Kitchen Cloth - Kaya Fukin - Seven Layers

A seven-layer kitchen cloth, fukin (ふきん), from Harada Orimono of Wakayama Prefecture. It is made from kaya (蚊帳) fabric, the open-weave cloth long used in Japan for mosquito nets, and printed with large flowers in yellow or navy.

Layered seven times, the gauze is absorbent, quick to dry and hard-wearing, a cloth for drying dishes and glasses and wiping down the table.

The cloth arrives stiff with starch. Rinse it well in lukewarm or cold water before first use: it shrinks a surprising amount as the starch comes out, then grows softer, fuller and more supple with every use.

Specifications:

• Size: approx. 30 × 30 cm as sold
• Layers: seven
• Fibre: cotton front, rayon inner layers and back
• Colours: Flower Yellow, Flower Navy
• Origin: Made in Japan

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Harada Orimono (原田織物) began in 1949 as Harada Shoten, a business set up by Seiichi Harada that exported dish cloths and place mats to the United States and Europe. Today it is a textile maker in Kōyaguchi, in Hashimoto, Wakayama Prefecture, making bath towels, handkerchiefs, scarves, place mats and kitchen cloths. Its own workshops print by machine and by hand, cut, sew and finish, and every piece is inspected by eye.