Holiday Series - #3 Furoshiki
For our wrapping this year, we’ve chosen to join the reuse revolution and dive into the world of Furoshiki. Furoshiki are traditional Japanese cloths used to carry belongings and wrap gifts. The technique dates back centuries but has lately evolved into a popular practice as a sustainable alternative to holiday gift wrapping. We hope this guide will give you a few helpful hints to embrace a unique way to wrap your gifts and how to use the fabrics after they’ve been used as just gift wrap.
All that’s needed to tie Furoshiki is a piece of fabric. The only requirement is that the cloth must be square, the size of the cloth depends on the size of the object you’re wrapping. There are tons of variations on how to tie your Furoshiki, but for our Christmas celebration we stick to two of the most basic Furoshiki wrapping techniques. By choosing different fabrics the pattern on the fabric, thickness and structure can customize the look of the gift. And why not add a little branch or a card to make it more personal?
Once you’re given a gift wrapped in Furoshiki, you might use it to wrap another gift and let it circulate throughout your family or friend group. The fabric cloth can also be re-used for lots of everyday purposes, use it like a tie bag for your bread, as lunch wrap, scarf or fold a carry bag.
Johan Åberg, Brand Marketing Manager at Fine Little Day, is a true re-use pro. In 2016 he founded Dyeforindigo, a studio offering natural indigodyeing, shibori and sashiko workshops. With focus on re-use of fabrics, sustainable materials and mending his work often leads to questions regarding sustainability and recycling. And that is somewhat the cord of modern Furoshiki with its take on environmental awareness.
Tie your own Furoshiki Bag with the use of a fabric cloth size 1 x 1 m with Johan's simple tutorial. This bag can carry almost anything and is the perfect companion when grocery shopping, on trips to the beach, or wherever you need a tote.
