À la recherche du temps perdu/About the structure of the garment

　The structure of a garment expresses the philosophy behind it, before it even looks.

Wasai (traditional Japanese sewing) and kimonos are garments that are designed to be re-tailored. They are never intended to be a "one-off" garment. This philosophy is built into every aspect of their construction.

The reason they are not sewn with a sewing machine is not out of nostalgia or a celebration of handcrafted work; it is to avoid leaving stitches. Stitches made with silk and hand-sewing needles miraculously leave no trace when unstitched and washed. The fabric returns to its original state, and the fibers quietly close.

This is why they can be re-tailored to suit different bodies and different eras. The same fabric can accommodate different measurements. This room for improvement is present from the start.

Most garments are designed with a finished form in mind. The final appearance and presentation are considered first, and the fabric is cut to achieve that. However, the structure of Wasai (traditional Japanese sewing) is the opposite. The fabric exists first, and consideration is given to how many times that fabric can be re-woven.

Fabric cut in straight lines does not fixate the curves of the body. When you walk, when you sit, and over the years, the fabric will settle into a different position each time. This flexibility is not an indication of incompleteness, but rather a structure that is able to accept the passage of time.

When you work on your parents' kimono, you are not confronted with the finished product of the past. Rather, it is the fabric of the present, which incorporates all of the elements that have gone into its storage, the years it was not worn, and the changes in the body.

Understanding the structure does not mean returning it to its original state. It means reading how the fabric in front of you now allows for alterations.

This is why Japanese sewing will never die. Because clothing has a structure that does not reject time.

A kimono made for re-tailoring has been unstitched and returned to its original fabric structure. This was made using a pattern by Hiroshi Kodama.