I want to introduce traditional goods that have made a comeback in Japan. ‘make a comeback’ means things which grow in popularity again after declining for a while.
Everyone must have heard before, the goods are called Furoshiki. Furoshiki have been used since the Nara period, more than 1300 years ago. There were many hand-made Furosiki then and women used to make their own furoshiki and also make for families. People used them for wrapping folded cloth when they take a bath. There are many people wore Kimono (Japanese traditional cloth) then and they were indistinguishable whose cloth. Wrapping cloth with Furosiki made it easy to tell the difference.
After industrial revolution, people started to buy things instead of making by their own. Furoshiki was little by little replaced by new types of bags and wrapping paper.
Nowadays, many people and government are concerned with ecological problems and these problems are more serious than we think. Using environment-friendly goods has become a recent fat and that’s why Furoshiki has made a comeback in Japan.
Japanese-style has become popular especially among young people. Nowadays, young people tend to use Furoshiki to wrap gift and they can get their own Furoshiki by choosing color and a pattern of marks at shops. There are many stores specializing in hand-made Furoshiki. You can find books which show how to use Furoshiki at bookstore.
I think this is a good boom. People can not only know Japan’s tradition thoroughly but also learn the importance of taking good care of things and not waste precious resources. We can buy Furosiki online and also choose our favorite design from many types of Furosiki. I hope more and more young people pay attention to Furoshiki and use them.
Do you have a furoshiki? What do you use it for? I hope people continue to make use of them as they are eco-friendly, more attractive than a plastic bag, and re-usable.
ReplyDeleteYou have a number of spelling mistakes above, including the word furoshiki. Could you please correct them?
Ms. MacGregor
Thank you for pointing out my mistakes and I fixed them.
DeleteYes,I have one. I use it when wrapping my lunch box. There are no friends of mine use Furosiki and I am planning to give them Furoshiki as a birthday present!
Yuna
I'm surprised at the fact that Furoshiki started to be used in such an old time. I think that we need to continue using it from two reasons: one is for preserving a traditional thing and the other is for the environment. Furoshiki has a lot of use, so it would make people to enjoy themselves.
ReplyDeleteMinami
I often use furoshiki to wrap clothe to pack my luggage when I go to travel. They are really useful, because it can wrap things of any shape. Moreover, I know that a famous race cracker shop in Japan uses furoshiki to wrap their crackers. I think furoshiki used to be though as oldish but it can be fashionable and elegant in many ways.
ReplyDeleteMinori
Hi this is Mayuko. I think it is good idea to use Furoshiki for ecological reason. Because we do not have to waste paper for wrapping! Nowadays, furoshiki's design has been more modern taste which is young people.
ReplyDeletehello. This is Koichi.
ReplyDeleteIt makes me surprised that furoshiki is getting popular in Japan! Although I know the name, I've never seen it. In the pictures you attached on your blog, there are some furoshikis, and I found their design is modern. I think many young people will like them. Their design is slitely different from what I imagine when I hear furoshiki.