A Sashiko Stitched Boro Panel: Katazome Dyed Cotton

late nineteenth, early twentieth century
68" x 13 1/2", 173 cm x 34.25 cm

This length of indigo dyed cotton is a panel taken from a sashiko stitched furoshiki.  

The cotton is lovely and old--and as can be seen by the accompanying detail photos, the entire length is studded with small tears and shallow holes, these flaws rather evenly distributed along the cloth's surface.

Three, un-dyed circular designs also decorate this length: these emblems are either a family crest or a store's trade mark, and each is stencil resist (katazome) dyed onto the cloth. On the top right hand corner and the bottom right hand corner there are passages of sashiko stitching, in this case we see fragments of a stylized chrysanthemum that was stitched onto the corners of the cloth to reinforce them.

One lone cotton patch is hand stitched to the center of the length.

This is a really lovely boro length that is rich in folk textile techniques and is attractive in its own right.