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Shuri-ori 首里織 is a type of Ryukuan textile woven on a loom. One of the most common patterns is Shuri Hana Ori (hana means "flower"), and there is a simple flower pattern that appears in the fabric. Another pattern is Shuri Roton Ori, which has raised vertical treads.

You can try your hand at shuri-ori (and other Ryukuan crafts) at the Traditional Handicrafts Center in Naha, near Kokusai-dori (visit their website here). My husband and I made our own coasters awhile ago, and it was a lot of fun. There are several other types of traditional crafts you can try here as well.

I have also received a few gifts of small shuri-ori items; the size of table mats and coasters. The patterns and colors are simple, yet quite nice, and really look elegant. If you just want to purchase, not weave your own, there are several shops around Shuri and Naha.

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Shuri-ori 首里織 is a type of Ryukuan textile woven on a loom. One of the most common patterns is Shuri Hana Ori (hana means "flower"), and there is a simple flower pattern that appears in the fabric. Another pattern is Shuri Roton Ori, which has raised vertical treads.

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Weaving is a method of fabric production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. _ _ _ 平織り

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The History of Kimonos Kimono's are seen on the fashion runway as well! In conclusion, the kimono is a very significant part of Japanese culture and has gone through various evolutions. Although it has been said to be an impractical form of dress, it is an elegant and beautiful way of representing Japan's culture.

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13 interesting facts about Kimonos that you may not know

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Minasan Kon'nichiwa! Many of us would know that Japan is famous for its advances in technology, geographic and historic landmarks and number of writers and artists. Japan is also well known for it's food, culture and fashion! Despite the many trends and fashion Japan has, we will be touching mainly

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If you always curious about Japanese culture, you need to look at Kimono facts. Kimono is considered as the traditional clothes for the Japanese people. When you go to Japan, you need to try it. The dress is very beautiful with prints. Here are the interesting facts about Kimono that you need to know:

Kimono Facts 1: patterns and colors

You are wrong if you think that Japanese kimono is boring. When you go to Japan, you will be served with different kinds of kimono colors and patterns. It can be made in red, black, blue, pink or even purple. Talking about the patterns, you can choose the one inspired from nature such as plant, leaves, flower or cheery blossom pattern.

Kimono Facts 2: period

Kimono was introduced to the life of Japanese people during the era of Heian in 794 to 1185. At that time, many Japanese women wore the kimono robe as the most popular item to dress up. Check Japanese culture facts here.

Kimono Facts 3: changing the style

In the past, Kimono was very elaborate and heavy so that people were not comfortable to wear it for daily life. After the Heian period, people begin to make it simpler. They choose lightweight fabric to suit the need of the Japanese women.

Kimono Facts 4: fabrics

The fabrics to create kimono mostly are from silk brocade and silk. Both fabrics are expensive. Only high class people can afford them. Therefore, kimono now is made from polyester, cotton and rayon to serve the middle and low class market.

Kimono Facts 5: colors

The colors of Kimono can be suited with the seasons. There are four seasons in Japan. The spring season makes the Japanese women dress up with bright colors with floral pattern.

Kimono Facts 6: events

Many kimonos are designed for special events. If you want to go to the funeral event, you can wear the subdued colored kimono in black, blue or brown. If you want to have a formal visit, you can wear an elegant design. Many people think that kimono is only for women, but actually men can wear a kimono too. The traditional kimono for men was worn everyday in the past. Now men wear it in special events.

Kimono Facts 7: Yukata

Yukata is another important term of kimono. This special kimono is worn during the summer season. Both men and women can wear it.

Kimono Facts 8: meaning

Kimono is derived from Japanese language. The meaning is wearing thing.

Kimono Facts 9: size

The size of kimono for men and women are different. Men can wear the kimono with a width around 40 cm, while women wear it with the width around 38 cm.

Kimono Facts10: furisode

Furisode is the kimono worn by the young unmarried women. This kimono has very long sleeves. The girls wear it in formal occasion.

The kimono today is very easy to wear, unlike the common kimono the Heian period. At that time, women has to wear 25 layers of kimono. Are you satisfied with facts about kimono?

tags: Kimono, Kimono Facts

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If you always curious about Japanese culture, you need to look at Kimono facts . Kimono is considered as the traditional clothes for the Japanese people. When you go to Japan, you need to try it. The dress is very beautiful with prints.

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Kimono facts, information, pictures | Encyclopedia.com articles about Kimono

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Get information, facts, and pictures about Kimono at Encyclopedia.com. Make research projects and school reports about Kimono easy with credible articles from our FREE, online encyclopedia and dictionary.

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Explore the history and dyeing techniques pf japan's most beautiful garment

The first description of clothing worn by the Japanese people dates back to the 3rd century. It is recorded in the Gishi-wajin-den (literally, "Records of Wei: An Account of the Wa"). According to this Chinese document, Japanese men of that time wore kanfui, one piece of cloth wrapped around the body over one shoulder, and women wore kantoi, a sleeveless outfit. In fact, this kantoi was the prototype of kimono, and has gradually evolved into kosode (robe with small armholes).

Kofun period: 5-6th centuries
In 5th and 6th centuries (Kofun period), men wore a kind of trousers, and women were dressed in long skirts.

In the second half of the 6th century, clothes with collars and sleeves came into use under the influence of Chinese fashion.

Heian period: 8th century
In the second half of the 8th century (Heian period), garments and their sleeves became comfortably wider, eventually developing into juni-hitoe (twelve-layered kimono for women) and sokutai (ceremonial court dress for men). It was the time of elegantly layered clothes so representative of the culture of the nobility. At first, kosode was the first clothing beneath all the layers of aristocrats' garments, but soon common people adopted the comfortable tsutsusode (tight-sleeved kosode) as their main dress.

Kamakura period: 12th century
In 12th century (Kamakura period), samurai warriors came to power. They preferred utility more than formality and used kosode as their everyday clothes. While women still prefered layered garments, they also started to wear kosode, even if it was covered with elegant uchikake (unbelted full-length outer robe worn over the kimono).

Edo period: 17th century
In 17th century (Edo period), even if officially warriors were the dominant social class, economically, merchants were more powerful. During that time, due to the creativity of combining 3 elements (cloth material, pattern and decorative techniques) kosode fashion has seen its greatest development. In Japan, 2 important concepts were applied to every aspect of life : omote (public side) and ura (private side). Men belonged to the world of omote, women -- to the world of ura. Therefore, men's clothing was practical and comfortable without much change, while women had high degree of freedom to choose their garments which resulted in the evolution of different fashion styles.

When the 4 social classes (samurai, farmers, artisans, merchants) became equal after Meiji restoration in 1868, kosode was renamed to kimono, and varied according to the time period and social background. Men started to wear Western-style clothes, and kimono hasn't changed much since.

Historical development of Kimono patterns
The basic design and pattern layout of the modern kimono derives from the design of kosode (short-sleeved kimono) popular during Momoyama and Edo periods.

Kosode of Momoyama period
The completion of the shape and design of kosode kimono took place in Momoyama period. This Noh costume is a typical example of kosode design and pattern layout of that time.

Kanbun era patterns (1661-1673)
In Edo period, dynamic composition of patterns arranged in semicircle from right shoulder to the left part of kimono hem appeared. They were named "Kanbun era patterns" and were usually finished with shibori dyeing technique or embroidery.

Genroku era patterns (1688-1704)
The features of Genroku era patterns are less prominent than those of Kanbun era, but as yuzen dyeing rose in popularity, they became larger and bolder.

Nishijin-ori woven textiles
Nishijin-ori woven textiles are widely used in the production of kimono and obi sashes. The weaving industry in Kyoto originated between the 5th and 6th centuries. It prospered with government-operated factories following the construction of the Heian Capital in 794. The name Nishijin came from the Nishijin district in Kyoto, where many weavers established their workshops after the end of Onin War (1467-1477).

The richly decorative brocades were used for clothing for the Imperial Court and Buddhist and Shinto priests. Based on the design sketch, the dyed silk yarn is woven to produce the textiles which have elaborate patterns. Nishijin-ori has a wide variety of styles, such as gold brocade, damask, figured satin, and velvet. Today, it is said that there are no textiles that Nishijin weavers cannot weave.

Kyo-kanokoshibori / Kyoto tie dyeing
The history of tie dyeing in Kyoto is an old craft. The tie dye used for a court costume in the 10th century was the origin of Kyoto Kanokoza. The name refers to it's three-dimensional pattern.

Currently, we refer to the tie dye of the silk fabric made in Kyoto and call it Kyo Kanokoza. It is characterized by complicated and elaborate pattern compositions such as the Hikida's diaphragm.

Kimono TPO (Time, Place and occasion)

Just like the rule of western style dressing, there are several different types of kimono and each has the appropriate TPO. Here are some examples.

http://www.miyakomesse.jp/fureaika/about_eng.php

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The ancient history making and wearing a kimono - Google Arts & Culture

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Explore the history and dyeing techniques pf japan's most beautiful garment The first description of clothing worn by the Japanese people dates back to the 3rd century. It is recorded in the Gishi-wajin-den (literally, "Records of Wei: An Account of the Wa").

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beginning history

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Clothing made of fibres or animal skins are organic and perishable, and so they are not commonly preserved in Jomon sites. Nevertheless, over the years, various fibres have been excavated from a number of sites.

Archaeologists do know that the Jomon people wore clothes made from long narrow strips of mulberry bark. Supple strips of the bark were removed from young mulberry trees, pounded with a stone and woven into long sack-like vests.

For a long time, people thought of the Jomon people as primitive stone age people who were mostly naked or who wore only animal skins and fur and clothes made out of smashed tree bark fibres.

After the 1960s however, more and more fragments of textiles as well as Jomon potsherds pressed with textile patterns turned up. These finds made scientists realize the Jomon people were producing textiles from plant fibres. Archaeologists now know that the oldest fabric product found in Japan is a rope made of hemp, dating back 21,000 years to the beginning of the Jomon Period, excavated from the Torihama Shell Mound in Mikata-cho, Fukui prefecture. From the same site, a woven artefact made of ramie (Boehmeria tricuspis), a vegetable fibre, was also discovered.

From examining fibre remains found in Jomon sites (Early Jomon Torihama and Sannai Maruyama; Late Jomon Heijo site in Ehime prefecture; and Final Jomon Sanno-gakoi site in Miyagi prefecture) archaeologists know the Jomon people made clothes out of fibres from two species of false nettles ( Boehmeria nivea and Boehmeria tricuspis) as well as cut-leaved elm ( Ulmus laciniata). Bone needles have also been found.

The Jomon people wove fabrics made of plain warp, twisted warp and other variations probably using warp-weighted looms. This prehistoric technique of making fabric has survived till today in a technique used to produce angin fabric that also traditionally uses fibres from false nettles in Niigata prefecture.

Clothing was also made from the fibres of the hemp plant, from around 7,000 years ago. Remains of hemp fibres have been found in sites in Kyushu island. Click here to see what Jomon clothing made out of hemp may have looked like.

The hemp plant produces the strongest natural fibre known. Hemp fabric is three times stronger than cotton fabric of equal weight, and is warmer and more absorbent. The fibres are obtained after the plants are torn out of the ground, then boiled, after which a process called retting in the field, in which the pectin that glues the fibre to the woody core of the hemp stem together rots away. The process takes 12 to 18 days. The stems need to be turned over one or two times so that the rotting takes place evenly on all sides. The fibres then separate easily from the mass stems into finer fibres that can be used for weaving into fabric or baskets. Ropes, nets, and shoes are also made from hemp.

Read about traditional hemp farming and the process in detail here. To see what hemp looms, fibres and clothes look like, visit the Miasa Mura Hemp Museum online.

The Jomon people also wore deer skin jackets or tunics and waistcloths with thread-twisted braid trimmings. The line-carved female figurine from Iwakage site appears to be wearing waistbraids and waistcloth.

Jomon clay figurines often give us good clues as to the fashions of the time. Many Jomon clay figurines appear to be wearing waistclothes, jackets and elaborate masks. The figurines also sport a lot of curvilinear designs on the clothing that look kind of similar to the kind of clothing designs that Ainu people wear today despite the difference in time of several thousand of years.

Remains from burial pits at the Kakinoshima B site in Hokkaido and elsewhere, show that the Jomon people sometimes clothed their dead with fabric made from twisted warp that was lacquered over in red, their magical colour.

What about jewellery?

Bracelets A very rare bracelet made of clay earth from the Late Jomon period was discovered from the Masukata site, Shounan-town. About 9.2cm in diameter, the bracelet was lacquered over by vermilion paint and made in imitation of the more commonly found shellfish bracelets. Many types of shells were fashioned into shell bracelets. At the Kamitakatsu shell-midden site in Tsuchirua city, Ibaragi Prefecture, 22 species of shells were purposefully gathered to be made into bracelets, among these were the Anadara satowi nipponensis( marusarubo), Glycymeris albolineata( benkeigai) and Meretrix lamarckii shells( chosenhamaguri) (all gathered by diving from out in the open sea).

Earrings In the Early Jomon period, a kind of earring that did not require earlobes to be pierced was worn. This type of earring found only on the Kanto plain, consisted of a flat, circular stone with a slit to insert the lobe in. Most popular in the Final Jomon period were spool- or pulley-shaped earrings that had to be inserted in the lobe were the most popular variety. These earrings were commonly be found in the Chubu, Kanto and northern Tohoku regions. Archaeologists have to figure out which ornaments are earrings, for example, they can guess the earrings were meant to be worn as such when the artefacts are recovered from either side of a skull. Clay figurines wearing similar jewellery also provide clues.

By examining cases where earrings were found together with adequately preserved skeletal remains, scientists have been able to tell that earrings were mainly worn by females, while other ornaments being more frequently associated to males. Most of the earrings were made of pottery earthenware, but other materials like stone were sometimes used. Many were lacquered or painted with red being the preferred colour. Red was usually the colour used for ritual practices so it is likely that women wore earrings not just to look pretty but during ceremonies and special occasions. The earrings were usually decorated ornately and frequently carved with intricate elaborate patterns.

Earthenware was probably the preferred material because it is lighter than stone so that in the case of the larger earrings (diameter up to 10-12 cm) it would have been much easier to stretch the pierced lobe to the desired width as the size of the jewellery gradually increased over the years. It seems that earlobes were first pierced at around age ten, then the gradual process of stretching would begin.

Other kinds of ornaments Beads and pendants, hair pins, combs, etc., were also produced using many kinds of materials such as stone, clay earthenware, shell, antler, horn, animal teeth, etc.

The earliest item known which was made of jade dates back to the Early Jomon. Jade beads were prestige goods mainly produced in special production centres within a 40 kilometre radius of jade sources in Itoigawa, Niigata prefecture along Kotaki river. Jade sources in Japan include Itoigawa, Niigata prefecture, Mt Osa in Okayama prefecture and the Sibukawa district in Central Japan, with most of the jade items coming from Itoigawa. The raw material was processed at various production sites located in Itoigawa's vicinity. Jade is mostly associated with larger settlements during the Middle Jomon, when they were most common; Jade pendants in the shape of a comma were particularly prized possessions.

Archaeologists have found jade magatama pendants, marutama (spherical ones) and kodama (small beads) in burial sites between 4,000 B.C. to 1,600 B.C. The amount of jade found diminishes in the Late Jomon before rising again during the Final Jomon, with production centers located this time throughout Eastern Japan. What was traded during the Middle Jomon were finished beads and various other items, while what was traded during the Final Jomon was mostly raw material.

Other ornaments include deer antler pendants worn at the waist, boar ivory pendants, and amber ornaments.

Tattoos and Body Painting Many of the Jomon people are thought to have sported tattoos or painted their bodies. Since many of the clay figurines of humans made by the Jomon people have pattern markings all over, it is likely they either tattooed themselves. Around the end of the Jomon period, there was evidence from Chinese record "Gishiwajinden" of a people in the land of Wa (as they called Japan) during the 3rd century B.C. who tattooed their faces and painted their bodies, with pink or scarlet paint. The reason given for the tattoos was that the Jomon people dived often for fish and the markings were thought to protect them from large fish. The text reads as follows:

The men of Wa tattoo their faces and paint their bodies with designs. They are fond of diving for fish and shells. Long ago they decorated their bodies in order to protect themselves from large fish. Later these designs became ornamental. Body painting differs among the various tribes. The position and size of the designs vary according to the rank of individuals.... They smear their bodies with pink and scarlet just as we Chinese use powder (Tsunoda and Goodrich, cited by Dalby, 1993: 22).

Tattooed torso of a figurine

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Fashion: clothing and jewellery of Jomon times

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Clothing made of fibres or animal skins are organic and perishable, and so they are not commonly preserved in Jomon sites. Nevertheless, over the years, various fibres have been excavated from a number of sites. Archaeologists do know that the Jomon people wore clothes made from long narrow strips of mulberry bark.

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applying texture of dying to clothes (tsutsugaki) also example of indgo dye how they came to be 

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applying texture of dying to clothes (tsutsugaki) also example of indgo dye how they came to be 

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http://www.connect-shimane.com/crafts/nagata-sen-koujou-izumo-city/

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Antique and Vintage Bags Antique and Vintage Garments Antique Sample Books and Ledgers Asa Textiles: Natural Bast Fiber Boro Garments Boro Textiles Buddhist Textiles Children's Clothing Kasuri Katazome Sakabukuro Sakiori Sashiko Shibori Tsutsugaki Various Folk Textiles and Other Vintage Zabuton Zanshi: Leftover Thread Cloth

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Indigo dyed Japanese cloth

Textiles have long played an important role in Japanese life. Japanese weavers and dyers used silk, hemp, ramie, cotton and other fibers, and a range of weaves and decorative treatments, to produce textiles of distinctive design and exceptional aesthetic merit. These textiles were put to many different uses: for clothing of both commoners and elites; for banners, hangings, and other materials produced for use in temples; for theatrical costumes; and for cushion covers, curtains, and other domestic uses. As with many other Japanese arts, Japanese textiles historically have developed through an interaction of external influences and indigenous techniques and design choices, and a tendency to develop both technology and aesthetics to a high degree of refinement.

Historical Overview

The original inhabitants of Japan (people of the Jômon Culture) wove cloth of plant fiber. Invaders from the northeast Asian mainland established the Yayoi Culture in Japan beginning around 300 B.C.E., introducing more sophisticated materials (including ramie and silk) and techniques. But a recognizably Japanese textile culture can be said to have begun in the Yamato Period (c. 300-710 C.E.), when aristocratic clans and the emergent monarchy led to a greatly increased demand for fine fabrics, especially of silk. The introduction of Buddhism in the mid-sixth century swelled the demand for fine textiles for ecclesiastical use. Some of these textiles were imported from mainland Asia, but increasing amounts were produced in Japan. Weavers, dyers and other textile workers from Korea and China were encouraged to settle in Japan under court patronage; the production of textiles was both patronized and regulated by the state, and the best textiles were produced in imperial workshops. Silk fabrics in both plain and twill weave were often dyed in solid colors or in patterns produced by stamped wax-resist dyeing. Brocades were produced for both aristocratic and temple use. Other techniques included appliqué, embroidery, and braiding.

The explosive growth in the number, wealth, and power of Buddhist temples in the Nara Period (710-785) led to an intensified development of textile arts, as well as the importation of mainland textiles on a massive scale. The ensuing Heian Period (795-1185) saw a greater emphasis on domestic production, partly in imperial workshops and partly in private ones. This period saw the continued importance of brocade and embroidery, along with increased use of pattern-woven cloth as a ground for patterned dyeing, whether done by wax- or paste-resist methods or various techniques of shaped-resist dyeing. As the harmonious use of colors in multiple layers of clothing was one of the chief aesthetic principles of dress in this era, great efforts were made to expand and perfect dyeing methods.

The Kamakura (1185-1233) and Muromachi (1338- 1477) periods saw the establishment of military rule under the auspices of the samurai (warrior) class. International trade increased again during this period, bringing a wealth of new materials, techniques and design motifs to Japan. Cotton was introduced at this time, largely supplanting the use of hemp fiber in textiles used by commoners. The development of the Nôh theater under the patronage of the military aristocracy during the Muromachi Period, with its attendant demand for luxurious and brilliantly beautiful costumes, stimulated textile production and innovation. The introduction of multi-harness looms and improved drawlooms led to an increase in production of complex silk fabrics such as damask and satin, which often were used as background fabrics for patterned dyeing (damask) and for embroidery (satin).

After more than a century of civil warfare (1477- 1601), the establishment of the Tokugawa Shogunate (1601-1868) brought an era of renewed peace and prosperity to Japan. By the sixteenth century the kosode had become established as the basic garment of Japanese dress; the rapid growth of cities, and of well-to-do urban populations, made this and ensuing forms of the kimono a focus for textile arts. Sumptuary laws designed to prevent commoners from wearing brocades and other complex textiles simply stimulated weavers and dyers to produce surface-decorated fabrics of exceptional beauty and variety that stayed within the letter of the law. The growth of urban pleasure quarters inhabited by courtesans who sometimes could command gifts of great value stimulated the brocade-weaving and tapestry-weaving industries, as demand grew for elaborate and luxurious sashes ( obi) with which women fastened their kimonos. Meanwhile, in the countryside, peasants were establishing or maintaining their own techniques for weaving and dyeing cotton fabrics, often in distinctive regional styles.

The abolition of military government and the restoration of imperial rule in 1868 led to a period of rapid modernization in Japan. There was a significant vogue in the late 19th century for Western clothing for both men and women; in the early twentieth century, however, many women returned to wearing kimonos much of the time. Following World War II, kimono wearing declined again, becoming limited by the 1960s almost entirely to festival and special-occasion dress, or occupational dress for women in the hospitality industries. The traditional textile arts had already entered a long period of decline by the late nineteenth century, when Japan turned to the industrial production of textiles as an early step toward economic development and modernization. Cheap machine-made fabrics cut deeply into the peasant production of handwoven and hand dyed cotton cloth. Conscious efforts to maintain or revive old textile traditions has kept many techniques from disappearing entirely, but the hand production of textiles in Japan now belongs almost entirely to the world of art and craft.

Woven Textiles

The weave types most commonly encountered in Japanese textiles, regardless of the fiber used, are plain (tabby) Twill Weave Satin Weave, damask and other patterned weaves, and brocade.

Silk fabrics intended for use in kimono in which the principal decorative elements are batch-dyed or resist-dyed rather than woven or embroidered are usually made in plain weave or damask weave. Colored damasks ( donsu) employing dyed silk warp threads and weft threads in contrasting colors were used without further dyeing or embellishment; colored damasks were particularly favored for decorative purposes, such as mounting fabric for scroll paintings, and in cloths employed in the tea ceremony. Floating-weft or floating-warp satin ( shusu) is often used for silk garment fabrics in which the main decorative elements will be applied by embroidery. Patterned twill ( aya) and twisted-warp gauze ( ra), often in lightweight, semi-transparent fabrics, have been used for garments since the Nara period, and in later times were especially favored for the wide, loose trousers ( hakama) and stiff jackets ( kamishimo) worn by samurai on formal occasions. Twill is frequently also used as the ground weave for a multicolored, brocade-like, drawloom-woven fabric called nishiki.

Brocades and tapestry weaves of various kinds were used in ancient times for Buddhist ecclesiastical garments and temple decorations. As garment fabrics they are used especially in obi sashes, which are often tied in very elaborate and decorative ways that display to good effect the luxurious textiles of which they are made. Both obi and kimono, the latter particularly as costumes for Nôh dance-drama, are often made of kara-ori ("Chinese weave," i.e. weft-float brocade), a stiff, heavy fabric in which supplementary weft threads on bobbins are float-woven by hand over a plain or twill background fabric. Fingernail tapestry ( tsuzure), as the name suggests, is a bobbin-woven tapestry, capable of producing patterns of extreme complexity, and often used for obi.

Plain weave is by far the commonest weave for cotton fabrics. Rural, or faux-rustic, cotton textiles in stripes and plaids of indigo and other vegetable-dye colors, were extremely popular during the Tokugawa period for informal kimono; such fabrics were also used for domestic décor such as covers for sleeping mats and sitting cushions. Plain-woven textiles of plain white cotton were used as the ground for a wide range of dyeing techniques, described below.

Dyeing

Much of the distinctive beauty of Japanese textiles rests on the use of highly developed techniques of dyeing, including paste-resist, shaped-resist, and ikat, as well as composite techniques employing two or more of these methods in concert.

Wax-resist dyeing (batik) was known in ancient Japan, but was abandoned by the end of the Heian Period in favor of paste-resist methods, employing a thick paste of rice flour instead of wax. Paste-resist methods include stencil dyeing and freehand dyeing.

Stencil dyeing ( katazome) employs stencils made of mulberry bark paper, laminated in several layers with persimmon juice and toughened and waterproofed by smoking. Patterns are cut into these stencils using special knives. Paste is forced through the openwork of the stencil onto the cloth, where it then resists taking the dye when the cloth is immersed in a dyebath. The paste is washed from the cloth after dyeing. Simple stencil dyeing is most commonly found in folk-art indigo-dyed cotton textiles, used for domestic furnishings as well as for clothing. The most common contemporary application of paste-resist dyed indigo-and-white cotton cloth is for yukata, cotton kimono used as sleepwear and for informal streetwear, especially at hot spring resorts. Stencil dyeing can also be done in two or more stages to produce a multi-colored result.

Freehand paste-resist dyeing ( tsutsugaki) uses a waterproof paper cone to apply paste to the fabric; this technique is often employed to create large, bold patterns such as are found on shop curtains ( noren) and package-carrying cloths ( furoshiki).

Shaped-resist dyeing techniques are generically known as shibori in Japanese; the word is commonly translated "tie-dyed," but that does not convey the very wide range of techniques involved in shibori dyeing. Shibori includes resists created by sewing portions of cloth in tight gathers; or by twisting cloth, often in complicated ways; or by folding cloth and then compressing it between boards or in wooden or paper tubes; and similar techniques. In every case the aim is to compress portions of cloth so that they will be unaffected by the dye when the whole cloth is placed in a dyebath. Although expert practitioners can achieve a high degree of control over the process, shibori dyeing always also includes some element of accident or uncertainty, which adds to its aesthetic appeal. Undyed areas of shibori textiles can be embellished in various ways, including hand-application of dyes using brushes, embroidery, or by using paste to apply gold or silver foil to the fabric.

Ikat, known as kasuri in Japanese, is a technique in which warp yarns, weft yarns, or both are bound in thread in pre-arranged patterns and dyed. The yarns are then assembled into a warp and/or woven as weft in the proper sequence, the pattern emerging as the weaving progresses. Kasuri textiles are produced in silk, in a wide range of colors; in ramie; in cotton, typically indigo-dyed; and in Okinawa in banana fiber, often with several colors produced by successive wrappings and dyeings of the yarn.

Yuzen, invented around 1700, is probably the most famous of Japanese dyeing techniques. It is produced by a combination of either freehand or stenciled paste-resist work and hand-application of dyes. With the cloth (either silk or cotton) stretched on a frame, a pattern is applied with a fine brush using a non-permanent blue vegetable dye, and then covered freehand with paste; or else the paste is applied directly with a stencil. A thin soybean extract is then brushed over the entire cloth. The cloth is then moistened with water, and dye is applied by hand with brushes; the dye spreads on the damp cloth to produce the color-shaded effect characteristic of yuzen. Yuzen is capable of achieving color effects of astonishing subtlety and complexity, and is used to produce the finest and most prized of all kimono fabrics.

The Okinawan art of bingata stencil dyeing can be thought of as a paste-resist version of batik. It uses multiple steps of stencil-applied paste and dyeing (either by vat dyeing or by hand application of dyes), with dyed areas covered with paste resist in subsequent stages of work. Bingata is typically produced in bright colors and with pictorial motifs of birds, flowers, and landscapes.

Embroidery

Like brocade and tapestry weaving, embroidery arrived in Japan in ancient times in connection with Buddhism, and was often used to produce pictorial hangings for use in temples. Japanese embroidery uses a fairly small repertoire of stitches, including French knots, chain stitch, satin stitch, and couched satin stitch. In garments, particularly kimono, embroidery is applied to vat-dyed plain weave silk textiles, to silk satin, and as an embellishment to textiles decorated with various dye techniques, including shibori and katazome.

Decorative Stitching

Japanese farm women developed a technique for salvaging worn cotton textiles for re-use by stitching them together in layers for use in jackets, aprons, and other protective garments. The technique, akin to quilting, is known as sashiko, and developed from a practical way of using cloth to a unique craft of decorative stitching. Sashiko is almost always done with white cotton thread on indigo-dyed cotton cloth. Stitches may run parallel to the warp, or to the weft, or both; patterns are usually geo-metric, and often elaborately lacy.

Ainu Textiles

The Ainu are the aboriginal inhabitants of Hokkaido, the northernmost main island of Japan; their ancestors were among the original occupants of Japan, prior to the arrival of the Yayoi people. Ainu culture is closer to that of Sakhalin Island and other parts of northeastern Siberia than it is to Japanese culture. The Ainu are known for preserving old techniques of making jackets and other items of clothing decorated with appliqué and embroidery in bold, curvilinear designs, often in light colors on a dark background.

Contemporary Japanese Textiles

The status of textiles in contemporary Japan can be considered in four categories. Commercial textiles are a declining industry in Japan. Textile production, particularly of man-made fiber textiles such as rayon and polyester, played an important role in Japan's postwar economic recovery, but has been in decline in recent decades as production has moved to countries with lower labor costs. Some silk is produced in Japan by the country's heavily subsidized agricultural sector.

Traditional textiles continue to flourish. The Japanese government encourages the preservation of traditional arts and crafts through subsidies to "Holders of Important Intangible Cultural Properties," colloquially known as "Living National Treasures." These master practitioners of their arts provide leadership to thousands of other full-time craft workers. Of approximately 100 Living National Treasures at any time, about one-third are in the field of textile arts. Notable examples include brocade weaver Kitagawa Hyôji, the late stencil paste-resist dyer Serizawa Keisuke, and yuzen dyer Yamada Mitsugi.

Fashion textiles have received significant support from some of Japan's internationally famous fashion designers, notably Issey Miyake, whose innovative use of such material as tube-knitted jersey has bolstered Japan's fine textile industry.

Art textiles, or fiber arts more broadly, are a thriving field of Japan's contemporary art scene, and have achieved international recognition through such exhibitions as "Structure and Surface" (New York, 1999) and "Through the Surface" (London, 2004). A number of individual fiber artists have won international reputations, including Arai Junichi, known for his innovative use of techno-textiles; Sudo Reiko, known for her sculptural woven fabrics; and Tomita Jun, who uses traditional dyeing techniques to produce contemporary textile art.

See also Dyeing; Embroidery; Ikat; Kimono; Yukata.

Bibliography

Dusenbury, Mary. "Textiles." In The Kodansha Encyclopedia of Japan. 9 vols. Tokyo: Kodansha International, 1983.

McCarthy, Cara, and Matilda McQuaid. Structure and Surface: Contemporary Japanese Textiles. New York: Museum of Modern Art, 1999.

Yang, Sunny, and Rochelle Narasin. Textile Art of Japan. Tokyo: Shufunotomo, 2000.

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Textiles have long played an important role in Japanese life. Japanese weavers and dyers used silk, hemp, ramie, cotton and other fibers, and a range of weaves and decorative treatments, to produce textiles of distinctive design and exceptional aesthetic merit.

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presentation video of how  clothes can be re used from old clothes 

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presentation video of how  clothes can be re used from old clothes 

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TOHOKU STANDARD 01 NANBU SAKIORI, Aomori Prefecture

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Sumiko Inoue

Ms. Sumiko Inoue was born in 1935 in Hokkaido. After having learnt Japanese and western dressmaking, Sumiko married the owner of Inoue Clothing Store. In 1971, she started Inoue Hand Knitting School after she obtained the Sakiori Teaching Certificate from the Nanbu Sakiori Preservation Society. In 2002, she was accredited as the Aomori Traditional Craft Master and, in 2005, she opened Hachinohe Nanbu Sakiori KOUBOU “CHOU” independently. Since 2011, Ms. Inoue has owned a craft shop at the Craft Studio of Hachinohe Portal Museum hacchi. There, she passes on Nanbu Sakiori to broad generations by sponsoring workshops and making Sakiori craft items. She wrote and published “Sakiori Textbooks, Primary, Intermediate and Advanced Grades” from LLP Gijutsushi Shuppankai, etc.

[THE TOHOKU STANDARD]
The Tohoku region has retained its “Mono-Zukuri” tradition or, simply put, Traditional Crafting Orientation, that was developed in its harsh environment and have been carried on to the present day. Behind it are people who have been evolving and passing down ingenuity, wisdom, and thought by deepening their traditional technologies. THE TOHOKU STANDARD stands for A View Point from which to look at “their Way of Living.” It has been rooted, and well-established in the Tohoku region and stands out as the axis for the Tohoku Mono-Zukuri orientation.

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japan weaving technique and pictures for board 

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japan weaving technique and pictures for board 

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https://www.kimonoboy.com/short_history.html