Bryony Kentfield explains the Japanese art of furoshiki and how to get everyday use out of the eco-friendly wrapping tradition.
As some keen-eyed readers might have spotted, furoshiki, or Japanese wrapping cloths, are occasionally suggested in ODT articles as an eco-friendly way to wrap Christmas presents. And indeed they are. But that’s not all they’re good for. In Japan, I used to translate for and teach furoshiki workshops, and they’re surprisingly versatile.
It’s very easy for traditional arts to stagnate — to turn from an item of daily use into something only used at special events. But that’s a bit of a waste. So, keeping it very casual, here are some ways to use a large piece of cloth to carry your things.
What is a furoshiki?
Basically, a furoshiki is a square of fabric for wrapping and carrying items in (not to be confused with the tenugui hand cloth, which is a long rectangle).
Wrapping cloths have a long history in Japan, but the name "furoshiki" only dates back to the Muromachi period (1136-1573), supposedly from cloths used at public baths (furo) to hold one’s clothes in while bathing and then spread out (shiki) on the ground to stand on when drying off.
Often used to wrap gifts (and can be included as a part of the gift), furoshiki range in size from small ones used to wrap items such as notebooks or soap, to huge ones that can be used to store futon.
Common sizes include about 50cm (lunchboxes) and 100cm (bags). They are sold in all different designs and colours, but popular options include double-sided with a different colour on each side, allowing for flashes of the inner colour to be shown, or designs with seasonal flora to switch out throughout the year and pay homage to the changing of the seasons.
Some particularly versatile ones have a different season in each of the four corners, so they can be used year-round.
Or just go for a pattern you like. (Yes, there are character designs such as Hello Kitty and Snoopy).
While generally considered square, professional furoshiki makers may make one length slightly longer to carefully account for stretch — so sewers with more skill than me who wish to make their own can keep that in mind.
Making your own
To make your own basic wrapping cloth, any square of fabric cut to the appropriate size and hemmed should work, keeping in mind it has to be strong enough to carry the weight of the items inside it.
Fabrics like cotton are common for shoulder bags or heftier carries, while more delicate fabrics such as silk are good for making decorative frills around the neck of a wine bottle.
Generally, you want the diagonal length of the cloth to be three times the length of the item you’re wrapping.
You can fudge it a bit though; you can absolutely wrap smaller things in a huge furoshiki, if you don’t mind the long trailing ends.
At home I have two larger ones, 85cm x 90cm and 95cm x 95cm, that I use as bags and a 45cm x 50cm one for wrapping smaller things like lunchboxes, or books I don’t want to get ruined in my bag.
Starting off — the box
The best thing to use when first learning is generally a cube.
Lay out the furoshiki in a diamond shape, grab a book or two and place them in the middle of the cloth.
Bring the top point of the diamond down over the books so the end is just touching the table, and move the books up from the centre of the cloth until the top fold is laying smoothly over them.
Skip this step if you’re using a huge wrapping cloth for a small book, as it’s going to look messy anyway.
Open out the top fold again and instead bring the bottom point up and over the books, tucking it underneath at the top.
Fold the top layer back down, before bringing the left and right sides in to the centre and tying them in a knot.
You can find books that carefully detail how to tie the knots beautifully and so they can be easily untied — because, strange but true, as soon as people think too hard about it, everyone forgets how to tie a knot.
But keeping it simple, tie a double knot. You can use the knot as a handle. Alternatively, untuck the top flap and bring it over the top of the knot to hide it.
The fun stuff
Many books and online videos cover the basics, but it’s hard to know what to look for. Here are some suggestions.
Bags: For a stylish shopping bag, tie one set of opposing diagonal corners relatively tight over the shopping, then the other two corners for the shoulder strap.
For a basic hold-all, tie the two corners of each side together to make handles, a la a supermarket bag — or tie one side longer and one side shorter, then slip the long handle through inside the shorter one for a single shoulder bag. This is called the watermelon wrap, as it makes a cute round bag, but I find it also just holds closed really well.
For a beach bag-style, fold your furoshiki inside-out into an isosceles triangle and tie a knot in each bottom corner to make the base, then flip the other way out and tie the top corners together into a handle (or skip turning it inside-out and tie the knots on the outside if you like the look).
Each of these can be pre-made in your supermarket basket or whipped up in seconds, and you can adjust the length and size of the bag to fit your shopping exactly.
You can often find wraps for specifically shaped items too, such as yoga mats or bottles.
Bottles: There are many different wraps used to carry sake and wine bottles in Japan.
Decorative wraps can make a cute centrepiece, especially if you get seasonal fabric, and often have a handle option for when making the trips to and from a party. Have the fanciest bottle at the barbecue.
Not as pretty but more utilitarian, you can wrap two wine bottles in the same cloth with fabric between them, both making them easier to carry and avoiding clinking.
For summer, to avoid chilled drink bottles getting your bag wet, a smaller furoshiki is a cute, fun way to attach a drink bottle to the outside of your bag. I found a similar version for a takeaway cup that would work for reuseable cups.
Decorative: Spice up your room decoration with a tissue box cover, protect library books (or hide what you’re reading) by creating a book cover, throw a furoshiki over your shoulders as a fancy stole or one over the table as a table cloth when guests come unexpectedly — or that pile of washing that still needs to be folded on the armchair.
Furoshiki can also be folded up and used as headbands or neck scarves.
Utilitarian: Some of my favourites. Use the double wine-bottle wrap to wrap shoes when travelling; an instructor taught me this for keeping your shoes away from clean clothes in your suitcase, and you can easily wash the furoshiki.
Of course, furoshiki also work as bags for dirty washing — simply untie and dump it all in the wash when you get home.
A large furoshiki can be folded into a suit storage bag over a hanger.
Around the house, try using one as a makeshift apron when cooking something messy or as a book bag for library books.
For parents, how about a child’s backpack, pram cover, breastfeeding cover or as a wrap to help with a hip carry.
For those more interested in carrying takeaway, a 100cm furoshiki can be used to wrap pizza boxes with a small handle on top.
A large furoshiki used to wrap up a picnic lunch could also double as a picnic mat.
In an emergency, a furoshiki can also be used as a make-shift face mask or arm sling, or to wrap around a heat pack or ice pack and tie in place.
There has also been an increase in waterproof fabrics being used, useful for both keeping bags (or heads) dry on rainy days and avoiding lunchbox spills inside your bag.
