Turquoise Edo Sarasa silk gama-guchi eyeglass case with floral and bird motifs on a white background.
Turquoise Edo Sarasa eyeglass case beside a notebook and pen on a calm indoor desk.
Turquoise Edo Sarasa eyeglass case resting beside an open book under gentle bedside light.
Turquoise Edo Sarasa eyeglass case on a small table beside an indoor reading chair.
Close view of the flowers, foliage and birds on a turquoise Edo Sarasa eyeglass case in soft daylight.
A single turquoise Edo Sarasa eyeglass case presented as a thoughtful craft gift on a simple table.
Turquoise Edo Sarasa silk gama-guchi eyeglass case with floral and bird motifs on a white background.
Turquoise Edo Sarasa eyeglass case beside a notebook and pen on a calm indoor desk.
Turquoise Edo Sarasa eyeglass case resting beside an open book under gentle bedside light.
Turquoise Edo Sarasa eyeglass case on a small table beside an indoor reading chair.
Close view of the flowers, foliage and birds on a turquoise Edo Sarasa eyeglass case in soft daylight.
A single turquoise Edo Sarasa eyeglass case presented as a thoughtful craft gift on a simple table.
Somenosato Ochiai, General Incorporated Association SKU: BJ_P_00014

Edo Sarasa: Flowers and Birds in Blue Gama-guchi Eyeglass Case · Turquoise

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Regular price ¥17,476
Regular price Sale price ¥17,476
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Product Details

PRODUCT DETAILS

Edo Sarasa, carried into the everyday

Made from 100% silk tsumugi, this turquoise gama-guchi eyeglass case brings the layered color and intricate rhythm of Edo Sarasa to an object used every day. Flowers, birds, and curling foliage spread across the softly structured surface, while the bronze-toned clasp gives the textile a precise, sculptural outline.

USE & APPRECIATION

A patterned beginning to the day

Give your glasses a regular place beside the book you are reading. The case's turquoise silk holds flowers, birds, and curling foliage within a compact metal-framed outline. In a quiet indoor corner, that layered pattern makes putting your glasses away another chance to enjoy the textile.

Turquoise Edo Sarasa eyeglass case beside a notebook and pen on a calm indoor desk.

The last page before sleep

When the day's reading is finished, let the case remain beside your notebook or book. Turquoise gives the small object a distinct place among plain paper and wood, while the finer motifs invite a closer look. Enjoy this familiar detail as you close one part of the day.

Turquoise Edo Sarasa eyeglass case resting beside an open book under gentle bedside light.

A pause between chapters

Pause between chapters with the case close to your reading chair. Its horizontal form leaves the table visually open, while the curved clasp and intricate textile add interest beside a plain cover. Keep the arrangement simple and enjoy finding a different bird or blossom each time.

Turquoise Edo Sarasa eyeglass case on a small table beside an indoor reading chair.

Follow the pattern slowly

During a quiet moment indoors, take the case in hand and follow the design across its silk surface. Flowers and birds share the turquoise field with curling leaves, so there is more to notice than one central motif. Let an everyday exchange of glasses become a brief encounter with pattern.

Close view of the flowers, foliage and birds on a turquoise Edo Sarasa eyeglass case in soft daylight.

A gift chosen through pattern

Choose a gift around the colors and details its recipient enjoys. Turquoise silk, small birds, and flowers bring a distinct character to a practical eyeglass case. Present it against plain fabric and leave the pattern visible, giving them something to appreciate each time it is used.

A single turquoise Edo Sarasa eyeglass case presented as a thoughtful craft gift on a simple table.

OBJECT PASSPORT / CARE & USE

Care & Handling

Care summary for the Edo Sarasa silk eyeglass case: washing and ironing are not permitted.

Washing and ironing are not permitted for this silk case.

OBJECT PASSPORT

Product details

Dimensions
19.5㎝×9.5cm
Material
100% silk (tsumugi)
Product weight
70 g
Origin
Japan
Craft Heritage

CRAFT HERITAGE

Craft Heritage

Sarasa originated in India more than 3,000 years ago and spread across Asia and Europe, developing in ways that reflected the cultures of each region. It is believed to have reached Japan during the Muromachi and Momoyama periods, between the 14th and 16th centuries.

Edo Sarasa emerged from the middle to the late Edo period. By the closing years of the period, stencil-printing specialists had established a distinctly Japanese form of sarasa that became widely known.

Its designs often stylize flowers, plants, birds, animals, and human figures, combining an exotic visual character with the climate and aesthetic sensibilities of Japan. Depending on the design, artisans layer color through approximately 20 stencils, or as many as 90 for more intricate patterns.

Subtle shading, softly blended effects, delicate tonal gradations, and a subdued palette shaped by Tokyo's water are defining characteristics of the craft.
How It’s Made

TRADITIONAL CRAFT PROCESS

How It’s Made

About the Making Process

Edo Sarasa is created by layering multiple stencils and colors by hand to form patterns on cotton or silk.
Even a relatively simple design may require 20 to 30 stencils, while an intricate pattern may use as many as 90.
The artisan plans the palette around the fabric's ground color and the customer's order, then mixes the dyes with careful attention to how the colors will appear when layered.

1. Making the Stencils
  • Sheets of handmade washi are laminated with persimmon tannin to form traditional stencil paper.
  • The design is cut into the prepared paper to create the stencils.
2. Planning the Ground Color and Palette
  • The artisan considers the fabric's ground color and the customer's order when selecting the colors for the pattern.
  • The full palette is planned with careful attention to the appearance of overlapping colors.
3. Dyeing the Ground Color
  • Cotton or silk fabric is given its ground color using hikizome, a method of applying dye across the fabric with a brush.
  • This establishes the overall color of the cloth before the patterned colors are applied.
4. Preparing the Printing Paste and Dyes
  • A printing paste is prepared from glutinous rice flour, rice bran, salt, and other ingredients for use in stencil dyeing.
  • The dyes are mixed with careful consideration of how each color will appear when layered with the others.
5. Hand Stencil Dyeing
  • Each stencil is positioned on the fabric, and color is rubbed through it by hand with a brush.
  • Depending on the design, approximately 20 to 90 stencils are carefully aligned and used in succession to build the pattern.
  • The artisan adjusts the pressure and movement of the brush to create subtle shading, softly blended effects, and delicate tonal gradations.
Meet the Maker

MEET THE MAKER

Meet the Maker

MAKER · OCHIAI, TOKYO

A Dyeing Culture Carried by a Community

Some-no-Sato Ochiai preserves more than finished textiles. It carries forward the knowledge of how designs are drawn, stencils are cut, color is judged, cloth is stretched, and skill is passed from one person to another.

Entrance to the dyeing workshop in Ochiai, Tokyo, with a person in indigo clothing standing beneath the timber frame.
Yoko Takaichi, Representative Director and Cultural Steward

Yoko Takaichi’s path into this world began through the neighborhood itself. Raised close to kimono through her mother, who worked in tailoring, she later created a local community publication while raising her family. A visit to the dye house Futabaen led to her involvement with Some-no-Komichi, a community project created to make Ochiai’s nearly hidden dyeing culture visible again. In 2015, she served as the project’s representative. She now leads Some-no-Sato Ochiai as its representative director.

Her role is to hold together the workshop’s cultural purpose, its relationship with the neighborhood, and the work of the dyeing craftspeople. The workshop’s craftspeople carry out the dyeing, while Takaichi connects their work with the wider community as its representative.

A Century of Dyeing in Ochiai

The workshop traces its lineage to Futabaya, established in Ochiai in 1920. The district had become a center for dyeing as makers moved upstream in search of cleaner water along the Kanda and Myoshoji rivers. At its height, the area was home to more than 300 dye-related businesses; lengths of cloth being rinsed in the river were once part of the neighborhood’s everyday landscape.

That industrial landscape has become far smaller, but the work continues. Some-no-Sato Ochiai was established to carry the century-old workshop heritage forward, train people, share the culture, and keep hand processes present in the city where they developed.

Why the Hand Still Matters

Edo dyeing is a sequence of judgments. A design is translated into stencils; cloth is fixed evenly to a long printing board; paste and color must be applied with control; each layer must meet the last. A single Edo Sarasa design may require dozens of stencils, while especially complex work can require hundreds. In the coloring room, recipes handed down over time are not simply repeated: craftspeople continue to adjust and develop color by eye and by experience.

These hand processes create the rhythm of pattern and depth of color associated with Edo dyeing. The judgment of craftspeople working with stencils, paste, and dye shapes its expressive character.
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