Kinran" (興福寺金襴) a type of gold brocade meibutsugire kobukusa reproduced by Kitamura Tokusai. It depicts golden phoenixes on burgundy twill that resembles stone pavements. The original of this pattern from the 14th century is said to have been used as a hanging in front of the alter at Kofukuji temple in Nara.
“Kofukuji Kinran” (興福寺金襴) a type of gold brocade meibutsugire kobukusa reproduced by Kitamura Tokusai. It depicts golden phoenix on purple twill. The original of this pattern from the 14th century is said to have been used as a fabric divider hanging in front of the alter at Kofukuji temple in Nara.
Kobukusa with Rikyu's Plum Blossom (紹紦利休こぼれ梅文様）Shoha RIkyu Koboreume Monyo
Kobukusa with Rikyu’s Plum Blossom (紹紦利休こぼれ梅文様）Shoha RIkyu Koboreume Monyo

Yumiko-san explained that Kitamura Tokusai creates over 400 different fabric patterns that are still woven locally in Nishijin, which has been the main center for kimono and textile production in Japan for over 1000 years. “Silk textiles change color when they are seen from different angles because silk threads are naturally triangular in shape like a prism”, she said. Each fukusa is carefully sewn by hand with invisible stitches on three sides.

With the expert guidance of the Kitamuras, Studio KotoKoto has brought a selection of Kitamura Tokusai’s fukusa back to the United States for tea and textile enthusiasts. The story behind each pattern is unique and fascinating and we hope that this will trigger your curiosity into the world of beautiful fukusa textiles.

Map to Kitamura Tokusai fukusa shop in Kyoto ->

 

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Furoshiki and the Elegance of Simplicity

By:
Textiles Saratetsu

Furoshiki by Saratetsu in our shop ->

Japanese love to puzzle about how to make simple things elegant. Everyone knows about Origami, but there is also wrapping cloth or Furoshiki, which can be described as the textile version of Origami.

I have been exploring creative ways of using these square pieces of fabric over the past few weeks.

Butterfly pattern furoshiki draped over sofa back
Butterfly pattern furoshiki draped over sofa

This beautiful furoshiki was hand-dyed onto linen by Saratetsu in Tokyo using a stencil with a vintage butterfly motif. I have previously blogged and posted on Youtube about the story of furoshiki stencil-dyeing, but I want to explain in this blog about its history, tradition, and uses.

A butterfly furoshiki bag hanging on a peach tree.
A butterfly furoshiki bag hanging on a peach tree.

Wrapping cloth known as Tsutsumi have been mentioned in writings from as far back as the 8th Century AD. One reference is to a cloth wrapped around an imperial costume stored in the Todaiji Shosoin Imperial Repository in Nara. So the practice of wrapping things for storage has been taking place in Japan for more than 1300 years.

And it was not that long ago that these simple but versatile cloths were part of everyday Japanese life. They were used to carry or store away practically anything. Even children wrapped their books in furoshiki to go to school.

Hon-tsutsumi, or the ‘two books carry wrap’
Hon-tsutsumi, or the ‘two books carry wrap’

Using furoshiki for carrying personal items fell out of fashion in post-World War II Japan when owning a Western-style bag became fashionable. At around the same time, Japanese department stores started giving paper bags to customers to carry their purchases. I remember when I was a young girl enjoying the status symbol feeling of carrying a paper bag from a major department store such as Isetan.

Despite the waxing and waning of fashion fads, if furoshiki did not efficiently serve its purpose, how could it have survived for more than a millennium? As I explored and experimented in different ways to using a furoshiki, I discovered many advantages of using this benign piece of square cloth.

Three same size furoshiki they only become as big as the items you are carrying
Three same size furoshiki. They only become as big as the items you are carrying.

First, they are flexible. They only become as big as what you carry in it. Secondly, they are easy to clean. If you’re coming home from the beach carrying a sandy towel, all you have to do is to dust it off.  Moreover, if you are giving away or returning the content, you can fold it away after use. This is especially useful when you are taking a bottle of wine to a dinner or returning a library book. This adaptable and continuous use of furoshiki makes them economical and environmentally friendly.

The Japanese Ministry of the Environment has a wonderful site where they have diagrams of different ways of using a furoshiki. For all you book worms, the hon-tsutsumi, or the ‘two books carry wrap’ is especially intriguing and my favorite. Next time you go on a picnic, maybe you’ll be inspired to take your lunch or favorite books in a furoshiki. Now that would be a fashion statement for the ages.

Visit to Saratetsu Dye Studio Part 3 – Butterflies and Fern: Bringing Back the Magnificent Stencil Patterns of the Past

By:
Textiles Saratetsu

Saratetsu linen furoshiki with vintage stencil pattern in our shop ->

Saratetsu, the last yuzen wrapping cloth (or furoshiki) dyer in central Tokyo, has accumulated a treasure trove of stencils since opening for business in 1910.

KotoKoto was especially fascinated by the design of old paper stencils that Saratetsu used before switching to computer generated screens 22 years ago. These old paper stencils are called katagami, and are made by layering multiple pieces of Japanese paper glued together with persimmon tannin. Kimono and other fabric dyed with these waterproof paper stencils were extremely popular in Japan from the mid Edo (around 1800) to the early 20th century.

Old Paper Stencil with Yabane (Feather of Arrow) Pattern

We wanted to pick two stencil patterns to be used for our new linen designs. But with such rich choices available, making a decision was incredibly difficult.

Many were not just beautiful but had special meaning to the Japanese people. For example, the ‘feather of arrow’ pattern had the power to ward off evil.  It also was often used on gifts to a bride to wish her a happy marriage. As an arrow never came back once it was shot, the gift senders wanted to wish that the bride would not return home because of a broken marriage.

After taking many pictures of the old stencils, countless hours were spent back in California contemplating all these attractive patterns and the meanings they convey. We are finally happy to announce the selection of the butterflies and fern patterns!

Butterflies
Fern

According to the book “Symbols of Japan – Thematic Motifs in Art and Design” by Merrily Baird, the butterfly is a symbol of joy and longevity. It is also a symbol of rebirth, a sentiment that we strongly wish for the Japanese people as they continue to recover from the devastating earthquake of 2011. We also thought that it was appropriate for KotoKoto’s launch in our hope to be an ever changing and exciting website for people to discover new things. The butterfly motif has enjoyed widespread popularity in Japan since the Nara period (710-794).

The fern is a symbol of long life and family prosperity because of the numerous spores on its leaves. We especially liked this pattern because the fern represents elegance and hardiness, characteristics that we seek in the skill and craft of artists. The fern motif has been popular in Japan since the Heian period (794-1185) and has also been fashionable in the West since the ‘pteridomania’, or a craze for ferns, struck Victorian Britain in the 19th century.

Color Testing on Linen

We are now testing colors with Saratetsu and will be starting to print these fabrics very soon!

Read all of the previous postings about Saratetsu here.

How are these used? Read our furoshiki blog post ->

 

Visit to Saratetsu Dye Studio, Part 2 – The Technique for Printing on Both Sides of Japanese Linen (Hint: It’s Very Difficult)

By:
Textiles Saratetsu

Hagiwara Ichizo of Saratetsu, the last yuzen dye studio of wrapping cloth (or furoshiki) in Tokyo, is an expert at dyeing a variety of natural fabrics, so Studio Kotokoto asked him to print a pattern from their collection of old paper stencils onto Japanese linen.

Hagiwara Ichizo

We chose Japanese linen because it becomes more beautiful with time and use. Moreover, this fabric has deep roots in Japanese history. It was among the most popular fabrics used in the country until a century ago but was pushed aside by cheaper imports. It has been making a slow comeback in the past few years.

However, linen is also notorious for its resistance to dye transfer, and today’s dyed linens are mostly piece or yarn dyed. Despite these production challenges, Hagiwara-san not only took on the task but said that he could also dye a different color on the back. This is a truly amazing feat and he is probably the only dyer in Japan or elsewhere who can make this happen!

The factors that control colors are the mixing of dyes and the duration of steaming to fix the dye. Hagiwara-san tests each color and combination and carefully records the results in a logbook.

Color Logbook
Red Yuzen Dye

After the dye is applied, the fabric is steamed to bring out and fix the color. Hagiwara-san gave a demonstration to show how the duration of steaming can change the hues of the same color.

Identical Dye on Silk Steamed for 4, 1, and 0 Minutes
Fabric Steaming Box
Steaming Box in Action

When a fabric is dyed on both sides, the color on one side adds to the hue on the other. So Hagiwara-san and his colleagues undertake constant experimentation and testing to achieve the intended effects.

Front and Back Color Combination Experiment

Controlling the dye and preventing seepage into the back is a special skill that has taken several generations for Saratetsu to perfect.

Crab Patterned, Double Sided Cotton Facecloth (Tenugui) by Saratetsu
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In the next blog post we will share some of Saratetsu’s collection of old paper stencil patterns and decide which of these styles to apply to our linen.

<-Read the previous post about Saratetsu

Read the next post about Saratetsu ->