Artisans find new roles for elegant washi paper
From wedding dresses to jeans, this traditional Japanese wrapping paper is getting many new uses
“Washi” paper is not just for drawing or wrapping gifts anymore. Given an expanded presence on the Unesco intangible heritage list last month, the paper made by traditional Japanese methods is now being used as material for elegant wedding dresses.
“The ‘washi’ fit gently and warmly around my body,” said Tomomi Kitamura, 29, a homemaker in Shinjuku, Tokyo. “It was so soft and light.”
At her wedding four years ago, she wore a white dress made of “washi” that was a gift from her parents.
Keiko Ichihara started creating wedding dresses with the paper in 1995 in the hopes of forging a future for the material. Today, the 61-year-old owner of Minoshimai in Mino, Gifu Prefecture, makes about five dresses a year.
Some customers even recycled their “washi” dresses after the nuptials and made thank-you letters with them, she said.
At Drawing Numbers, a boutique in Minato Ward, Tokyo, jeans woven with “washi” warp and cotton weft are popular as they are said to offer a perfect fit.
The shop currently sells “washi” jeans only in men’s sizes, but plans to launch a similar product line-up for women next year.
Meanwhile, long-established washi shop Haibara in Chuo Ward, Tokyo, started a class three years ago on “origata” techniques of folding paper to wrap gifts.
“Origata” is an old-fashioned way to package a present using “washi”, a custom that spread in the Edo Period (1603-1867).
Students in the class learn different ways to wrap money, confectionery and other items using “chiyogami” – paper that comes in colourful patterns.
Kamism Co, a washi wallpaper sales and planning company in Chuo Ward, has engaged in the promotion of lamp shades and other interior furnishings that make use of the traditional paper.
At the company’s studio in Sumida Ward, Tokyo, Katsuteru Nakanishi, a craftsman with 48 years of experience, shows visitors his own personal technique of processing “washi”.
