A Zokin or Traditional Cleaning Cloth: Bold Shibori and Sashiko Stitching

early to mid twentieth century
11 1/4" x 15 1/2", 26 cm x 39 cm

A zokin is a traditional Japanese dust cloth or cleaning rag; it is usually made from old pieces of cloth and it is usually layered and stitched for durability.   Along with diapers, zokin are said to be among the traditional household textiles that represent the end of the line where the repurposing or recycling of cloth is concerned.

This one has been used well as can be seen by the loss to the edges and some of the sashiko stitching to the top corner of the cloth.

Shown in the center of one side is a large scale, shibori dyed, stylized plum blossom. This motif repeats on the other side of the zokin, however it is broken and appears as a fragment on either side of the piece.

For the shibori detail and the nice sashiko stitching--along with its good size--this is a good looking, better-than-average old traditional zokin.