Furoshiki

Furoshiki (風呂敷) are traditional Japanese wrapping cloths traditionally used to wrap and/or to transport goods. Consideration is placed on the aesthetics of furoshiki, which may feature hemmed edges, thicker and more expensive materials, and hand-painted designs; however, furoshiki are much less formal than fukusa, and are not generally used to present formal gifts.

For formal decorative cloth gift-wrap covers, see Fukusa.
Modern furoshiki are popular as an environmentally-friendly alternative to wrapping paper.
Two homemade bento boxes with furoshiki wrappings

While they come in a variety of sizes, they are typically almost square: the height is slightly greater than the width.[1]

Traditional materials include silk or cotton, but modern furoshiki are available in synthetic materials like rayon, nylon, or polyester.

History

The first furoshiki cloths were tsutsumi ("wrapping"), used during the Nara period as protection for precious temple objects. By the Heian period, cloths called hiratsusumi (平裏/平包), meaning "flat wrap", were used to wrap clothes. These cloths came to be known as furoshiki during the Muromachi period; the term furoshiki (literally "bath spread", from furo (風呂, "bath"), and shiki (敷, "spread")) is said to have come about after high-ranking visitors to bathhouses packed their belongings in cloth decorated with their family crest.

They became popular in the Edo period with increased access to bathhouses by the general public; moreover, cloths with family crests grew in demand as common people gained the right to have family crests during the Meiji period.

Modern furoshiki may be made from fabrics of various thicknesses and price points, including silk, chirimen, cotton, rayon, and nylon. The cloth is typically square, and while sizes vary, the most common are 45 by 45 centimetres (18 in × 18 in) and 70 by 70 centimetres (28 in × 28 in).

Furoshiki usage declined in the post-war period, in large part due the proliferation of paper and plastic bags available to shoppers. In recent years, however, it has seen a renewed interest as environmental protection has become a greater concern. In 2006, Japanese Minister of the Environment, Yuriko Koike, showcased a specially-designed furoshiki cloth to promote environmental awareness.[2] In 2020, The Observer reported a growing interest in furoshiki in the UK, in part as a response to its perceived greater environmental sustainability compared to traditional single-use wrapping paper.[3]

See also
  • Fukusa, a type of Japanese textile used for gift-wrapping or for purifying equipment during a Japanese tea ceremony
  • Bojagi, a similar square cloth in Korea
  • Tenugui, a thin Japanese hand towel made of cotton

References
  1. Yamada, Etsuko (2007). 風呂敷つつみ A Complete Guide to Furoshiki (in Japanese and English). Tokyo: Banana Books. p. 105. ISBN 9784902930153.
  2. Minister Koike created the "Mottainai Furoshiki" as a symbol of Japanese culture to reduce wastes Archived 2017-07-16 at the Wayback Machine, Ministry of the Environment
  3. Smith, Gwendolyn (15 November 2020). "Why reusable cloth could consign Christmas gift wrap to the bin". The Observer. Retrieved 15 November 2020.
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