reservation
Continuously loved by the Hanamachi district
【KYOMARU UCHIWA】
Time to visit "KOMARUYA SUMII" and experience the traditional crafts passed down from generation to generation.Includes an original personalised fan.
Plan Details
When you visit a teahouse or ryotei in Kyoto, you will see uchiwa fans decorated with red and white designs bearing the names of geiko and maiko.
You will visit KOMARUYA Sumii, which has been preserving the KYOMARU UCHIWA, and learn about the production process through a video, and depending on the time of year, you will also be able to try your hand at making the stripes. Why not make your own personalised Uchiwa? (We will ask you for your name and imprint it on the fan in advance.)
The KYOMARU UCHIWA is a representative fan of the KOMARUYA brand, which reminds us of the depth of Kyoto's history and culture. Afterwards, visit the Museum of Traditional Crafts to see the traditional crafts that Kyoto continues to preserve to this day.
Necessary when making a reservationSet Dates
Except Sundays from 10 Jan 2024 to 26 Dec 2025 * Will be implemented in the following year (in accordance with the opening hours of KOMARUYA Sumii).
Excluded Dates
Sundays (please enquire)
Plan Price (per person)
please enquire
What's included
One personalised KYOMARU UCHIWA fan
Admission to the Museum of Traditional Crafts
(If foreign language support is required: foreign language staff)
Course Details
Meet: KOMARUYA Sumii (1) Reception (2) Explanation of Uchiwa at KOMARUYA Sumii
(watch video) 30 min (3) Workshop tour (not available on some days) 30 min (4) Delivery of personalised Uchiwa 10 min = 10 min walk (5) Museum of Traditional Crafts 40 min Dismissal: Museum of Traditional Crafts
Meeting Place & Time
KOMARUYA SUMII
13:00- (Please contact us for times)
Time Required
2 hours
Min. # of Participants per Party
1 person
Min. # of Participants
2 people
Max. # of Participants
10 people
Closing Date
7 days before 6pm
Supported Languages
・If foreign language support is required: foreign language staff
E・nglish, Korean, Chinese, Polish, Hebrew, German, Spanish, French, Filipino, Thai(schedule to be confirmed).
Necessary when making a reservation
(1) Date of implementation
(2) Desired time
(3) Participant's name
(4) Contact details
Cancellation Fees
Free cancellation within 72 hours of booking.
3 days to 1 day before the experience date: 20%; on the day: 50 50%. No-show or after the trip has started: 100%.
Photo gallery
【Kyomaru Uchiwa】
When you visit a teahouse or ryotei in Kyoto, you will see a red and white design fan with the names of geiko and maiko on it, which will catch your eyes.
KYOMARU UCHIWAN are representative of KOMARUYA and remind you of the depth of Kyoto's history and culture. Why not make your own personalised fan?
*Kyomaru Uchiwa is a registered trademark of KOMARUYA Sumii.
#1 Connection between Komaruya and Hanamachi
A white Japanese paper fan with the emblems of the teahouses and geisha of the five Kyoto Hanamachi towns printed in dark vermilion.
On the back are inscribe the names of the Hanamachi and the artistic names of the geisha and maiko who belonged to the Hanamachi.
Since 1872, Kyoto's hanamachi have distributed fans with the names of geishas and maiko to those who looked after them: nearly 250
geishas ordered more than 100 fans each, sometimes as many as 200. When KOMARUYA receives an order, it draws the figure and mould on the backing paper and prints the name and crest on it. Geishas sell these fans with their names on them, and ryotei restaurants can display Kyomaru Uchiwa to show that they are a ryotei where geishas go. There are advantages for both the giver and the recipient.
The Kyomaru Uchiwa embodies Kyoto's Hanamachi culture and conveys a sense of the season while vividly permeating the streets of Kyoto.
#2 The technique behind the KYOMARU UCHIWA
The Kyomaru Uchiwa is made from a single piece of bamboo, the handle of which is the handle and the bone.
The beauty of the whole piece is supported by the craftsman's skill in creating it from a single piece of bamboo without wasting any of the material.
The bamboo is cut into a tube from 3-4 year old cut bamboo that has grown to about 10 cm in diameter. The total length of the tube is about 40 cm. It is cut so that there is a knot at about 25 cm from the top and 15 cm from the bottom.
By tearing this tube lengthwise, about seven uchiwa bones can be taken. The excess from this process is later used for the jaw, called the 'kama' (the lower half-round part of the uchiwa).
The bamboo is soaked in water to soften it, and the 25 cm of the long side (the bone part) above the bamboo joint is split in two and the inside of each is shaved so that the thickness is even. In this way, the thickness of the more than 40 bones is equalised. At KOMARUYA, this process is still followed to this day, but not omitting these small details makes a big difference to theimpression of the finished product.
#3 About Komaruya Sumii
Founded: 1924
The history of Komaru Yasumi is estimated to be over 1,000 years old and has been passed down orally from generation to generation.
At that time, the Sumii family, which was a court noble, established the ``Fukakusa Uchiwa'' in response to an order from the Emperor of the time, ``to send you the production of fans using madake from Fukakusa.''
Komaruya Sumii cherishes the traditions passed down from generation to generation, and makes each fan by hand, putting a lot of thought into each fan.
We are particular about the materials we use, and the bamboo that forms the bones of our fans is made from three-year-old Japanese Madake bamboo. A one year old will be soft, but a five year old will wither, so a three year old is the best time. The base paper for the uchiwa is made from Japanese paper made from straw from Lake Biwa. Straw has the power to absorb evil spirits and is a material used in rituals.
*Kyomaru Uchiwa is a registered trademark of Komaruya Sumii.
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