In a bold move, the third-generation head of a small weaving company in Kyoto’s rural Tango district, stepped away from modern mechanized weaving and re-adopted traditional wooden looms hand weaving, introducing the Kuska Fabric brand. This accentuates the “fluffiness, shade, and gentle texture created by the handiwork of artisans, alternating one right twist and one left twist of the weft yarn at a time” for which Tango Chirimen Crepe* has been known for 300 years.

Always innovating, Kusonoki now aims to create and market a line of craftsman-developed, hand-woven leather textiles, fully using Tango Chirimen Crepe* methodology and passing on the value of Tango woven textiles to the next generation.

*Crimped texture silk made in the Tango district

Kyoto’s Tango district has been producing woven silk fabrics since the 700s. For the past 300 years, they have been a center for white chirimen crepe silk production, which is used for kimono dyeing processes such as yuzen brush dyeing and stencil dyeing. Crepe is a plain weave product with a characteristic crimpled texture created with loosely twisted warp threads and weft threads tightly twisted 3000 - 4000 times per meter.  Water scouring causes the fabric to shrink 30%, resulting in a lovely bumpy surface.

The production line of KUSKA, has evolved from producing white chirimen crepe for kimono dyeing to a high value-added process based on hand-weaving rather than automated weaving.  Greater warmth and quality are achieved by hand weaving on old-fashioned wooden looms.  The slow and gentle weaving pace places air into the weave and results in three-dimensional fabric that highlights the natural qualities of silk. Silk threads are shaped like translucent glass rods with a round, triangular cross-section and prismatic structure. Slow hand weaving increases the transmission and reflection of light through their structure, increasing the complex diamond-like brilliance that is emitted.

In addition to silk weaving, Kuska also produces a line of woven leather.  While the long warp yarn on the loom may be silk, the weft is produced from thinly sliced leather. The result is a leather textile that can be used for shoes, bags, and other accessories.