niime 百科

Encyclopedia of niime

“Let’s send the gift of earth from Kamakura to the world.”

On April 1st, 2024, in Kamakura, the ancient capital of Japan. The brand ‘tamaki niime’ has been pursuing only one item creation while constantly repeating to make changes. They have produced new evolutionary products to express the ‘purely made in Japan’ concept and finally have a place to show them.

The name is ‘tamaki niime okurimon’.

They are stationed in Nishiwaki, the ‘Navel of Japan’, the centre of the yarn-dyed fabric of Banshu ori’s birthplace. In the time of mass production with the process of division of labour, ‘tamaki niime’ set up all the equipment in the factory for all the processes, and they checked them with their own eyes and hands. They got their free approach for the Banshu ori, which doesn’t stick to traditional methods.

Not only did they choose to live in the Banshu ori birthplace, but they even asked weaving experts to learn, and the designer weaved with her own hands. They started sowing the seeds of cotton, the original cloth material, on the fields and growing them. In creating seamless products, they reassessed our basic lifestyle of clothing, eating, and housing, which predicted the coming of a new era and new living styles, focusing on how the earth should be, even earlier before the world started talking about SDGs.

On the 20th anniversary of the brand’s birth, they started the spinning process to make thread. Their dream finally came true, and a consistent house production was established. They weave the original threads with the cotton that they grow on their own cotton fields so that they connect with the processes of ‘dye’, ‘weaving’, ‘sewing’, ‘washing process’, ‘sales’, and ‘advertising’. They finally completed all total manufacturing processes.

Focusing on each manufacturing process with their hearts and eyes, coming up with creation ideas and utilizing both advantages, they came to create the products of the only one in the world. All parts of the products, including the little details, are homemade, and they finally started their own creation with pure Japanese materials.

They have a strong sense of crisis in depending on imports of foreign materials and being unable to support themselves, which is the reality of Japanese manufacturing; that’s why they inherit excellent traditional skills and reflect the past and origins that they used to many things within the region and had tight connections with living and production. They even try to create innovative creations.

They rethink present manufacturing, overcoming original ideas. That would be the challenge that only ‘tamaki niime’ can do.

For the whole world, Kamakura is the birthplace of ‘new Japanese manufacturing’, an ancient capital bursting with history and culture.

Expecting the store to open on April 1st, I visited Kamakura to see a new store veiled in mystery and to experience the store ‘Okurimon’.

I got off the train at JR Kamakura station. I transferred to the Enoshima Dentetsu line, which is characteristic of two-tone light yellow and green colours and a small 4 track train running like sewing around the quaint city. I got off at the third station, Hase station, and exited the ticket gate. Crossing in front of the street, many foreign travellers are walking. Here, it is only one minute’s distance, and there’s the store ‘Okurimon’ in the building named ‘Starry Night, Under Moon’.

Ms Tamaki, Mutsumi, Ms Ae, and other new staff members welcomed me. The store manager, Ms Ae, explained the store to me.

Seeing the tortoiseshell pattern on the outside walls and floors was impressive. Although they are not geometric patterns like symbols, they make you think of writhing life forms even though they are regular.

Tables, shelves, walls, lights, and doors are made of selective materials with deep inspiration, made by people’s hands, and perfectly balanced in harmony. Each one has been gathered here over time and has an unspoken story. I feel ‘Okurimon’ is richly formed overall, like the universe.

It was not a closed space, but the sliding doors opened easily and brought in outside air. Frosted glasses were also carefully arranged. When I saw the details, I could feel the warmth of people’s hands everywhere.

They didn’t have a planned blueprint, no standard rules, and built with handwritten sketches and got it done.

There is a table made from two gently curved pieces of wood. Many lines that look like scratches on the surface have images of thread displays on the weaving machines. A turtle shell pattern is applied to the sides of the table. While creating, they work with inspiration one by one. That technique looks like the testimony of authentic works.

They drew the line freely to fix cracks on the wall made with diatomaceous dirt, and they looked like they were enjoying drawing on the material of diatomaceous dirt.

Like the ones from that wall, each is a different shelf, and the ‘tamaki niime’ products are displayed on it.

The male deer’s skull is painted in blue. Watching the vines and leaves carefully, they were made of iron, but they looked natural and made the space colourful. As if exchanging vines, shawls are hanged.

In addition to the shawls on the back shelves, sweaters and jeans are placed. In the small cloth tags with ‘purely made in Japan products’, the company names which worked in the processes with ‘tamaki niime’ are proudly printed; such processes are kinds of cotton of original materials, weaving, dyes, warper, name tagging, designs, wash, and…etc.

The store ‘Okurimon’ was created with hearts by ‘team Kamakura’ rooted in local Kamakura to work with architecture.

The moment of finishing is not the completion of the architect. Such space starts to develop from that point, and even such developments include an architect.

Those are the words of the representative of ‘team Kamakura’.

The opening is not in a complete state, and afterwards, it shouldn’t get old. People take action, mingle it with natural surroundings, and make it develop and accomplish. It completely changes the conventional approach to architecture. The existence of the store looks like real living creatures.

‘Okurimon’ might be a special place where the products of ‘tamaki niime’ argue and become friendly at higher dimensions. While incorporating lively improvisation, the developing process of this space, which is like being alive and flexible, surprisingly looks like the creations of ‘tamaki niime’.

They are enjoyable to play, tricks, flexibility, coincidence, surprises… beauty and only one.

Banshu ori is the one we can be proud of in the world. ‘tamaki niime’ challenges more new potential creations. Displaying and selling 100% domestic products, and as it is the right place to show the charms of Banshu ori, it is an appropriate space as the stage to display the brand’s potential.

The streets in the old city of Kamakura are unique.

The Enoden train runs back and forth all day by the opening sliding doors. The sense of openness and feeling of liberation are close feelings to one another.

The Hase Temple is very popular among travellers because of the Kamakura Great Buddha. Compared to its noise, the oldest Amanawa Shinmei Shrine exists quietly. The city of Kamakura has immeasurable depth.

With essential historical heritage like temples and shrines, they are naturally blessed with abundant green mountains and beautiful beaches. The streets of the city of Kamakura have been elegantly made for a long history. It is also the place to start the movement of a national trust. A whole city is reserved as a landscape planning area.

Abundant woods surround the city in three directions, and calm sand beaches open to the endless sea.

It takes just a few minutes from ‘Okurimon’ to Yuigahama Beach. Waves come and go repeatedly along the arched beach. The wave goes out to the world over the Pacific Ocean.

Feeling the waves of the old city, Kamakura, the next dimension of ‘tamaki niime’ is beginning.

Even now, leaving the remnants of Japanese culture, this city welcomes many people from all over the world, which is worth sending out manufacturing pure domestic products. I felt it was the connected point of the earth and ‘tamaki niime’.

“Let’s send the gift of earth from Kamakura to the world.”

I would like you to visit Kamakura and have rare experiences that closely interact with the city, nature, and history with the products of ‘tamaki niime’.

Original Japanese text by Seiji Koshikawa.
English translation by Adam & Michiko Whipple.