Tenugui: Stylish, Edo-born versatility

As yukata (light cotton kimono) became common streetwear among Edoites, cotton tenugui hand towels likewise became a fashionable "must" accessory.

From left: Edo Komon's dense patterning of tiny dots, conceptualized as hail stones. Viewed from the side, the delicate gradiation appears like a landscape against the sky; in yet another play on words, a succession of skulls is read as kotsu-kotsu-to, meaning 'steadily' or 'diligently'; the most common tenugui towel design uses a traditional resist-dye technique. It colors the dots irregularly — wherein lies its appeal.
From left: Edo Komon's dense patterning of tiny dots, conceptualized as hail stones. Viewed from the side, the delicate gradiation appears like a landscape against the sky; in yet another play on words, a succession of skulls is read as kotsu-kotsu-to, meaning 'steadily' or 'diligently'; the most common tenugui towel design uses a traditional resist-dye technique. It colors the dots irregularly — wherein lies its appeal.