“武州一 / Bushu-ichi”

“Bushu”-brand products are a staple in every kendo athlete’s arsenal.

Of these “Bushu”-brand products,

the “Bushu-ichi” series is comprised of their most expensive, top-quality products.

Our hope is to spread knowledge regarding traditional Japanese skills to our readers.

 〜Why is “indigo-dyeing” so significant?〜

There are many traditional skills in Japan, and “indigo-dyeing” is one of them.

As you may be aware, wearing brand-new indigo-dyed Kendo-gi  and Hakama may turn your body blue, or the color may wash off when you do your laundry. This makes caring for indigo-dyed products difficult.

Why, then, do we use “indigo-dyed” products when they are so difficult to care for?

The reason can be attributed to the following three items:

・The unique texture

・Bactericidal effects

・Strengthening of fiber durability

It is said that these characteristics were

what led to indigo-dyed items being worn to battle by warriors in the Sengoku period.

〜Traditional skills passed down by the “Bushu-ichi” brand〜

There are several characteristics which are unique to

Bushu-brand’s top-quality products known as the “Bushu-ichi” brand.

【Pre-dyeing】

Not limited to indigo-dyeing, the universal process for dyeing fabric first starts

by weaving the fabric to completion before dyeing it.

However, at Bushu-ichi, each individual string is dyed before the process of weaving into fabric,

allowing for each fiber to be saturated with the dye and to become more durable.

Photograph provided to us by "Sengendo"

【Unique weaving technique】

When weaving the string into fabric, Bushu-ichi utilizes a traditional shuttle-type loom

that is no longer being manufactured.

This type of loom is used because modern looms are not able to weave string

that has been strengthened through “pre-dyeing”.

Photograph provided to us by "Sengendo"

【Sewing】

All of the items are made by hand by expert craftspeople,

so that the items do not hinder the wearer’s ability to move when worn.

Though these items are “traditional crafts”, they also exhibit excellent performance qualities as “sports gear”.

Photograph provided to us by "Sengendo"

Though there are only a limited amount of stores in Japan that sell the “Bushu-ichi” series,

KENDO PARK offers various selections of both Kendo-gi and Hakama.

Feel free to contact us anytime with inquiries.

 

〜Bushu-ichi Lineup〜

Poster:
Kenshi Nagamatsu

Born December 8th, 1987 in Tokyo
Graduated from Keio University's Faculty of Law.

Started Kendo at 5 years old at the Tokyo-budokan (located in Ota-ku, Tokyo), and continued kendo club activities throughout Keio junior high school and Keio high school, and during Keio University Athletic Association's Kendo association, as well as Nomura Securities' Kendo association.

Started KENDO PARK services in 2017.

Major kendo accomplishments include:
・Second place in Kanagawa prefecture's high school kendo tournament
・Best 8 in Kanto students' new player tournament
・Best 16 in All-Japan Business Organization Kendo Tournament, etc.