Heritage & Craft · Shinjuku
Edo Sarasa Dyeing Workshop in Shinjuku, Tokyo
Overview
Dye Edo Sarasa in Tokyo’s old dyeing town
Where the Kanda and Myoshoji rivers meet in Shinjuku, dyers have worked for a century, drawn by clean water. Some no Sato Ochiai, founded in 1920 as Futaba-en, is one of the few dye houses in Tokyo still cutting and dyeing Edo Komon and Edo Sarasa by hand, and it opens its workshop to our guests.
Stencil-dye a table centrepiece or a tote, or dye a silk scarf with the studio’s dyers. Your interpreter stays with you throughout, so you can ask anything.
Dye a piece of your own and take it home
Only your group with the dyers
Guide and interpreter with you throughout
History
A century of dyeing by the river
1600s
Patterns for the samurai
Edo Komon began as the formal dress of samurai: tiny dots and lines, cut into paper stencils so fine that from a few steps away the cloth looks plain. Each domain had its own pattern.
1600s–1800s
Sarasa reaches Edo
Brightly printed cottons from India, called sarasa, arrived through foreign trade and became prized luxuries. Edo dyers recreated them with dozens of stencils, one for each colour, and Edo Sarasa was born.
1700s–1800s
The dyers of Kanda
In Edo the dye houses clustered along the Kanda River near the city centre, where a neighbourhood called Kon’ya-cho, “dyers’ town”, still carries the name.
1910s–1930s
Upstream to Ochiai
As the city grew, dyers moved upstream to Ochiai, where the Kanda and Myoshoji rivers “fall together” and the water ran clean. At its peak the area had more than three hundred dye workshops.
1960s–today
Keeping the craft alive
Dyers rinsed new cloth in the Myoshoji River into the 1960s. Kimono demand has since fallen and only a dozen or so workshops remain, but each February the neighbourhood hangs dyed fabric over the river for its Some no Komichi festival.
Itinerary
Choose an experience to see how it unfolds
Each experience runs differently. Open one to see each step, then book it below.
2 hours
Edo Sarasa table centrepiece
Stencil-dye a table centrepiece in Edo Sarasa, one layer at a time.
About 3 hours
Stencil-dyed tote
Dye an Edo pattern onto a tote, or bring an item of your own.
3 hours
Edo Sarasa silk scarf
Dye a silk scarf or obi-age in Edo Sarasa: the richest of the studio’s workshops.
The Studio
The story of Some no Sato Ochiai
A century in Ochiai
Founded in 1920 as Futaba-en, the studio is one of the few in Tokyo still cutting and dyeing Edo Komon and Edo Sarasa by hand, from the stencils to the final rinse.
The art of Edo Sarasa
Edo Sarasa builds rich, many-coloured patterns from dozens of hand-cut stencils laid one after another, each adding a single colour.
Edo Komon
The studio also dyes Edo Komon, the tiny all-over patterns once worn by samurai, cut so fine that the cloth looks plain from a few steps away.
The studio today
Alongside kimono for customers across Japan, the studio opens its workshop for classes, so visitors can try the craft with the people who practise it.
Your hosts
The dyers of Some no Sato Ochiai
Working artisans, not demonstrators
The studio is a working dye house that makes kimono and accessories for customers across Japan. You learn from the people who do this every day.
Your interpreter stays beside you, so you can ask about technique, patterns and the history of the trade.
Edo Sarasa and Edo Komon since 1920
Stencils cut and dyed by hand
5 minutes from Nakai Station, Shinjuku
Included
Private guide and interpreter
A welcome and introduction to the craft
All materials, and the piece you dye
Group size
Private for your group. Table centrepiece and tote from two guests; silk scarf from one guest.
Before you go
Wear clothes you don’t mind getting a little dye on. Silk scarf sessions run on set Wednesdays, so book at least two weeks ahead.
Booking
Choose your date
Choose your experience, the number of guests and your preferred date and time, then send us a request. Nothing is charged now: we confirm with the studio within two days, then send you a secure link to pay.
Where we meet
Ochiai, Tokyo’s dyeing town
The studio sits in the quiet residential streets of Kami-Ochiai in Shinjuku Ward, a world away from the neon of east Shinjuku.
5 minutes on foot from Nakai Station
Seibu Shinjuku Line and Toei Oedo Line · 10 minutes from Ochiai Station
Your guide meets you at the station exit
Prefer us to meet you at your accommodation? Let us know and we will take you door to door.
Questions
Good to know before you book
Do I need any experience?
No. The dyers prepare the stencils and colours and guide you at every step, so first-timers leave with a piece they are proud of.
Is it suitable for children?
Yes, for children who can work carefully for two hours. The tote and table centrepiece are the best choices for families. Tell us their ages when you book.
What should I wear?
Clothes you don’t mind getting a little dye on. The sessions are indoors, so the weather doesn’t matter.
Do I keep what I dye?
Yes, it is yours to take home. If a piece needs extra time to set after the session, we arrange to get it to you.
Does the studio speak English?
Your private guide interprets everything, so you can ask the dyers anything you like.
Can you meet us at our hotel?
Your guide normally meets you at the nearest station. If you would rather be collected from your accommodation, tell us when you book and we will take you door to door.
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