81112: 1980s Japanese Tsumugi (Pongee)Silk, Arai-Hari 41in.PcGeometric Lattice Trellis Floral

Catalog#: 8111-2

1980's Arai Hari Cleaned Japanese Textiles: 

 Tsumugi (Pongee) Silk Piece

Strong Western Designs Influence:
Traditional Botanical Trellis, Medallion Diamond Grid
Hints of Chintz/Kalamkari; Geometric Lattice
William Morris-like "Columbine" Motifs

Silk Kimono Fabric by Piece

Width:14.5 inches / 35.56 cm
Length: 41 inches / 104.14 cm

US$17.00 per piece, plus shipping

• Fabric History/Pedigree:  1980s pieces received from a traditional Japanese kimono cleaner/reconstructor called Arai-Hari -- see an excellent explanation of traditional Arai Hari by textile expert John Marshall by clicking HERE; 

• Description:  This distinctive Japanese vintage traditional Tsumugi is a thicker, medium to heavy-weight pongee-type silk that is slate-blue tsumugi-weave; 
  
  Motifs/Designs:  This fabric design is strongly influenced by Western art and other Non-Japanese designs: We did a Google image search for similar patterns using our photos, resulting in the following nomenclature for our pictures: "Traditional Botanical Trellis, Medallion Diamond Grid, Hints of Chintz/Kalamkari, Persian-inspired...."  and - most frequently - "Geometric Lattice, William Morris-like 'Columbine' Motifs"; aside from the slate-blue background, colors used: lines and figures are cream-white, others light mauve, lighter moss-greens; patterns on one side but lighter contrast of designs on the reverse.
  
  

  Also, as for the motif, if you look closely, you'll see a diamond/diagonal arrangement of medallions; said medallions have small reddish flowers at the center, with curling-leaf tendrils.

• Comment:  This is obviously taken from the above-mentioned Western, other non-Japanese motifs; Still, this is a textured-to-the-touch tsumugi silk, thicker and perhaps best suited for upholstery, purse, or accessory making.
  
  
• Colors: Please NOTE that colors and contrast differ on each device, so please use our text descriptions to complement your sense of the fabric.
  
  
• Condition: Excellent.  

Cultural Background Note:  From www.nippon-kichi.jp:  Tsumugi are silk textiles woven by hand using thread collected from the floss of the cocoons. The floss is made from debris of the cocoons and spun by hand into thread. Because the thread is called “tetsumugi ito” or “ tsumugi ito”, the textile made from the thread became to be known as tsumugi. Tsumugi is characterized by its unique texture and dull gloss coming from subtle variations of the tsumugi threads. It is extremely durable and has been used for everyday clothes and working clothes since ancient times.... To read the rest of this page and learn more about tsumugi, please  visit: www.nippon-kichi.jp Below: Hand-made purse using 1930's Doro Ohshima tsumugi silk, made by Fumi Sakanashi, YokoDana KImono's owner's sister, an award-winning quilter in Japan. The Doro Ohshima (mud-dyed) is the center patterned portion on both sides, with the solid areas and handles being new; shown in pictures below:

 Top