JAPANESE CULTURE, EXPLAINED
帯締め
An obijime is a narrow cord or band tied over the broad obi to secure its knot.
The obi is the broad sash. The obiage is cloth that covers the obi pillow and helps arrange the knot. The obijime secures the knot from outside. An obidome is a separate ornament that can be threaded onto a flat obijime. Width, position and function are more reliable guides than colour alone.
In Kyoto Kimonomachi’s demonstrated single-layer otaiko, the broad obi folds into a square, with an obi pillow supporting its upper edge. The short end passes sideways inside this square. The obijime holds it there, passes around to the front and is tied firmly. The temporary shaping cord can then be removed.
For a braided obijime, groups of threads interlace as their positions change. A Taito craft interview distinguishes this diagonal interlacing from the warp-and-weft structure of woven cloth. Different braiding arrangements and stands create different cross-sections and surfaces. Kyoto Prefecture lists several kinds of stands, rather than one universal tool.
Ryukobo describes silk threads in its work; the Taito interview also discusses dyeing and colour changes along the threads. These examples do not make every obijime pure silk. Maruguke is another construction, with cloth around a core. One Taketune product uses a silk exterior and a synthetic cord core, illustrating why it should not be called a solid silk braid.
Braided cords served court dress, Buddhist implements and warrior equipment before modern kimono accessories became a major outlet. Taito’s craft history identifies sword cords among Edo demand and obijime as a way Tokyo braiders sustained their craft after the Meiji transition. The Great Kantō Earthquake then disrupted Tokyo production: many braiders lost their tools and changed trades. Ono’s museum separately relates maruguke use to obi tying. These are overlapping histories, not a single invention date.
The craft interview describes diagonal interlacing in a braid, rather than separate warp and weft.
After the obijime has been tightened and tied to hold the folded obi in place.
No. Materials and structures vary, including cloth-covered maruguke with a core.