This listing is for a vintage Japanese fukuro style obi from the Fuller Collection. See below for details on this exceptional group of Japanese textiles.

Fukuro obi are patterned on only one side and are the full 14" width throughout. They are worn for formal occasions and can "dress up" a less formal kimono to make it appropriate for a more formal event. There is a one-meter long "blank" section on the front of the obi where it would be hidden under the top layer wound around the waist. This is a savings in the cost of the item and can also make it a bit lighter to wear.

This obi is ro silk on the front, patterned with fans and florals in subtle purple, teal, green and soft orange, with a pop of black in the folding fan shape. Some of the florals are also embroidered. Ro silk is used for summer kimono because the open weave allows the air to move through the layers, cooling the wearer. Ro silk obi would be made to match the kimono for the season.

The backside of this obi is a smooth, satin silk - unusual as a contrast to the lighter ro silk on the front - and with the design house name woven at the end.

Good condition (though there are several blemishes, see last photo), silk, and within the typical fukuro measurements: approximately11 feet long in total and 14 in wide. There is no "blank" section on the front of this obi which could suggest it was made for an event where cost was no consideration.

The Fuller Collection - originally over 2000 pieces - was the passion and pride of Richard Fuller of Chicago, IL and Wabasha, MN. Richard served as a US Marine in post-war Japan, and there began his love of and appreciation for vintage Japanese kimono and obi. Richard saw that the mastery and artisanship of traditional Japanese textile techniques was waning - threatening to die out all together - which sparked his mission to promote this industry and preserve what he could.

Together with his wife Janith, Richard invested in thousands of kimono and obi, opening Wind Whisper West, a kimono Gallery in Wabasha in 2003. Most of the collection was sold there but several hundred pieces remain. Richard passed in 2020, and Janith has consigned the remainder of the collection to Kyoto Kimono to offer through our website. We are honored and proud to be stewarding the Fuller Collection as each piece finds its new home and continues to bring wonder and beauty to admirers around the world.