6516: 1930s-1950s Japanese Kasuri (ikat) Cotton Fabric 65in Piece

6516:1930s Japanese Kasuri, half length view

Vintage Japanese Textiles:

Japanese Kimono Kasuri (Ikat)
(Arai-Hari)

1930s-1950s Japanese Cotton Fabric

Width: 13.5 inches / 34.29 cm
Length: 65 inches / 165.1 cm

Catalog# 6516:

US$20.00 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; 2 colors, indigo background with designs in light aqua-blue; This is a traditional ikat with rows of geometric and other cursive shapes in parallel rows (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 .