À la recherche du temps perdu— Why Wasai is Hand-Sewn: The Vanished Stencil and the Living Fabric
- Hamanaka Akiko
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
Why must Wasai—traditional Japanese tailoring—be done by hand? Although it is a highly exceptional form of haute couture, its rare value has long been overlooked in Japan, perhaps because it was once a natural part of daily life. However, times have changed, and the custom of wearing a garment until it is completely worn out is fading. Today, through a 70-year-old fabric dyed from the stencil of a Living National Treasure and the memory of an unstitched Hitoe (unlined kimono), we unravel the truth of hand-sewing, which exists purely for the sake of remodeling.
In this modern era, machine sewing has made significant inroads even into cotton yukata. The reason is simple: nobody thinks about un-stitching and re-sewing a yukata to wear it again anymore, and the habit of wearing a garment to its absolute limit no longer exists.
When I was a child, when my mother’s or grandmother’s yukata reached the end of its role, it became a cloth diaper, then a rag, and finally decayed away. It was used thoroughly until its duty was complete, and then it returned to the earth. That used to be the norm. But today, how many parents use cloth diapers? Do "cloth diapers made from the remnants of a yukata" even exist anymore?
In an age where clothing is consumed and discarded, I unstitched a certain "Hitoe" (unlined kimono) and performed Araihari (traditional washing and stretching of detached kimono fabric).
It was a quite stained Hitoe. However, when I unstitched it and looked closely at the fabric again, I found the seal of Hiroshi Kodama, a Living National Treasure of Ise Katagami (traditional paper stencils).
Eiichi Asano, a master artisan of stripe dyeing, is known for using exclusively Kodama’s stencils. The colors before me have a somewhat dull, muted tone—a warmth born from hand-dyeing, yet possessing a strangely blunt depth. I find myself spending my days quietly wondering, "Could this perhaps be the work of Mr. Asano?"
Mr. Kodama was designated a Living National Treasure for his mastery of Ise Katagami. However, stencils are "consumables" in the dyeing process. The stencil used for this very fabric has likely turned to dust by now and no longer exists in this world. The stencil of extremely fine stripes created by the hands of a Living National Treasure is gone.
Yet, the fabric dyed using that vanished stencil still exists right here in front of me, even after 70 years. And now, it is being breathed with new life for someone who has no prior connection to it, preparing to adorn a new owner.
If this garment had been sewn with a machine, ruthless needle holes would remain in the fabric, and it might split or tear when being remodeled. It would never have been able to return to a pristine, flat sheet of cloth.
Why is Wasai hand-sewn? The answer is because it is a garment premised entirely on being remodeled.
Even if the stencil vanishes, the fabric protected by hand-sewing lives on. Changing owners, changing shapes, it circulates across decades of time. This miraculous cycle of rebirth is the true reason why Wasai must be hand-sewn.
You may never wear a kimono. But you can wear the art of Wasai.
On ne porte pas forcément un kimono. Mais on peut porter l'art du Wasai.
— PASSIONEER
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