Kasuri Plaid and Indigo: A Short Haori from Early Showa Japan
Some garments arrive already complete. Not in the sense of being new or unworn — but in the sense that every decision has already been made, every thread already placed, every year of use already absorbed into the fabric. This haori is one of those pieces.
It comes from the early Showa period — approximately the 1920s to 1940s — making it somewhere between 80 and 100 years old. It was made by hand, from cotton, in a time when the distinction between clothing and craft had not yet been drawn.
Kasuri Plaid: Two Traditions in One Cloth
The fabric combines two of the most enduring techniques in Japanese textile history. Kasuri — known in the West as ikat — is a resist-dyeing method in which threads are bound and dyed before weaving, creating the characteristic soft-edged, blurred pattern. Plaid, or格子 (koshi), is the grid structure formed when these dyed threads cross in both directions.
The result is a cloth of quiet complexity: indigo blue deepened by age, a geometric pattern that shifts slightly at every intersection, and a surface that rewards close attention. This is not a fabric designed to shout. It is designed to last.
The Short Haori Form
Haori are the hip-length jackets worn open over kimono — a form that has existed in Japan since the Edo period. This example is shorter than most, with a back length of approximately 58 cm. The abbreviated silhouette gives it a different proportion to the standard haori: lighter, less formal, more adaptable.
There are no Miyatsuguchi — the side slits found on many haori — which gives the body a cleaner, more contained line. The sleeves are narrow at the cuff, tapering from a wider sleeve width in a construction that is entirely characteristic of early 20th-century Japanese garment-making.
Condition and Possibilities
Size: back length approx. 58 cm / 22.8 in, chest approx. 48 cm / 18.9 in, shoulder width approx. 48 cm / 18.9 in, sleeve length approx. 29.5 cm / 11.6 in.
Some soiling and age-related wear are present, consistent with a piece approximately 80–100 years old. Washed twice prior to listing. A faint antique scent may remain. This is a piece for those who understand that age in cloth is not deterioration — it is accumulation.
Possibilities for this haori are wide: worn as a jacket over contemporary clothing, used as fabric for handmade or upcycle projects, displayed as a textile object, or incorporated into stage costume or art work. The kasuri plaid cotton is of a quality and character that simply cannot be sourced new.
One piece. One story. No two alike.