Hand-dyeing methods that have been refined for productivity

　 The chusen technique was first invented in the Meiji era (1868–1912). As the population of Tokyo grew, so did the demand for tenugui multipurpose hand towels and yukata lightweight casual kimono, which were necessities for commoners at the time. In response, artisans developed the chusen technique as a cheap and quick method of dyeing.

Chusen uses an approximately 100 x 38 cm paper pattern that matches the standard shape of a tenugui hand towel. After applying anti-dyeing paste over a 12-meter piece of fabric on a board, the fabric is then folded once like bellows and the anti-dyeing paste is again applied with the paper pattern. This process is continued until the fabric is fully folded to the size of a hand towel. In the next step, a bank is made with anti-dyeing paste at the point where the colour will be applied on the folded-up fabric. Dye is then poured into the bank with a special long spout kettle. This is the reason why this process is called chusen (injection dyeing). When the colour is ready to soak into the cloth, the artisan turns on a compressor under the bench and the dye in the bank immediately soaks down to the bottom layer of the fabric. This allows dozens of hand towels to be dyed at once. The technique also allows for multiple colours to be dyed at the same time, creating products with a variety of colours. Eventually, chusen began to be used for not only hand towels but yukata cotton kimono, which were the most common form of dress back then. In downtown Tokyo, the companies that used chusen began releasing pattern after pattern, as if they were competing to keep up with trends.

New technology to further evolve tradition

　Marukyu Shouten, founded in 1899 in downtown Tokyo under the trade name "Shin-Edo Zome", has tens of thousands of patterns. The fifth-generation head, Misako Saito and her husband Takashi Yamauchi, have launched a clothing brand called TEWSEN, which combines the techniques and craftsmanship cultivated by chusen with modern colours and designs. TEWSEN selects patterns from the countless paper patterns they own, which the couple painstakingly reproduce on computer by hand. They create new patterns by injecting modern design theory, such as adjusting the size of the original pattern to create a sense of rhythm. Their traditional haori coat is based on the loose-fitting shirts worn at Japanese festivals. With a unisex design that can be worn by anyone of any age, TEWSEN continues the tradition of the dyeing technique of the people, chusen.