Futonyasan
Japanese pure cotton matress handmade in Amino, Kyotango in the longterm family business run by the couple Noriko and Yuichi. The individual cotton mixture, essential to a high-quality futon, is assembled by hand. The cotton cover of the futon has a print design that can be selected individually, such as the second, final cotton cover surrounding the futon which can be removed and washed. The fabrics are printed in Kyoto and put together in Amino, Kyotango. The inside cotton of the Futon will flatten over time and can be renewed after 10 years, which undermines the longevity and ecological aspect of traditional futons. The traditional futon is thin and light (6.2kg) and can be rolled up/folded and placed aside during daytime. Originally the thin futon is placed on tatami mats which are made by rice straw and Igusa straw. They create a soft ground and Igusa has antibacterial properties which prevents growing of mold through humidity under the futon (the folding of the futon prevents that too). The handmade traditional Futon can be as well placed on western bedframes and lath floors and will make a comfortable, healthy and beautiful base.
Possible sizes:
– single, 100cm x 205cm (fits regular 200cm bedframe)
– double, 140cm x 205cm
Delivery time:
– By ship 2-6 month (90 CHF)
– By plane 2 weeks (350 CHF)
Price:
– single 1172 CHF (with cotton cover, excl. shipping, excl. Mwst.)
– double 1735 CHF (with cotton cover, excl. shipping, excl. Mwst.)
We were lucky to be allowed to film and interview Yuichi and Noriko during their work.
When we were in Japan our father asked us to send home a real Japanese Futon as he remembered to have such a nice sleep when visiting Mitsu. Our grandmother has around twenty Futons so we asked her where she bought them. She explained that earlier they made the Futons themselves but if we want to buy one, there is a Shop in Amino. Without hesitating she called the Shop and half an hour later we met Noriko and Yuichi in their Futon manufacture. The manufacture is led in the third generation and the couple produces mainly Futons (blankets, mattres and pillows). Yuichi showed us the whole production process which contains almost only handwork (see video). They are one of the last Futon producers to have a cotton cleaning machine. The Indian and Mexican cotton is getting cleaned before placed in the Futon. Yuichi‘s Father and Grandfather were both Futonmakers. As the first born (ichi = one) it was clear that he becomes a Futonmaker as well. When he was around twenty years old he went to Tokyo to extend his knowledge and deepen his skills, learning from the best Futonmaker in Japan. When he returned home to Kyotango the area was still a booming silk-production attracting many people from all over Japan for work. And all these people coming for work had to sleep on something. So Yuichi and his father had so much work to do. Also, as young people got married and every bride had to bring around twenty Futons to the household, they never run out of work. But recently it got a bit harder to sell Futons. One hand there are less and less people living in Kyotango. On the other hand young people are often buying a western style mattress or buying their Futon on Amazon or Rakuten, mostly under 10‘000 Yen and probably imported.
Regarding Noriko and Yuichi‘s opinion a good quality Futon should adapt to the customers body. If a person lies on it his or her body should be flat. Only the head should be around 7cm lifted with a thin pillow. Yuichi‘s mixture of different cotton give a Futon the exactly hardness. In the video you can see how he is pushing down the cotton, feeling if a spot needs more or less filling. As the Futon is very light (7kg) it is very easy to hang it out of the window every once in a while, so it can dry out completely.
Japanese Futon
