Sashi.Co & Keiko Futatsuya has been producing the Natural Dye Sashiko Thread for almost 3 years. We receive many positive reviews, and we are confident in what we make. At the same time, we receive many requests to provide a color sample for our Natural Dye Sashiko Thread Collection. Finally, I made several of Sashiko Thread sample Booklets. They are available online now! ~ Sashiko Thread Sample Booklet | All Natural Dye.
A price for the Sashiko Thread Sample Booklet is $20.00 !?
I set a price of $20.00 for the booklet. I know. It is expensive for a hand-made booklet.
The booklet itself doesn’t look like the one with $20.00 value. It is hand-made and we use all the Natural Dye thread so I hope it doesn’t sound like I am ripping you off. By its look, I would say $5.00 ~ $10.00 would be a reasonable pricing.
Then, why did I set up this pricing?
The answer is that I would like to sell (give) this booklet to someone who sincerely appreciates this booklet. Once I made the sample. In past, I have spread the Sashiko Sample Booklet to many people, pretty much everyone who wanted to have. It sold out very quickly, and I needed to ask customers to wait. One day, I found a sample booklet in a trash can…
Ideally speaking, I even would like to give away it free. It is my pleasure to share our Natural Dye Sashiko thread; what we are proud of.
After thinking a lot of the issues, I come up with the idea. I hope this deal makes sense to you.
Here is a deal I come up with.
We will not reimburse it and more
I will send you$39.00 store creditwhen the booklet holder purchases more than 15 skeins of our Natural Dye Sashiko thread in their life-time history. When I receive the order of this booklet, I will write down your name, and you will be eligible for the deal.
No need to purchase 15 skeins at once. I will send you the credit when you purchase the 15th thread. It can be anytime, even a few years later. No expiration date. I will count every purchase you made in past if you have already made a purchase from us.
We will reimburse the price of $20.00
After that, you will get $19 discount when you purchase more than 15 skeins ofNatural Dye Sashiko Thread.
I hope this deal will make sense to you.
On top of this, Sashiko Thread Sample Booklet is a great sample book to keep in your drawer if you are in love with Natural Colors. With almost 50 colors we have created, we want you to get the color your project deserves!
Indigo Dyed – dark blue fabric and white thread; it is the most popular fabric-thread combination for a long time. Even in modern society, Sashiko with the dark blue fabric and white thread is unique and beautiful. We have two kinds of Sashiko white thread; Original White (Ecru White) and Bright White (Bleached White).
Above: Original White #10/ Below: Bright White #12
Comparison in Sashiko White Thread
The thread #10 Original White has an ecru color. In comparison, it is more like the cream color. The thread #12 Bright White is the snow-white color, and it is the white we think of when we say, white. #12 is the brighter white than #10. I named #10 Original White because #12 is dyed (bleached) to make the pure white color.
Both of them are the perfect thread for Sashiko stitching. The color you may choose is up to your preference. Here is a sample Sashiko fabric that I use both #10 and #12 on Indigo Dye Fabric. Interestingly, when you stitch the 2 Sashiko White Thread on the Indigo fabric, #10 looks also pure-white. We choose the thread color AFTER we find the fabric because the stitching on the fabric will decide which thread will result in the color we are imagining.
Left: #10 Original White / Right: #12 Bright White
Even we aren’t so sure how color of stitching come out
Keiko has almost 35 years of experience in Sashiko. She always says, “We can imagine how the color of stitching will come out. However, it isn’t certain and we cannot promise the color result when we try something new.”
When we start a new project, we often make a small stitching sample to make sure if the fabric and stitching match as we imagine. It is another reason of difficulty in accepting a custom order over the Internet. Although we want to achieve the result is as the customer imagined, the combination sometimes results in difference to the image based on the color chart. We accept an order from the people who understand this difficulty of finding the right thread.
Well, in fact, this difficulty is actually what makes Sashiko more interesting.
We never know what’s gonna happen until we actually start stitching. Isn’t it like a life?
Recently, I enjoy making “Thread Bobbins – Itomaki” like the photo below. They are just so cute. Itomaki is a process of preparing to start Sashiko efficiently. However, I kind of enjoy the preparation process than actual stitching for now. Well, both Sashiko Stitching and winding the thread are the great meditation to calm me down. Here are the Itomaki Bobbins I made for gradation color Sashiko Thread.
*I sometimes refer Gradation Color Sashiko Thread to Variegated Color Sashiko Thread
Enjoy the color variegation
Five selection of Gradation Color Sashiko Thread is one of our best selling products on our website. The color variegation adds great charm to the Sashiko project. For example, by using #203 Pink-to-White Color Sashiko thread, you will get the great Sakura (Cherry Blossom) color when you make a flower design pattern on the fabric.
Sample Stitching with Gradation Color Sashiko Thread
I received some requests to untie the Variegated Color Sashiko thread, so I made the sample Sashiko stitching with it. From left to right, #205-#204-#203-#202-#201. I stitched about 3~4 lines for each color. The design of sample stitching is simply the parallel lines with changing the thread by a meter or so. It is beautiful as it is already colorful.
In addition to 5 Gradation Color Selection, we have 15 Solid (Mono) Color Selection, 2 Sashi.Co Original Color Selection, and more than 25 of Natural Dyed (Botanical Dyed) Selection for the Sashiko thread. They are all great for the Sashiko Stitching. As I repeatedly say, I strongly recommend you to get the best Sashiko Thread available for your investment. Sashiko requires you to invest a lot of your time. I want everyone to have a great result, and good quality Sashiko thread will be a good reward.
I will make sample stitching fabric for the other colors I have.
I am grateful that I received some active reactions to the article I wrote about “why does Keiko create the Natural Dye Sashiko Thread.” After working hard on studying the Natural Dye Thread, we have a Natural Dye Sashiko Thread List for the Summer of 2017. All available for sale. This is the list of natural dye thread we can re-create. In other words, even after they get sold out, we can restock the very similar color (almost identical) Sashiko thread.
Each of the beautiful gray colored threads has its uniqueness by adding a hint of other colors such as purple, green, beige, and indigo blue. Although the gray color collection is not as fancy as the pink color collection, the gray color matches to the vintage fabric very well. In fact, these gray colored threads are most often used thread in Sashi.Co & Keiko Futatsuya collection.
#002 Japanese Nutgall
#004 Tangala
#006_Myrobalan
#022_Mountain Peach
Pink Color Collection
Pink Color Collection is our all time favorite. It looks beautiful on any color of fabric, and it adds the colorfulness to Sashiko.
It was challenging to stabilize the pink colors as the re-stackable thread. As you can see, one dye material, such as Lac Dye and Madder, can create several colors based on the condition and dye catalysts. Enjoy the beauty of purple to pink. They are even beautiful to just look at.
#008_LacDye
#010_LacDye
#013_Madder
#014_Madder
#015_Madder
Yellow Color Collection
We learned that our valued customer finds it difficult to use the yellow color in Sashiko. The yellow colors from Natural Dye could be a good substitute (or even upgrade) for the white thread. For example, the indigo blue fabric and yellow natural dye get the result of white looking. Both colors from Mountain Peach and Myrobalan will open up another possibility to your Sashiko project!
As I repeatedly mention in the website, it is very important to have the good thread when you enjoy Sashiko. In fact, it is more difficult to “find” the best thread than choosing the one. As a group of Sashiko artists, we always choose the thread from Coron Manufacture. However, it isn’t easy to get the color we want all the time, although we have more than 15 variations available. Keiko Futatsuya started dyeing the thread by herself with Natural Botanical Dye after experiencing the challenge in finding the appropriate color thread. They are very beautiful. At the same time, she realized, it isn’t budget friendly to use the Botanical Dye Sashiko thread only on her project. Then, she talked to the manufacturer, came up with this unique colored Sashiko thread. The Sashi.Co Original Color Sashiko Thread, which has the similar color to some of the Natural Botanical Dye Sashiko Thread.
Sashi.Co Original Color Sashiko Thread for everyone
We have 2 colors of our Sashi.Co Original Color Sashiko Thread. One is Beige (#T1) and the other is Moss Green (#T2). Both of them have a unique color, which doesn’t look like the synthetic and machine dye. Since ordering the original color required a large amount of thread to dye in the big pot, we needed to spend a lot of our capital to make this happen. Therefore, we are providing the thread with the similar prices as the other synthetic dyed Sashiko thread such as Solid Color Sashiko Thread and Variegated Color Sashiko Thread.
Every kind of thread is the best for the Sashiko purpose. The difference is only the colors. I hope everyone can get an opportunity to try one of our great Sashiko thread.
Among a selection of many colors for Coron Sashiko Thread, the two colors of Original White Bright White are the most popular colors. We, as a group of Sashiko artists, also use a lot of both original white (#10 / unbleached white / ecru ) and bright white (#12 / bleached white). The white color thread and Indigo Dyed Fabric is the most popular and traditional Sashiko combination. When you research on Sashiko, you would see the dark blue fabric with white Sashiko stitching on.
Which is the better choice? | Original White Bright White
Both color, #10 and #12 are great for Sashiko stitching: the same quality cotton thread with a twisting for the Sashiko purpose. The #10 has the original color of cotton, which is a bit more creamy ecru color. The #12 has the bleached color, so it is bright white as you would imagine for bleached white. The comparison of light color may be a good example. #10 is more like the warm white, and #12 is more like the cold white. I personally like the #10 ecru color, but at the same time, I enclosed the #12 color on the workshop materials so participants can ask questions about color transferring from fabric to thread.
Here, I took a photo of the comparison on Indigo Dye Fabric.
In the photo, without stitching, the #12 looks much more white like. #12 is bleached so it looks really white, but after making stitches on the Indigo Fabric, both #10 and #12 looks “white.” I will make a sample fabric later on.
Which thread did the Japanese use in their tradition?
I am still in the process of researching, but some people in the northern region had a shame of using the white thread because it means a lack of effort of dyeing the thread with natural dyes (Natural Dye Sashiko Thread.) At the same time, some people who lived close to the castle town thought of using the original white to enjoy the pattern and its Indigo and white contrast. The Japanese had a technique to bleach the cotton thread by using nature such as snow, rain, and sunlight.
As the answer to the question, I would reply that the Japanese used both white colors as well as the Natural Dye Thread.
Each Sashiko project requires the appropriate thread color, I believe. I hope you can find the best matching color to your project.
Thanks to customers finding our Amazon Store, I am enabled to build a much bigger inventory for Sashiko thread. Since we have some allowance for the inventory, I will provide some Sashiko Thread Bulk Discount. A purchase of our Sashiko threads excluding (Now including) the Natural-dyed thread throughout this website will be eligible for the discount based on the amount of your order. Please contact me first if bulk discount matches your interest, or simply use the coupon code available below in the rate table.
Without the effective code, the discount will not be applied.
Sashiko Thread Bulk Discount Rate
Here is a price table for the bulk discount. If you have question, please make sure to contact me first by mentioning “bulk discount,” and shop throughout the online store by using the discount coupon I issue to you, or available here.
Order of 10 Sashiko Thread Skeins
5% Discount*
Code: MANYTHANKS_5
Order of 20 Sashiko Thread Skeins
10% Discount*
Code: MANYTHANKS_10
Order of 50 Sashiko Thread Skeins
15% Discount*
Code: MANYTHANKS_15
Order of 100 and more Sashiko Thread Skeins
20% Discount*
Code: MANYTHANKS_20
*Depends on the stock, we may make the shipment from Japan. In that case, we cover all the possible shipping fees, custom, and duty.
*No other seasonal coupon may be used with this bulk discount.
*The coupon will deduct the percentage amount from the total price of your order of the Sashiko Thread on our online store.
A regular skein of our Sashiko thread has the length of 145 meters / 475 feet.
This is long enough to complete a few small Sashiko project. However, if you would like to try Hitomezashi stitching or a larger project such as Sashiko jackets, a few skeins would be great to keep in stock. Although I may promote our products with some seasonal discount on this website, such as Black Friday Deal, I promise that the discount code will not be more than 20%.
Sashiko Thread Wholesale
Upcycle Stitches LLC has not obtained the license for the wholesale business in the U.S. Therefore we do not offer an option to make a wholesale deal besides Sashiko Thread Bulk Discount. However, although we do not offer the wholesale price for now, please contact me if you would like to sell our products in your store and meet the requirement below. I may be able to help you as a curator to make a deal with Sashi.Co & Keiko Futatsuya and other manufacturers in Japan.
Some of the possible agreements are following;
Agreement to purchase more than $2,000 of thread and/or products for the initial order. The wholesale rate varies depending on the amount of your purchase history.
Own a retail store with a physical store front.
I would love to visit your store to discuss not only the financial deal but the support we can provide regarding Sashiko. Please read the article about my plan, the Sashiko Road Trip.
This offer only applies to personnel/company who has the address in the US. If you live outside of US, and interested in being a distributor, please contact Sashi.Co & Keiko Futatsuya for more information. We are happy to discuss the detail. For wholesale option in Australia, please contact our representative in Australia.
In order to cook a tasty meal, you would need fresh & quality ingredients. Similarly, in order to complete a beautiful Sashiko project, the quality Sashiko thread is the key to succeeding. Not only the good Sashiko thread provide the better stitching result, but it reduces your stress while stitching. Sashiko requires a lot of time to invest. Less stress while stitching hugely contribute to the better result.
What kind of Sashiko thread should we choose?
The thread should be strong enough to strengthen the fabric. It should be thick enough to create beautiful stitches. It should be smooth so the thread wouldn’t damage the fabric. The tight twisting thread will reduce the richness of stitching. The loose twisting thread will tear apart while stitching and it will cause stress. Finding the balanced twist is one of the most important factors in finding the best thread. When you get cheap and poor quality Sashiko thread, the thread will fray easily and will be cut in actual stitching process.
Choosing the appropriate thread is one good journey many Sashiko artists encounter. We, as Sashiko artists, came to the conclusion to what is the best Sashiko Thread.
Sashiko Thread with our choice.
Japanese thread manufacture, Coron Seishi, makes one of the best Sashiko threads in the market. The thread satisfies most of the requirements Sashiko artist thinks, and the result is very rewarding. Almost 100% of Sashiko products from Sashi.Co & Keiko Futatsuya and Upcycle Stitches LLC use these Sashiko threads from Coron.
The thread consists 4 rich embroidery flosses, twisted in a unique way to keep the thickness for beautiful stitches, yet tightness to avoid separating the thread while stitching. This is the balance I mentioned above. Coron also put the thread in a series of special processes so thread becomes smooth and soft.
In our online store, we have 4 kinds of Sashiko thread available for sale. Two of them are from Sashi.Co & Keiko Futatsuya (Colored and directed by Keiko / the thread is manufactured by Coron.) Two of them are from Coron manufactory (Colored synthetically and manufactured by Coron).
When Keiko Futatsuya started working on her own Sashiko projects, which were mainly “one-of-a-kind” Sashiko Jackets and bags, she faced to the big challenge of finding the exact color she wanted to use. She wanted to adjust the color to the fabric, especially those from the past, the Japanese vintage (antique) fabric. We had a good variety of colored Sashiko thread. However, she couldn’t compromise on what she wanted.
This is her journey of natural dye thread started.
Now, we have about 30 kinds of colors. Some were sold-out and will not be back in stock since the color was so unique (made by random conditions she can not recreate). She is getting better and better at creating Natural Dye Sashiko thread.
Blue is a very challenging color to dye. (by Logwood)
The process of dyeing the thread with Natural dye has a lot of stories. It is my hope to keep introducing her journey in this website.
Beautiful Indigo Blue and Kakishibu Gold are available in Sashiko Thread Collection, finally.
I hope you would have a chance to enjoy the beautiful color of Natural, hand-dye Sashiko thread.
Original Color (Exclusive) Sashiko Thread
In the process of Natural Dye and Hand Dye, Keiko only can create about 15 skeins. The production result is between 10 skeins to 20 skeins because of the skeins do not meet her standard. She realized it takes too long to dye the thread when she works on the big Sashiko project.
After talking to a color specialist and Coron, she succeeded to create these 2 colors thread. They are dyed by synthetic dyes like the other solid color thread. However, they have a warm/natural like color similar to our natural dye thread.
They are exclusive colors Keiko ordered. It is Sashi.Co original Sashiko thread.
Mono Color / Solid Color Sashiko Thread
Coron Seishi manufacture these beautiful Sashiko threads. “#10 – Original (unbleached) White” and “#12 – Bright (bleached) white” is the all-time popular item. We use A LOT of these threads in our Sashiko project. The smoothness, the thickness, and the strength of threads improve the stitching experience and color and cotton quality will result in great stitches.
There are 15 colors for solid mono color thread. Every color is available in our online store, etsy, and even on Amazon.
Variegated Color Sashiko Thread
Variegated Color threads are also very popular for those who enjoys the gradation of colors in their Sashiko projects. We have 5 color variations.
#201 – Prime color variation
#202 – Pastel color variation
#203 – Read to White gradation
#204 – Green to White gradation
#205 – Blue to White gradation
As a summary for your Sashiko experience
It is very critical to choose the appropriate Sashiko thread to your Sashiko project. As I mention repeatedly, Sashiko requires you to invest a lot of your time. I really want you to get rewarded by having the great Sashiko stitches and finished products. I believe sharing the beauty of Sashiko stitching and its fun process is the best way to introduce Sashiko to the world.
One of our excellence in Sashiko is the selection of Natural Dye Sashiko thread. Upcycle Stitches LLC and Sashi.Co are groups of Sashiko professionals and we practice Sashiko daily to create more Sashiko pieces. At the same time, we fulfill the need for the best supplies by creating “one of the kind” materials. Natural Dye Sashiko thread, dyed by Keiko’s own hands, is one significant product we are very proud of.
We restocked three colors of Natural Dye Sashiko Thread by Sashi.Co & Keiko Futatsuya. They are available at our online store, our Etsy-Store, and Amazon. We hope that many people can enjoy the beauty of the nature. They are just so beautiful in Sashiko stitching.
Why Does Keiko create Natural Dye Sashiko Thread?
We have 22 colors of Sashiko thread in the selection. For most projects, Keiko was happy with using the colors we had. About 10 years ago, we significantly started focusing on Japanese vintage fabric, so called Kofu. Ever since, Keiko and I have been wondering if there are other colors available in the market which matches the color of vintage fabric, which is “faded color / the color only time can make”.
Natural Dye Sashiko thread was our answer.
No matter how strict we control the condition, some of the colors are almost impossible to recreate. Every time Keiko dyed, she got different color by the same natural dyes. And these “One Time Color” matched the vintage fabric very well.
A couple of years ago, Keiko succeeded in stabilizing the process and color of thread. Then, we started providing the Natural Dye Sashiko thread to our customers. Some colors are still challenging for Keiko to create the same results, and therefore, there is a limited number of stocks every time they become available online. Keiko now can restock some colors when she focuses on creating the thread.
Beauty from Nature. Beauty in Nature.
Sashiko piece with vintage fabric and Natural Dye Sashiko thread stands up in the sunlight. It is so beautiful to see the reflection of bright sunlight on the Indigo color fabric and natural dye color.
I hope you can find the natural color you like and apply it to your project.
