Japanese Tradition enchanting on the back

 

 

Kojima, in Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture, was once an island floating in the Seto Inland Sea, before large-scale land reclamation during the Edo period connected it to the mainland.

There, cotton — well suited to the area's naturally salty soil — began to be cultivated, eventually giving rise to the production of cotton thread and cotton cloth, laying the foundation for the "town of textiles" it remains today.

In recent years, Kojima has continued to develop original processing and sewing techniques that add even more value to its textiles, growing into a town known for exceptional quality and technical skill.

 

 

Kojima Obi® is made by combining denim, Tatamiberi, and Sanadahimo — all produced right here in Kojima, the town of textiles.

Focused mainly on women's hanhaba obi and men's kaku obi, we aim for a design that's both elegant and effortlessly stylish.

 

 

 ▶▶▶View Kojima Obi

 

 

 

Features of Kojima Obi®

— Materials —

 

 

Tatamiberi

Kojima produces more Tatamiberi than anywhere else in Japan — a textile the town takes real pride in.

(Tatamiberi is the fabric border sewn along the edge of a tatami mat, both decorating and protecting the edge.)

Tatamiberi's defining qualities are:
① lightweight
② easy to wipe clean (depending on the type of stain)
③ a firm, structured feel

That third quality, in particular, is what sets Kojima Obi apart from anything before it — allowing for large, striking knots that make people wonder, "All of this, from a single hanhaba obi?"

That's the standout feature of the knots you can create with Kojima Obi®.

 

 

Note: we use a specially developed, heat-resistant Tatamiberi, so the obi can still be ironed even after the fabric has creased from being tied.

Note: our Tatamiberi is produced by Takada Textile Co., Ltd. and Nishinaka Textile Co., Ltd., both in Kojima, Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture.

 

Denim

"Kojima Denim" is already a well-known name in the fashion world. 

But denim comes in such a wide variety that no single description could do it justice.

So we asked ourselves: what makes a denim right for an obi?
We chose our fabric based on the following conditions.

 

 

① the finished obi must weigh no more than 500g total (so it doesn't strain the body) 
② it must be maintainable at home (washable by hand and ironable, without fading or color transfer)
③ it must not compromise the dignity befitting a piece of national dress

Out of everything available, we chose an elegant cotton-and-silk blend — Cotton and Silk Twill — as our main fabric, for how it holds onto a casual character while still achieving a refined beauty.

 

Cotton and Silk Twill is used not only for our obi but for kimono as well, and it's earned a strong reputation for its sheen, its pleasant hand-feel, and how comfortable it is to wear.

The silk-denim side can also be decorated with Shichisai-zome dyeing by a certified traditional craftsman, or with gold-and-silver ink calligraphy motifs by the calligrapher Reikō.
(See "About Our Kimono" for more.)

 

Note: our denim fabric is produced by SHOWA Co., Ltd. in Kojima, Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture.

 

 

Sanadahimo

Sanadahimo is among the narrowest woven textiles in the world, yet despite its slenderness, it adds real character wherever it's used.

We use it as a decorative accent on the denim side of some of our obi, and it's also used to make our original obijime (the cord tied over the obi).

 

 

It carries a long history dating back to the Edo period, when it was sold as a souvenir along the pilgrimage road during the popular twin pilgrimage between Yuga Daigongen (in Kojima) and Mount Kotohira (in Shikoku).

Note: our Sanadahimo is produced by Sakamoto Textile Co., Ltd. in Kojima, Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture.

 

 

Sewing Technique

Sewing together different materials of varying thickness to create a reversible obi takes real technical skill.

Kojima, however, has long been home to exceptional sewing expertise built around jeans production — a process that's inherently complex in its own right.

Because the town still has a large population of skilled sewing professionals, Kojima Obi® lives up to its name as a true MADE IN KOJIMA product, with every step — from raw material production to final sewing — carried out entirely in Kojima.

 

 

The "town of textiles" is still home to many other kinds of textile production as well.

We created Kojima Obi® in the hope that a single obi might become a way to introduce more people to Kojima — a truly unique town where so many different textile industries come together in one place.

 

 

Finally, we'd like to share a blog post written by a journalist who interviewed us about the thinking and dedication behind creating Kojima Obi®.