Journal
Notes on vintage Japanese obi: how to tell silk from polyester, what the motifs mean, and how to use a hundred-year-old sash at home.
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How to Date a Vintage Obi: Meiji, Taisho, Showa and What You Can Actually Tell
How to date a vintage obi from the cloth itself — fibre, weave, metallic thread, construction and motif — and why most sellers who name an era are guessing.
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Fukuro Obi, Nagoya Obi, Hanhaba Obi: Telling the Three Apart
What a fukuro obi is, how it differs from a nagoya and a hanhaba obi, and why the type you are buying decides the length, the formality and the price of a vintage obi.
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How to Clean a Vintage Silk Obi: Spot Cleaning, Light and Storage
How to clean a vintage silk obi without ruining it: why spot cleaning is the only safe wash, what sunlight does to silk and metallic thread, and how to store an obi rolled.
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A Japanese Wedding Table Runner: Building a Tablescape Around One Obi
How to build a Japanese wedding table runner scheme around a single vintage obi: choosing the motif for the occasion, what goes on top of it, and how to plan around one-of-a-kind pieces.
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Kimono Fabric vs Obi Fabric: What the Difference Means When You Are Buying for a Room
Kimono cloth and obi cloth are woven to different widths, weights and rules. Which one suits a table runner, a wall panel, a cushion or a sewing project — and why a vintage kimono is not a cheaper obi.
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Vintage Textiles for Interior Designers: Specifying a One-of-One Obi on a Client Project
How to specify, present and schedule a vintage Japanese obi on a client project when the piece is one of one, cannot be reordered, and ships from Tokyo.
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A Seasonal Obi Calendar: Which Motif to Display in Which Month, and How to Run a Rotation
Japanese textile motifs are timed, not permanent. A month-by-month calendar of which obi motifs suit which season, the rule about displaying a motif slightly early, and how to build a rotation from two or three pieces.
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Obi Table Runner Size Guide: Length, Width and What to Do With the Extra
A vintage obi is around 30cm wide and up to 4.5m long — far longer than a standard table runner. How to measure, what fits, and five ways to handle the excess length.
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Obi Upcycling Ideas: What to Make From a Vintage Obi, and When Not to Cut It
Eleven things to make from a vintage Japanese obi, sorted by whether they need scissors. Plus the construction facts that decide where to cut, and the three cases where cutting destroys more than it creates.
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Japanese Silk Table Runner vs a Standard Runner: Size, Drape and Price
A Japanese silk table runner made from a vintage obi is longer, narrower and heavier than a shop-bought runner. What that means for your table, and when a standard runner is the better buy.
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How to Remove Fold Lines from a Silk Obi Table Runner (Safely)
Vintage obi arrive with fold lines. Why they are there, which ones relax and which are permanent, and the method that works on silk with metallic thread — plus the four things never to do.
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Shipping a Vintage Textile From Japan: Customs, Duties and How Long It Really Takes
What changed for parcels from Japan since the US de minimis suspension, what a vintage obi is classified as at the border, and the six things to check with a seller before you buy across a border.
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A Vintage Obi as a Gift: Occasions It Suits, Etiquette to Know, and How to Present It
A vintage Japanese obi is an unusual gift: textile art with a hundred years of context behind it. Which occasions it fits, the motif and etiquette traps, and how to hand one over so the recipient understands what they are holding.
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What Is Nishijin-ori, and Why Does a Nishijin Obi Cost More?
Nishijin-ori is the pre-dyed silk weaving of northwest Kyoto. What makes it different from ordinary brocade, why a Nishijin obi costs more, and how to judge an attribution you cannot verify.
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Where to Buy an Authentic Vintage Japanese Obi (and How to Check the Seller)
Where vintage obi actually come from in Japan, the five places you can buy one abroad, and the seven questions that separate a real listing from a resold photograph.
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How to Style a Japanese Obi Table Runner (5 Ways)
Five ways to lay a vintage obi on a dining table, console or bench, with the fold arithmetic for your table length and the care rules that keep silk safe.
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Japanese Crane Motif Meaning: Cranes, Pines and Plum on a Vintage Obi
What the crane, pine, plum, chrysanthemum, peony, fan, shikishi and asanoha motifs on a vintage obi mean, and how to read a whole piece at once.
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Obi Wall Hanging: Dowel, Mount, and What Not to Do
How to hang a vintage obi on a wooden dowel with no pin or nail through the silk, how to fold it to your wall height, and the mistakes that damage brocade.
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How to Tell Silk from Polyester Obi: Four Tests You Can Do at Home
Warmth, sheen, a burn test on one lining thread, and the reverse side: four ways to tell a silk obi from polyester, and why the answer moves the price.
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Vintage Japanese Textile Decor: the Complete Guide to Obi at Home
What a vintage obi is, the four types you will meet, how to read silk, era and motif, where KINU Tokyo's pieces come from, and how to keep them for decades.