japanese textiles

Kawaii tote bag free sewing pattern!

by modes4u June 25, 2020

Oh, my, look at this wonderful and convenient set of bags!! We fell in love with this bag the moment we saw it, and thankfully it came with a free sewing pattern, we just had to share it!

You do not need to be a very experienced sewing enthusiast to try this project, but it would help to have at least a bit of experience under your belt. You will be using some gorgeous Kokka fabrics and a layer of heavyweight fusible interfacing to make your bags more solid. Set? Bags? Yes, because Kokka’s design includes a lesson bag measuring 30cm x 40cm plus a matching shoe case measuring 20cm x 28cm! The lesson bag looks great for carrying folders and documents around, and the shoes case is fastened by a nice convenient single handle plus metal ring, to easily hang it or wear around your wrist.

The set is described by the Japanese textile firm as a must-have for school life, but we can easily imagine using it in different settings and circumstances, many of them related to summer, sports, and enjoyable activities! The fantastic combination of the blue bichon frise dog design with the solid yellow transition in bottom and handles looks really refreshing!

Take a look at the images included below, you will find an overview of both finished items, as well as a close-up of the fabulous design on canvas by trikotri, the Japanese craft artist Tsubasa Kuroda. Trikotri is known worldwide for her delicate, soft and accurate pom-pom renditions of animals, hinted at on this fabric design for Kokka, packed with white fluffy circles and dog faces. How do you like it? On our kawaii shop we have lots of marvellous nature-inspired designs, so if you love animal fabrics, make sure to come round and have a look! We’ve included some super cute animal designs you can also check out, to see if you’d like to make these bags using other prints!

Oh, and should you give this free pattern a try, don’t forget to send us your pictures of the finished project! We would love to see and share them 😉

Super kawaii! You can make these too!

blue Kokka Kotorinuno canvas fabric with white bichon frise dogs

striped canvas fabric with French Bulldogs by Kokka from Japan

cream Kokka oxford fabric with shiba inu bread dogs

light cream double border oxford fabric with frogs in the rain by Kokka

Kokka oxford fabric in light cream with colorful budgies

light blue oxford fabric with yellow watermelons and animals by Kokka

solid yellow Cosmo fabric

solid orange fabric by Cosmo

Cosmo solid lime green fabric

June 25, 2020 0 comment

Free sewing pattern for a canvas handbag!

by modes4u May 21, 2020

Today we bring you a free sewing pattern by Yoko Kubodera, of a square bag made with one of the latest stunning Echino fabrics. Isn’t it wonderful that there are so many talented sewing enthusiasts around to gain inspiration from?

This new Echino series of Japanese canvas textiles features rows of colorful festooned triangles onto a natural color background, with tossed silvery embellishments in the shape of prancing foxes and tiny more-or-less triangular spots that seem to float about like minute paper clippings. In this particular example, the chosen color is navy blue, so the bag will be a perfect add on to nautical style looks (you can of course, pick other colors if you like!). Let us know if you decide to give this project a try, and remember to send us your photos of the finished item!

Our favorite feature about this bag is the crisp-cornered, neat and yet somewhat softened square-shaped design, thanks to the ample gusset discreetly tucked under wide darker strips on side openings, and also to the color contrast created by the vivid pink lining. The bag looks fully wearable with casual street style! We do believe it is brilliantly designed, how do you like it? We’ve included some fabrics for you to consider trying with this pattern, check them out below!

What a stunning bag!

We love the contrasting material here

It’s a very cute design, isn’t it?

This is great for everyday use

echino metallic silver canvas fabric with natural color and navy blue triangles

echino metallic silver canvas fabric with yellow and natural color triangles

metallic silver canvas fabric with red and natural color triangles by echino

echino metallic silver and green canvas fabric with mountains and birds

metallic silver echino canvas fabric in black and grey with stripes and patterns

dark pink echino stripe canvas fabric with mini metallic silver dots

May 21, 2020 0 comment

Join our Japanese fabric bundle giveaway NOW!

by modes4u March 4, 2020

Join our brand new Japanese fabric bundle GIVEAWAY! Now’s your chance to win 10 stunning designs! You can find the giveaway on our website at:

https://www.modes4u.com/giveaway.php

Each fabric is between 40 – 50 cm in length, meaning approximately 5 meter in total!

This giveaway is open worldwide and ends on March 18, 2020, 11:59pm! GOOD LUCK!

Check out these beautiful designs!

What would you do with these fabrics if you won them?

March 4, 2020 0 comment

Where to go Fabric Shopping In Japan

by modes4u March 3, 2020

Japan is home to some of the most beautiful fabrics we have ever seen! Inspired by their rich culture, Japanese fabrics adorn patterns popular the world over such as cherry blossoms, dragons and more. You can of course find lots of other types of designs, such as those that feature geometric shapes, kawaii characters, funny food patterns and much more.

When in Japan, you may want to check out certain places in particular for fabrics:

Tokyo is home to Nippori Fabric Town, which is a fairly big area with lots of fabric shops. There you’ll find designs suitable for all kinds of sewing projects from simple clothes to furniture upholstery, carpeting and more. It’s home to the world famous Tomato shop, which features 5 floors dedicated to all kinds of textiles, from those that are just 100 Yen per meter to more expensive ones. Their range includes cotton, satin, knits, buttons, thread and MUCH more.

Kyoto is where you can find Nomura Tailor where you can not only get stunning designer textiles but also lots of kawaii notions to sew with and varying fabric types such as brocade. Brocade fabric is highly detailed and incredibly popular, especially because of their bold motifs. They’re often used for bags, kimonos and more.

Now if you happen to be in Okinawa, you can also check out the popular House of 66 Cents, which is home to lots of gorgeous fabrics (you’ll find it a hard task indeed to leave)! They too carry designs with flowers, food, animals and more. There are plenty of notions and sewing accessories available too should you need them.

Also on our list is ABC Craft in Osaka, which, as its name implies, sells lots of goodies for arts and crafts! They do however, also sell fabrics and items to help you embellish your sewing projects. So if you’re looking for cute accessories to jazz up your projects, this is certainly the place to visit!

These are just some of the amazing fabric shops you can find in Japan! The country is full of lovely textile stores and you’ll certainly want to buy almost everything in sight. To give you a taste of some of the pretty fabrics and notions you can pick up, check out the photos Sandra and Alan snapped when they were in Japan. Fabrics galore!

Check out all the kawaii fabrics on display!

These cords are great for projects like drawstring bags

Here are super cute iron-ons!

What an adorable design!

Lots of fun character designs

More colorful prints!

Small pieces, ideal for small projects, patchwork etc.

Plenty of sewing patterns (in Japanese)!

So many lovely fabrics to choose from!

We could stay in shops like this all day!

So many fabrics to choose from!

Many beautiful design for all kinds of fun sewing projects!

March 3, 2020 0 comment

Our Japanese fabric sale starts NOW!

by modes4u March 2, 2020

Now’s your chance to get stunning designer Japanese fabrics on sale! Whether you’re looking for designs with metallic embellishments, kawaii character patterns or more, you’re sure to find something adorable and awesome in our sale. Hurry and get your favorites as we won’t restock anything that sells out! This sale ONLY lasts until the end of this month!

Get beautiful fabrics on sale now!!

March 2, 2020 0 comment

The importance of good design, as expertly shown through Cosmo fabrics!

by modes4u April 15, 2019

Yes, we are back to Cosmo’s showroom, because there are still many pictures of their most recent textile designs that we would love to share with you! We are certain you will enjoy these beautiful fabrics, and we know these will definitely inspire your sewing projects. You will notice at first sight that the items shown in this batch of Cosmo fabrics‘ images include plenty of great design ideas, especially for bags. However, there is also a short tunic dress in a delicate flower pattern that is perfect for Summer and will make you instantly want to wear it, or a striking colorful apron with cats and flowers that really stands out by itself. Check them out!

How cute is this? We love it!

Most of the fabrics shown below feature original patterns inspired by nature, whether in the form of the cutest animals, especially cats and birds, exquisite flowers, painted-looking fruits, or any combination of natural elements. There are some other wonderful designs featuring detailed ornaments, geometric shapes and gold embellishments, colorful charming matryoshkas, some vintage items etc. A few textiles revel in patterned motifs, using mini dots, stripes, checkered designs and other minute prints to decorate bigger shapes, as in the fabrics with patterned vases, birds and fruits shown in one of the images we’ve included in this blog post. We also believe that many of these stylish designs owe a lot of their attractiveness to a sophisticated color palette, and great attention to detail.

We could stare at these fabrics all day!

Now, many of the fabric bags look simply gorgeous! Just check out the extremely chic twin totes with designs of many leaves on white and pastel-colored geometric shapes, or the two ample bags with wonderfully daring designs of schematic birds with big red dots and fairy tale mushrooms in saturated colors. The drawstring handbag with delightful bunnies and golden embellishments is definitely one of our all-time favorites! We keep staring at the gorgeous combination of outer dark blue with inner light purple fabrics, and marvel at the clever design that makes the upper part fold outward like tender lilac rabbit ears. So incredibly cute! Which of these bags made with Cosmo fabrics do you like most?

So many kawaii bags!

We have included some other images of fabrics from our shop to go with this post, mainly kawaii patterns inspired by nature, and a few selected feats of textile design that we have available for you in our kawaii shop. Fortunately, we work with world-class fabric providers from Japan, USA and Europe who are fully aware of the importance of good design, thus we can both enjoy and spread the artistic creations of many first-rate textile designers. Feel free to comment on what you love best about these pictures, and do not forget to send photos if you decide to use our fabrics for your creative projects! We would love to share them here!

What a gorgeous display!

Wow! Look at all these beautiful items!

What great inspiration!

Can we get one of these bags too, please?

brown and dark blue Matryoshka Quilt Gate fabric

double border Matryoshka fabric by Quilt Gate in yellow

fruit Cosmo oxford fabric in grey

canvas fabric by Cosmo with flowers in blue-grey

oxford natural color Cosmo flower and leaf fabric

April 15, 2019 0 comment

Cosmo Showroom: revelling in colors!

by modes4u March 26, 2019

We have more gorgeous photos from Cosmo’s showroom that we simply had to share with you! The bright colors and patterns will leave you awestruck.

Feeling inspired to create something as cute as this?

As the weather begins to improve, the amount of available light increases because there are more hours of sunshine and the sky gets clearer; also, because natural lighting gets more intense during the central hours of the day. But this is not the weather report for today! It is just one of the main reasons why we enjoy colors so much in Spring, like what you see in these photos: they look brighter and stand out more under the right light. In addition, the palette of nature begins to fill with different hues after wintertime and the end of Autumn, which both tend to show a much lesser chromatic variety.

In cities, the change between seasons is sometimes less marked, but nonetheless easily noticeable: in parks and gardens, in the decoration of streets and shop windows, in the patterns of our clothes and accessories etc. It would seem that, surrounded by this explosion in light and color, we are moved to join in the display, thus keeping in line with the environment and the season. There is no better time than Spring for floral prints, multicolored fabrics or patterns with great contrasts of color. When summer comes, the light is sometimes so intensely dazzling that colors cannot be fully appreciated. However, in spring they shine in all their splendor, so take advantage of it now and enjoy to the fullest those garments, accessories or fabrics that stand out for the quantity and intensity of their colors. In our shop, you’ll see tons of gorgeous fabrics in a wide range of colors. Cosmo fabrics come in so many different colors, that you’ll want to spend all day looking at them!

Of course, color is a matter of taste and, more importantly, of good taste. Now is definitely the time to combine a cheerful, original or daring print with other more neutral clothing/accessories, so that they help show off your flashy item(s) while balancing the whole look. In case of doubt, start by wearing a single garment or somewhat large accessory that is very colorful (bag, shawl, blouse, skirt, pants, jacket), as part of an outfit that is more uniform and features softer hues. A chromatic nod to that special piece of clothing or accessory given through smaller items (shoes, socks, belts, jewelry, hats, whatever you can think of) usually work well, too.

Beautiful display of Cosmo fabrics

We have in our store a huge amount of solid fabrics, multicolored fabrics, textile patterns of contrasting colors, fabrics with striking designs where color plays a fundamental role. Check out the images we selected to go with this post, and you will see some examples where color is king. We have also included some of the great pictures of Cosmo‘s showroom, featuring some fabrics, accessories and garments with a prominent use of color. We hope you like them and get inspired to sew something beautiful and full of color this spring! If you bring yourself to do it, remember to send us images of the finished project, as we love sharing them!