Process of Tokyo Tegaki Yuzen
In Tokyo Tegaki Yuzen, every stage from the initial sketch to the final steaming is carried out by a single craftsperson.
Discover the skill and time devoted to each kimono.
Shitae Drawing of Design
A preliminary pattern is drawn on white fabric using a brush dipped in aobana (dayflower juice). The ink fades entirely when rinsed with water.
Itome Starching of Areas That Will Not Be Dyed
Fine lines of nori (starch resist) are squeezed from a cone-shaped tube along the pattern outlines, acting as a dye barrier. The delicate lines resemble silk thread — hence the name itome.
Yuzen Sashi Inserting Colours by Hand
Colors are applied to the pattern areas using various brushes. Small fabric swatches are used to test and adjust each color tone, ensuring the result on cloth matches the artist's vision.
Fusenorioki Starch Resistant to Dye
The dyed pattern areas are coated with rice paste to protect them during background dyeing, preventing the ground color from bleeding into the pattern.
Hikizome Dyeing of Background by Paintbrush
The entire background — excluding the protected pattern — is dyed evenly with a wide flat brush. This process is also called jizome.
Mushi · Mizumoto Steaming and Rinsing of the Cloth
The kimono is steamed at 100°C for 40–50 minutes to fix the dyes, then rinsed to remove all paste and excess ink. Traditionally this rinsing was done in the Kanda River.
Finishing Steaming and Fixing the Cloth
The completed fabric is steam-pressed to remove wrinkles and even the width. Gold leaf or hand embroidery may be added as finishing touches — gold leaf adds richness; embroidery adds dimension.
