Hakata Textiles

Design: The design is crucial to how well the cloth is received and will sell. The design is converted into a weaving diagram and enlarged on graph paper with different colors representing the weaving structure. Although the recent introduction of computers has raised efficiency, this stage of the work still requires as much concentration and sensitivity as it has always done.

Dyeing: Hakata textiles are yarn dyed silk cloths. Having settled on a pattern and colors at the design stage, yarn is dyed to suit the pattern. Raw silk is washed in soapy water to bring up its gloss and then the warp and weft threads are dyed. It takes a great deal of skill to be able to match the color samples when dyeing the yarn, because the weather and time of year can greatly influence how the yarn dyes.

Setting Up: The warp is carefully set up on the loom. This stage of the work is so important because the pattern is literally woven into the cloth. It also requires great concentration because there are so many threads to deal with and any of the silk threads may break.

Weaving: The cloth is now rhythmically woven in a distinctive style requiring a combination of strength and skill to bring out the distinctive fineness and closeness of these cloths.