Hamamatsu, Japan—
High density cotton

A shuttle loom is a traditional weaving machine that uses a boat-shaped shuttle to carry the weft yarn back and forth across the warp. Woven slowly and with care, the warp threads open widely, allowing the weft to be firmly beaten in. This creates a distinctive texture with both softness and a natural firmness.

Futo’s fabric is made with about 4,000 warp threads. Each one is carefully threaded by hand through the heddles and reed—a process that takes two to three days to complete. This density of threads gives the fabric its distinctive texture.

A shuttle loom works slowly, layering threads meticulously. For Futo’s fabric, the speed is made even slower with uniquely modified looms. Though it is a simple plain weave, the texture that emerges is truly one of a kind.

The fabric is woven from yarns that are dyed before weaving. In the warp, colors alternate thread by thread in a pattern called "hakeme", creating subtle shifts of tone. This results in a deeply nuanced color expression that cannot be achieved with piece-dyed fabric or fabric made from a single yarn color.

Spinning, twisting, dyeing, warping, sizing, threading, weaving, finishing, inspection—the making of a single piece of cloth requires countless steps, each carried out by a different specialist. Every process draws on skills passed down in the region and relies on the touch of human hands.

There were once more than 1,600 weaving houses in the Enshu region, but today only around 40 remain. Among them, just a handful still operate traditional shuttle looms. If even one link in the process were to disappear, the same fabric could never be woven again. This is why makers continue their tireless efforts to preserve and pass on this precious fabric.