Vintage Japanese Kimono Fabrics by Piece Cottons_

6520: 1960s Japanese Kasuri (ikat) Cotton Fabric 55in. Piece

Vintage Japanese Textiles:

Japanese Kimono Kasuri (Ikat)
(Arai-Hari)

1960s Japanese Cotton Fabric

Width: 13.5 inches / 34.29 cm
Length: 55 inches / 139.7 cm

Catalog# 6520:

US$15.00 per piece
Shipping included under 4 pounds package weight

Fabric History/Pedigree:

Pieces received from traditional Japanese kimono cleaner/reconstructor called Arai-Hari -- see an excellent explanation of traditional Arai Hari by textile expert John Marshall,by click-pushing HERE.

Fabric Type: Kasuri (ikat), Light-Medium Weight, still firm; 3 colors on indigo background; This is a traditional ikat with 2 inches (5.08cm) tall diamond shapes in a symmetrical grid throughout; within each diamond are blurred dashes of light blue, mustard and red (see close-ups).

Condition: Excellent (Still hard, softens with washing -- requires special washing instructions)

Notes:

This is a Japanese country vintage fabric called kasuri (also called ikat in Southeast Asia) ; Kasuri is a labor-intensive process where patterns are made by pre-dyed paste resistance and varying techniques used to create the sorts of patterns seen here. Because of the methods used, authentic kasuri is usually highly expensive. More info on kasuri below:

Cultural Notes on Kasuri(ikat):

**Wikipedia.org, on-line encyclopedia, defines Kasuri as:**

...a Japanese word for fabric that has been woven with fibers dyed specifically to create patterns and images in the fabric. It is an ikat technique. Kasuri is weft ikat; the warp threads are solid color, and the weft thread is resist-tied in a specific pattern and dyed with indigo to form a picture when the cloth is woven. Japanese ikats are generally weft ikats or double ikats.

To see a YouTube.com video of the making of traditional indigo kasuri please click HERE .