This is a book for anyone interested in the history, technique and philosophy behind Japanese (sashiko) hand stitching but it is especially a book to own anyone who feels in their moments of pulling needle and thread through cloth, a desire for connection to those women for whom sashiko stitching was necessary work for cloth and care for families.
This book is a chance to step outside our own noisy speedy time and culture, where even the simplest hand work we do becomes reduced to a commodity, stripped of its significance.
I opened the book to browse a little and found myself feeling the same quiet relief I found in sashiko stitching when I first started stitching over 20 years ago. Here is a quote from page 102
"....and so you patch. You mend. You repeat. One stitch leads to another, and before long, you are part of a never-ending story....That's how those breathtaking Boro pieces were born - not as art at first, but as a rhythm of life. A story told in thread, patch by patch, over time." Atsushi Futatsuya Sashiko: The Untold Story
There is kindness, depth of humanity and connection in this book.
"Whether you're discovering Sashiko for the first time or deepening an existing practice, this book will help you see beyond the stitches and connect with the living tradition behind them." from the distributor
- Pages: 176, hardback
- Publish Date: 05/19/2026
- Publisher: Quadrille,UK
- Author: Atsushi Futatsuya
If you also love books you will notice and enjoy the craftmanship of the book itself, from the beautiful cover, attached ribbon bookmark, thick paper and typeset choices, to beautiful photographs taken in the Hida Folk Village in the mountains of Japan among examples of houses dating from the Edo period.
