About Shiozawa Weaving

Sincere craftsmanship that brings a texture your heart can feel.

When you touch Shiozawa textiles, you may feel a quiet sense of nostalgia and comfort.
This comes from a process that follows the rhythms of nature, where each thread is woven with care and sincerity.

Rather than pursuing efficiency, artisans have devoted themselves to this honest craft over generations.
Today, it is recognized as an Important Intangible Cultural Property of Japan and a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage.

There is no need for bold statements—simply wearing it brings a quiet sense of calm.
With gentle comfort for everyday life and uncompromising dedication to even the unseen details,
this is the true texture of Shiozawa textiles.

Four Textiles to Enrich Everyday Life

While preserving techniques passed down for over 1,200 years,
these textiles have gradually evolved to suit modern life—giving rise to four unique styles.

Echigo Jofu is a textile with over 1,200 years of history.
Weaving this thin, high-quality fabric requires finely spun threads, which take months to prepare entirely by hand.

Once a bolt of cloth is completed, it is laid on snow on a sunny day.
The sunlight and snow cause a chemical reaction (ozone) that naturally whitens the fabric.

During the Edo period, annual production reached 200,000–300,000 bolts,
but today only about 30 bolts are made, making it a “phantom textile.”

Material: Choma (a type of hemp)

Materials	The fibers of choma (a perennial plant of the nettle family) are carefully stripped from the stalks and spun thread by thread. Weaving thin, high-quality fabric requires extremely fine threads, making every step—twisting, tying, dyeing, sizing, warping, and weaving—exceptionally difficult. Echigo Jofu represents the pinnacle of these contrasting traditional techniques: the delicate spinning of choma threads and the precise art of weaving and dyeing.
Designated	May 1955 – Designated as an Important Intangible Cultural Property of Japan September 2009 – Registered as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage
Designation Criteria	Important Intangible Cultural Property Technique Designation “Echigo Jofu” – Designation Details (from the Cultural Properties Protection Law) 1.Use only hand-spun choma (hemp) thread. 2.If applying kasuri patterns, use hand-tied technique. 3.Weave using the Isuwari loom. 4.If removing wrinkles (shibo), use hot water kneading and foot pressing. 5.For bleaching, use the snow-bleaching method.

Hon-Shiozawa, also known as Shiozawa Omeshi, is a textile with a 350-year history.
Its signature texture—small undulations called shibo—is created by weaving with highly twisted threads and finishing with hot-water kneading (yumomi).

To account for shrinkage during yumomi, artisans weave the fabric wider and design patterns slightly elongated.
This is the culmination of years of skill and dialogue with silk.

With a pleasant textured feel and moderate thickness, it is perfect for spring and autumn wear.

Material: Silk

Materials	Both the warp and weft threads are made of raw silk.
Designated	December 1976 – Designated as a Traditional Craft of Japan
Technique or Method	1.Plain weave using pre-dyed threads. 2.Kasuri patterns are created by carefully aligning hand-tied warp and weft threads. 3.For weft threads used in the ground, rice paste, bracken paste, or cloth paste is applied; after sizing, tsuinen (twisting) is performed. 4.Kasuri thread dyeing is done by hand-tie, hand-printing, board-resist, or stencil dyeing. 5.Shibo (textured surface) is produced through hot-water kneading (yumomi).

Shiozawa Tsumugi incorporates the techniques of Echigo Jofu into silk textiles.
Hand-spun threads from raw silk reveal natural variations in thickness, giving the finished fabric warmth and character.

The airy texture between the threads provides excellent insulation, making it ideal for winter wear.

Material: Silk

Materials	Raw silk and tamayarn are used for the warp threads, and hand-spun silk from raw silk (mawata) is used for the weft threads.
Designated	February 1975 – Designated as a Traditional Craft of Japan
Technique or Method	1.Plain weave using pre-dyed threads. 2.Use raw silk and tamayarn for the warp threads, and hand-spun silk from raw silk (mawata) for the weft threads. 3.Use a hand-thrown shuttle for weft insertion. 4.Kasuri thread dyeing is done by hand-tie, hand-printing, or board-resist techniques.

Natsu-Shiozawa emerged in the Meiji period and has a surprisingly short history.
This silk fabric is exceptionally thin and translucent, designed for wearing silk even in summer.

Its cool elegance (ryo) is expressed by letting white peek through beneath darker kimono layers.
With a crisp, airy texture, it is perfect for midsummer wear.

Material: Silk

Materials	100% silk, using ultra-fine twisted threads (koma-nejiri)
Technique	1.Plain weave using pre-dyed threads. 2.Both warp and weft threads use strongly twisted koma yarn.