Craftsmanship

At Orimoto Sumiya, we offer both hand-woven and machine-woven Sanada Himo cords.
When you think of something being machine-woven, the word "craftsmanship" might not be the first thing that comes to mind. However, even machine-woven cords require our artisans to carefully take that day's temperature and humidity into consideration alongside the material and color of the threads, and listen closely to what the threads have to tell them about their elasticity and tightness.
Producing a beautiful cord requires a delicate balance of numerous factors, all coming together into a single exquisite product. Something that requires this much skillful technique and wisdom gained through trial and error certainly seems like it requires quite a bit of craftsmanship after all; wouldn't you agree?

Orimoto Sumiya

Sanada Himo cords are woven together from many individual threads.
As a result, you'll find that their quality can vary quite a bit from maker to maker.

Using cheap threads or weaving them together without making all of the proper adjustments can ruin the beautiful woven pattern that makes Sanada Himo cords so distinctive — we think it's a remarkable shame that weak, low-quality cords like these are even sold.
At Orimoto Sumiya, we pay close attention to the way the flexibility of threads subtly yet constantly changes in response to temperature and humidity, and weave together these countless threads with the utmost care to produce only the finest Sanada Himo cords.

Perhaps this care is why our cords are the favorites of artisans nationwide.
Sanada Himo cords can be found holding shut the paulownia wood boxes that hold valuable works of art, or tied around presents to show the recipient how you feel about them. Traditions like these, handed down from generation to generation, are what tie people to one another; that is why we at Orimoto Sumiya take such pride in our Sanada Himo cords.

How Sanada Himo Cords are Made

Raw Materials

We primarily use cotton or silk, dyed at workshops in Kyoto famous for Nishijin-ori textiles.
The threads are dyed using the latest technologies for beautiful, even coloration, or by seasoned experts who prepare pigments using traditional methods for threads with a distinctive uniqueness.
It is our pleasure to weave together Sanada Himo cords from threads made with only the finest techniques and materials.

Reeling (Warp) & Pirn Winding (Weft)

The threads dyed at these workshops are gathered together into bundles called "skeins."
Each skein is placed onto a reel, and the threads are rolled around tube-shaped bobbins.
It's critical to keep a close eye on this process, because if the tension on the threads is wrong for even a moment, it can cause the threads to tangle or break.

Warping

Sanada Himo cords are woven from threads organized perpendicularly into "warp," running along the length of the cord, and "weft," running across it.
Here, the warp threads are arranged as needed for the pattern to be woven.
When using pure silk, a Sanada Himo cord 9 mm wide requires 191 warp threads, while one 15 mm wide needs 303.
Each thread goes into the threader, one by one, in a process that requires incredible patience. It takes a great deal of experience to keep the tension uniform and consistent.

Heddling

The warp threads are spread open and the weft threads are pressed firmly into place among them to weave the desired pattern.
The way that the flexibility of the threads changes in response to the temperature and humidity must be taken into account as the warp and weft threads are woven together to produce these sturdy yet beautiful Sanada Himo cords.
This step requires close attention as well: even the slightest difference in the tension of the threads could cause them to break.

Inspection

Is the weave aligned properly? Are there any mistakes in the pattern?
At every step to the very end, our cords are checked with our discerning eyes and hands.
Once you've handled them yourself, we're sure that you'll agree that they are something truly special.