Gold Thread （金糸）/ Nishijin / Kyoto

Threads covered by pure gold . . . A creation by long lasting traditional skills in Kyoto
The process starts from preparation of the substrate which is Japanese craft paper made of natural fiber that ensures surface smoothness and durability. Natural wooden lacquer is coated to make the surface of paper completely flat so that the gold leaf on the top properly shines.
Gold leaf is placed one by one after applying wood lacquer evenly on the surface of paper roll.
All the process has to be done in precise time control for the optimized surface condition.
The gold leaf attached paper roll is then, slitted into tiny width by multiple steps.
The tiny slit strips are finally twisted onto silk or cotton threads to become gold threads.
The gold threads are used for Kimono and for special tapestry or religious articles.
An example of decorative tapestry used at seasonal festival.

Gold threads as traditional material are creating new application.
-Fotomodell : Hana-