Tokyo > Iwate > Kanazawa > Takayama > Gifu > Tokyo

Next spring, you are invited to join Atsushi Futatsuya, a sashiko artisan and a story-teller from Upcycle Stitches, and Koshiki Smith, a textile tour guide from Tanpopo Journeys, for an unforgettable journey exploring the roots of sashiko and boro and offering you a chance to partake in textile art. This small-group tour is centered on traditional sashiko’s cultural significance to the Tohoku and Hokuriku regions, learning to recognize regional differences in sashiko and also focusing on local efforts to preserve native arts and crafts.

Sashiko and BORO in Tohoku & Hokuriku Regions

The Tohoku area of Japan is home to the three best-known types of sashiko stitching: Kogin-zashi, Shounai-zashi, and Hishi-zashi, and many pieces with complicated geometric patterns are considered important tangible folk cultural properties. We will meet craftspeople and have in-depth conversations to learn where and how sashiko originated, and how it evolved to become the sashiko and boro of today. Along the way, we will also learn about boro mending, an integral part of sashiko stitching, which will help us to understand the relationship between boro sashiko. 

In the coastal town of Iwate prefecture, we will meet with members of a local nonprofit group whose mission is to preserve the lost culture of sashiko in a region hit by a devastating tsunami. In the valleys of the Hida Mountains in Gifu prefecture, Atsushi Futatsuya will welcome you to join his Sashiko Stitching “Origine” and share with you their dedication and passion for artisanal sashiko, an intimate experience you will never forget.   

We will learn about other Japanese textiles along our journey, and stay at a hot spring ryokan to relax and relish the local cuisine. We will visit small artist studios, a UNESCO World Heritage site, beautiful small towns, and meet with local people and hear their stories. 

This tour is genuinely unique: a journey with a sashiko artisan and storyteller that will deepen your understanding of sashiko’s importance and preservation, and help you to discover sashiko as it exists in the present day.  This journey is perfect for you if you have some basic knowledge of sashiko.  It will deepen your relationship with sashiko and let you experience it in its native land.

*Single Occupancy-In Tokyo and Kanazawa, every traveler will have their rooms at western-style hotels. In Iwate, Otsuchi, and Takayama, 2-4 travelers will share a large room at a traditional ryokan.

Highlights

• Welcome dinner & sashiko workshop
• Take a tour of the Tsukiji Fish Market and have fresh sushi for lunch
• Visit Tsutaya Edomoji Studio
• Guided arts and crafts tour of Iwate prefecture
• Visit stencil dye and homespun studios
• Take a cooking class from a local women’s group
• Workshop with Otsuchi Sashiko Recovery Project
• Kanazawa sightseeing
• Kutani Pottery Studio Visit
• Feather & needle art workshop (optional)
• Gold leaf application workshop (optional)
• All-day sashiko workshop in Takayama
• Day-trip to Shirakawago, UNESCO World Heritage Site
• Fabric Shopping in Textile Town
• Farewell Dinner

Ideal trip for:

Solo Traveler , Female Traveler , Friends

Qualification: Prospect travelers must complete one or more online sashiko workshops from Upcycle Stitches. Click here for more information.

Your Guides

Hi, my name is Koshiki, and I am your textile tour guide. As a Japan specialist and a travel advisor, I have 20+ years of hospitality experience. I lead numerous special interest tours to Japan, including textile, food, arts and culture, and sports event such as Nagano Winter Olympic. My role as a guide is to help and assist you through your journey to Japan and present knowledge of its textile and culture with personal and attentive service so you can experience the best of what Japan has to offer

Atsushi Futatsuya is a Sashiko artisan and story-teller. Atsushi was born in a Sashiko family in Gifu Prefecture, Japan. Since his childhood, he has spent a great amount of time in Sashiko with Sashiko artisans, including his mother and great Sashiko artist, Keiko. In 2015, Keiko started @Sashi.Co to share the enjoyment of Sashiko with asking Atsushi to help her. In 2017, Atsushi started sharing his Sashiko and stories through @UpcycleStitches.

Atsushi focuses on the importance of Sashiko as a process. His work not only communicates the beauty of hand stitching, but it also reminds us of a more spiritual relationship with cloth and how, through Sashiko, you communicate to the fabric while stitching.

Itinerary

Day 1> Welcome to Japan

New dates coming soon
We will meet you at Haneda International Airport and help you transfer to the hotel if you are arriving today. At dinner, Atsushi Futatsuya will give you an introduction to sashiko and a small sashiko project to keep your hands busy during the tour.  

Accommodation: Mitsui Garden Hotel or equivalent, 2 nights
Meals: Dinner 

Day 2 >Tokyo, Ginza, Tsukiji Outer Market

New dates coming soon
What is the best way to understand Japanese culture? It’s to visit the Tsukiji market! So, today we will get up early in the morning to see the Tsukiji Outer Market. Along the way, we will visit a century-old Noren textile and design studio nestled in a small alleyway: this studio has been providing Noren curtains, lanterns, and tenugui for festivals and cultural ceremonies in the area.  The afternoon can be spent visiting museums, touring gardens, or just relaxing.   

Accommodation: Mitsui Garden Hotel or equivalent
Meals: Breakfast & Lunch

Day 3 & 4 > Iwate Prefecture, textile arts

New dates coming soon
After breakfast, we will take the Shinkansen bullet train to Iwate prefecture, a three-hour journey.  We will tour the city of Iwate, a former political and cultural center of the Tohoku region, to discover the rich history of textile, and folk and craft arts. For the next two nights, we will stay at a ryokan, a traditional Japanese inn; we will relax in the hot springs and relish regional cuisine.

Accommodation: Traditional style ryokan, 2 nights
Meals: day 1-Breakfast & Dinner (kaiseki style)
day 2-Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Luggage: luggage transfer to Kanazawa

Day 5 > Coastal town of Otsuchi

New dates coming soon
Today, we will take a local train to meet with a local group for a cooking class. We will take a stroll along the seashore and then get ready for an all-day workshop the next day. We will be staying at a local inn.  

Accommodation: Minshuku (Guest House)
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch/cooking class & Dinner (seafood)

Day 6 > All-day sashiko workshop in Otsuchi

New dates coming soon
Today, we will participate in an all-day sashiko workshop hosted by the Otsuchi Sashiko Recovery Project (NPO) and Atsushi Futatsuya. After the devastating tsunami that hit the region in 2011, Atsushi and local sashiko artists formed the Otsuchi Sashiko Recovery Project; their mission is to help preserve and recover the lost art of sashiko. You will learn more than just sashiko; you will also learn about the wisdom, resilience, and humility of the people who cherish sashiko and about their determination to continue the folk art traditions of the region. 

Accommodation: TBD
Meals: Breakfast & Lunch

Day 7 & 8 > Kanazawa, art and craft town of Hokuriku region, fiber art

New dates coming soon
We will spend two days in Kanazawa, one of the best-preserved Edo period (1603-1868) cities in Japan, known for its arts and crafts.  We will visit Kenrokuen, one of the three best-known Japanese gardens, the Kutani Kosen pottery studio, and spend an afternoon in the Geisha district.  

Accommodation: Mitsui Garden Kanazawa or equivalent, 2 nights, laundry service available
Meals: day 1-Breakfast
day 2-None
Luggage: luggage transfer to Takayama

Day 9 > Takayama, sashiko and boro workshop in Hida region

New dates coming soon
In the next two days, Atsushi will invite us to his hometown, the birthplace of sashiko in Hida, and we will take part in an all-day sashiko workshop. We will be working with naturally dyed threads and indigo-dyed cotton fabric to each create our own sashiko art piece (future boro).   

Accommodation: TBD
Meals: Lunch

Day 10 > Gifu, Shirakawago, UNESCO World Heritage Site

New dates coming soon
We will take a day trip from Takayama to Shirakawago, a UNESCO World Heritage site in the Hida valley. This small traditional village showcases a building style known as gassho-zukuri (prayer-style architecture). Enjoy a relaxing day strolling in the village, getting to know the long-established architecture, beautiful scenery, and having a local lunch.   

Accommodation: TBD
Meals: None

Day 11 > Tokyo, textile shopping and farewell dinner

New dates coming soon
Today we will say goodbye to Takayama and head back to Tokyo. We will have the afternoon for shopping in Nippori textile town, Asakusa, and Kappabashi kitchen town, and then gather together as a group one last time for a farewell dinner to reflect on our journey.  

Accommodation: Asakusa View Hotel or equivalent
Meals: Farewell Dinner

Day 12 > To Haneda

New dates coming soon
Our tour includes a shuttle service to Haneda International Airport.  We hope you enjoyed the trip and have a safe journey home.  

Meals: None

Itinerary is subject change.

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