[Marukyu Shoten] Welcome to the “Shirt Exhibition” to dress in freshness and color

2023.08.10

A dyeing technique unique to Japan, chusen is traditionally used for tenugui towels and yukata. As its name suggests (“chu” meaning “to pour” and “sen” meaning “dye”), chusen was already in existence at the end of the Edo period, and involves using a kind of kettle to pour the dye onto the fabric. As this is a process involving the craftsman’s hand, generating halos, fluctuations and gradations, each item produced has a unique appearance, rich in nuances.

Marukyu Shoten, a fabric wholesaler founded in 1899, offers original items based on the chusen technique and pursues activities aimed at expanding the possibilities of this form of dyeing.

Since the first of this month, the company has been staging a “Shirt Exhibition at the Yamatoya Store” in Jinbocho. This showcases a wide selection of shirts made from tenugui towels and yukata fabrics at Yamatoya Hakimonoten, a store established over a century ago during the Meiji period, like Marukyu Honten, and continuing the geta sandal-making technique and tradition.

While this shirt exhibition has so far been organized periodically, this is the first time that Marukyu Honten is presenting shirts from her Tewsen brand, which she has been developing since 2022.

Tewsen products feature an irregular grid weave. These irregularities in relief prevent the fabric from adhering too easily to the skin, and make it pleasant to wear with a sensation of lightness.

On site, you’ll also find products from other vendors, such as Ogura Design & Dye Studio, which makes items with dyes using a variety of stencils, Kouboukamo, which creates original tenugui and yukata, and Studio Kuu and its illustrators.

The exhibition features fashion items ranging from the current summer heat to the autumn season, when we like to slip on a light jacket, so why not pay a visit and find your favorite item?