Japan's cotton textile production area.
Enshu.
This area, located in the western part of Shizuoka Prefecture, has been producing cotton textiles since the Edo period, and even now there are some weavers and processing factories, although the number is not large.
Located on the outskirts of the city, Kakegawa City was once called the production area of Tenryu Shrine.
"Kaneta Textile Co., Ltd." was founded in 1955 when there were many companies producing cotton fabrics, and continues to this day.
Due to the production background of the special fabric, it seems that they do not do business with any brand, but instead, they emphasize what the brand aims, what they think, and what they are trying to create. Weaving shop.
When it comes to cotton fabrics, the type of cotton that is the raw material, the place of production, whether it is hand-picked or machine-picked when harvesting it, the spinning method, the number of twists, and the single yarn. Is it a two-ply yarn, the count is thick 3-count, 200-count and fine count variations.
There are so many choices just for making threads.
In other words, it becomes the weaving process from there,
The weave structure is plain weave, twill weave, satin weave, multiple weave, in addition to warp density, weft density, and warp density ratio.
The finishing touches include the dyeing process, yarn dyeing, jet dyeing, presence or absence of mercerization, resin, etc.
There are some differences that most people don't understand, but even if just one of them is different, the texture of the finished fabric will be completely different. It is a very creative and expansive weaving shop that aims to be.
We don't have many at our store, but some of the branded fabrics that everyone buys are woven by Kaneta Orimono.
There have been many times when the clothes I bought without knowing it were made by Kaneta-san.
Spring 2021.
Shinkansen, Kakegawa Station.
Here, I met Mr. Ota of Kaneta Orimono and a certain brand.
If you go by car from Kakegawa station, there is a mountain road.
Over the green mountains,
The area is close to the sea, with wind power generation and peaceful scenery.
Kaneta Textile Co., Ltd. is located there.
It seems very simple, but Kaneta Orimono's motto is unbelievable.
"Manufacturing that can only be woven by Kaneta Orimono and cannot be imitated by others"
There are countless types of clothing fabrics that exist now and in the past, but the fabrics made by Kaneta are certainly true to his words.
When I first saw it, I was completely inexperienced.
encounter with the unknown.
That is Kaneta Orimono's fabric.
A building on a corner of a large site.
This is the entrance to the machine shop that produces incredible cotton fabrics.
As soon as you step inside, the temperature and humidity are clearly different from those outside.
And the loud sound of many looms running.
The air conditioning is thoroughly controlled to properly weave the fabric, and although it is cool, I experienced the high humidity.
A little further from the entrance, the sound gets louder, and many looms are lined up.
The shuttle loom is a very old machine that is the closest to hand-woven construction.
22 shuttle looms.
3 rapier looms.
In the Enshu region, Japan's largest production area, Kaneta is the only company with a shuttle loom of this size.
A shuttle loom that can weave fabrics with a narrow width, the slowest speed, bring out the texture of the material, and create deep fabrics.
The heddles alternately move the warp threads up and down, and the weft threads are inserted one by one into the path of the weft threads to weave the fabric.
In this way, about 50m of fabric is woven steadily over time.
This is called ichitan.
The warp set on the shuttle loom before the weft enters.
The process of setting the warp threads on the loom one by one is called "Hetoshi".
this passage. Unusual, incredible work.
This is because we manually thread all the numerous threads that can be seen in the photo.
In one corner of the loom, there are rows of looms that look like snow piled up like this.
The shuttle loom is a very old machine, so it cannot be operated normally at the push of a button like today's convenient machines.
It is a transcendent analog machine that often has problems with the loom, even if it cannot be used at full capacity, it is a transcendental analog machine that can be operated with very fine adjustments by craftsmen with many years of experience.
That's why there are multiple shuttle looms lined up like snow piled up, and the scenery is very mysterious, but it's also spectacular.
Writing like this may make you feel that you are just making something unusual, but the fabrics that Kaneta makes are not simply unique.
Maximize the potential of the materials you use and let them shine at their best.
If you just look at the letters, it's a type that exists everywhere, "cotton fabric" and "plain".
However, it is not a frivolous, monotonous, and simple texture.
Super-mathematical, arithmetical theory, spirit, patience, and passion create wonderful fabrics.
"Kaneta Orimono" is able to create something that will impress you.
I really think so.
In the very limited field of "only textiles", we challenged the "difficulty of textiles" and absolutely impossible with other weavers, "ultra-strong twist", "ultra-high density", and recently "" He even tried "ultra-fine count" and continues to try even now with a high degree of difficulty.
It may be my personal preference, but I think Kaneta is by far the number one Japanese cotton fabric.
The biggest feature,
"Super Twisted"
"Ultra High Density"
These two.
In the first place, "Kyonen" is something I have written many times on this blog, but there is a thing called "spinning" that is done to change cotton from "fiber" to "thread". .
During spinning, the cotton fibers are twisted, and the type of yarn is classified into three stages according to how many times it is twisted per meter and how many times the yarn rotates. will be
・Weak twist (Jakunen), sweet twist (Amayori)
・Normal twist
・Kyonen
Naturally, the fewer times you twist it, the sweeter it will be.
When it becomes sweeter, it becomes soft and fluffy, with more fluff and thicker threads.
On the contrary, the more times the thread is woven, the tighter and stronger the thread becomes.
When it becomes a weak twist, around 1 meter, 500 rotations or less.
500 to 1000 turns per meter for normal twist.
When it comes to strong twist, it is said that 1000 to 2500 turns per meter.
And, as mentioned above, the stronger the twist, the more the yarn becomes "curly" instead of being straight and straight.
According to Mr. Kaneta, the hurdles to be able to weave with hard-twisted yarn rise dramatically, making it exceptionally difficult.
Fabrics made from hard-twisted yarn raise such hurdles, but they certainly have their benefits.
I think there are many merits, and there are quite a few common ones, so I will list them a little.
・Glossy and luxurious ・Strong ・Smooth ・Strong ・Can be used for heavy use
・Firmness → Because there is firmness, ・The shape of the clothes is clearly visible ・It does not easily wrinkle
・Thin threads can be produced → A lot of threads can be used → Fabric has weight → Drapes can be produced → Beautiful lines can be produced
And so on.
However, this is where the real Kaneta-san's amazing world begins.
Kaneta Orimono's technology is more advanced.
If you read carefully, you can theoretically understand the reason why Kaneta Orimono is a tremendous one-of-a-kind. For those who know.
It's been a while since I learned a little bit when I was a student, but I learned a lot, so I'll say it again.
In the first place, yarn has its "twisting direction".
When you twist anything, isn't it? turn either way.
・S twist (right twist)
・Z twist (left twist)
These two things are said when you twist the thread.
There is a direction both in "spinning" and in combining single yarns into "two-ply yarns".
Basically, the twist direction is counterclockwise when "fiber is made into thread".
This is called "Z twist (left twist)", and the yarn (single yarn) is basically formed by Z twist.
Of course, the hard twist is a method of making a strong twist at the time of spinning,
How strong is the twist when "twisting the yarn = making it two-ply yarn", and furthermore,
"When twisting single yarns, should they be S-twisted (right twisted) or Z-twisted (left twisted) to make two-ply yarn?"
It becomes a very important keyword.
And there are three types of fabrics that use hard-twisted threads.
The first one.
A "single yarn hard twist" that is strongly twisted during spinning and then further twisted.
The second.
"ZS hard twist" is a two-ply hard twist that combines two Z-twisted single yarns and strongly twists the S twist (right twist).
The third.
"ZZ hard twist" is a two-ply hard twist that combines two Z-twisted single yarns and twists them strongly in the same direction as the single yarn.
The above three.
It seems that each has its own characteristics, but most of the fabrics woven by Kaneta Orimono are made from "ZZ strong twist".
And this "ZZ strong twist" has the most intense touch, so it seems that it is a yarn that is much more difficult to handle than the other two.
The reason why it is a difficult yarn is that in the case of ZZ, the yarn is twisted to the left during spinning, and twisted in the same direction when twisted together, so in addition to the tightness created by the single yarns, the two yarns are twisted together. I have heard that it is slippery.
On the other hand, in the case of "ZS strong twist", two Z single yarns are twisted in the S twist (right twist), which is the opposite direction to the spinning, so that the twisting force between the single yarns cancels out. Therefore, it does not become a strong touch and is easy to handle.
So, whether the number of twists is 2000 or 2500, "ZS strong twist" has a margin.
In other words, the number of twists in hard twist is not the only important factor.
However, it seems that Kaneta has woven fabric with 3,000 turns even though it is "ZZ strong twist".
This is dangerous.
However, even so, Kaneta's "ZZ strong twist" itself seems to exist in multiple places other than Kaneta Orimono.
Kaneta's overwhelming point is the use of "ultra-strong twisted" yarn with that "ZZ strong twist",
"Ultra High Density"
that it can be woven into
This level is unheard of in humanity.
When the condition of "high density" is added, it seems that the hurdles for weaving jump up, and other companies seem to be unable to achieve this level of quality.
Well, there are many fabrics in the world that are simply woven with high density, but if you look around, most people see and hear "super high twist yarn" and "super high density". I don't think I've ever done it before.
Besides, there is no one other than Mr. Kaneta who can do that in "ZZ Strong Twisted".
Kaneta Orimono creates fabrics that many people are unfamiliar with.
However, I think everyone can imagine that it is not a very easy thing to realize it, and a completely unique technology that took an unimaginable amount of time to create.
If you like clothes, especially if you think you like fabrics, I think Kaneta's fabrics are something you should know about.
"The World of Super Craftsmen"
In the previous blog, clothes are things that "change lives".
I wrote that, but it is exactly one of them.
I often talk to customers who come to the store, but I think that clothes are not just "things to wear".
In particular, I think that those who read this blog are people who surely like this kind of thing and have a standard of values for this kind of thing.
It may seem like an exaggeration to say that clothes can change your life, but when something is truly made with passion, it appeals to the heart, and there is always something to be felt. is.
I think that it will surely have a positive impact on our lives. I think that is the role that clothing retailers should play.
This time, Kaneta Orimono took a lot of time and effort, and we were able to take on a very difficult challenge, and we were able to complete a wonderful fabric that has never existed before in this world.
When this fabric was completed, I was overwhelmed.
As I mentioned earlier, I think that you can feel that you can do this with clothes.
My sensibilities and the sensibilities of the brand that acted as a bridge with Kaneta-san collided with each other.
AUBETT.
We have completed something that can only be created by Kaneta Orimono, something that can only be done with AUBETT.
Continue.
