What is kinusaiga?
Kinusaiga is a Japanese textile art that looks like quilting and involves no sewing at all. You cut shallow grooves into a foam board along the lines of a design, then tuck fabric into those grooves. A sheet of adhesive between the fabric and the board holds each piece flat, so the finished picture looks like careful patchwork with none of the stitching.
It grew out of a thrifty habit more than a fine-art tradition. Silk kimono were expensive, and when one got too worn to wear, the good fabric was too lovely to throw away, so it got cut up into pictures. That's why the craft loves a pile of odds and ends, and why it's so forgiving for a first-timer: there's no needle to thread and no seam allowance to measure, and if a piece isn't sitting right you pull it out and tuck it again.
It's the craft we picked for our very first class. There's more on where it came from, what you need and where beginners get stuck in our Journal post, What is kinusaiga? A beginner's guide.
How a kinusaiga kit works
Every kit arrives with the design printed on adhesive paper, already mounted on the foam board. From there it's four steps, and the card in the box walks you through each one.
- Cut the grooves. Run the craft knife along the printed lines, through the paper and into the board. Go slowly at the corners.
- Peel one section. Lift the paper off a single shape. That exposes the adhesive underneath it and nothing else, so the rest of the board stays clean while you work.
- Cut your fabric. The paper you just peeled is the exact shape of the hole it left. Lay it on your fabric and cut about ½" outside it.
- Press and tuck. Set the fabric on the adhesive, press it down, then work around the edges with the flat back of the seam ripper, easing the fabric into the grooves.
Then you do it again, one shape at a time, and the picture fills in as you go. When the last section is tucked, the board pushes into the shadowbox and you're done.
What's in every kit
- The board, with your design printed on adhesive paper over foam
- Fabric swatches for every section of the design, and then some
- A small craft knife for cutting the grooves
- A seam ripper for tucking (used flat back down, which beats every other tool we tried)
- A shadowbox frame the finished piece pushes into
- A card with the steps, and a QR code to our full guide
You'll need scissors. A pen is handy too if you'd rather trace a template than cut around it. That's it.
The fabric in your box will be close to what's in the photos, and the colors very close, but the exact prints change with what we can keep in stock. We pack extra swatches on purpose, so yours can come out a little different from ours.
5" × 5" or 8" × 8"?
The 5" × 5" is the one to start with. Most people finish one in about an hour, it comes in a natural wood shadowbox, and it's a good size for a shelf, a gift, or a first try to find out whether you like this. (You will.)
The 8" × 8" is an afternoon project, 1½ to 2 hours for most people, and more if the design has a lot of small pieces. You pick the frame: natural wood or black on every design, and white on some. It's the size to hang on a wall.
Not sure which design? Bold shapes are the easiest place to begin. The sun, the pumpkin and the ghost are all good first kits. The chickadee, the gnomes and the bears have more sections and reward a little patience.
Kinusaiga for a group
Our party packs are five kits printed with the same design, so a whole table works on the same picture at the same time and nobody's stuck waiting on a step someone else hasn't reached. People use them for birthday parties, showers, classrooms, scout troops, team days and craft nights with friends. There's a 5" × 5" party pack and an 8" × 8" party pack, and if the design you want isn't listed, get in touch.
Your own pet, in fabric
Send us a photo of your dog or cat and we'll draw them up as a kinusaiga design. You see a rendered version before anything is printed, you get two rounds of changes, and then the kit ships to you to finish yourself. Custom pet portrait kinusaiga kit.
Kinusaiga questions we get a lot
Do I need to know how to sew?
No. There's no needle or thread anywhere in it. If you can use scissors, you can do this.
Are the grooves already cut?
No, and that's on purpose. The design comes printed on the board and you cut the grooves yourself with the craft knife in the box. The card walks you through it, and it's quicker than it sounds.
How long does a kit take?
About an hour for a 5" × 5" and 1½ to 2 hours for an 8" × 8". Designs with lots of small sections take longer, and nobody's timing you.
Is it OK for kids?
Yes, with a grown-up for the cutting. The craft knife is sharp, so cutting the grooves is the adult's job. Peeling, picking fabric and tucking are where kids have the most fun anyway.
What if I mess up a piece?
Pull it out and tuck it again. There's no wet glue, so a piece that isn't sitting right can come back out and go in again.
Will mine look exactly like the photo?
Close, but not exactly, and we like it that way. The colors will be very close, the prints vary with our fabric stock, and the extra swatches are there so you can make it yours.
Does it come framed?
Every kit includes a shadowbox. The 5" × 5" comes in natural wood. On the 8" × 8" you pick the color.
Is there a free guide?
Yes. A Beginner's Guide to Kinusaiga covers what kinusaiga is, the full supply list if you want to make one from scratch, and the steps in more detail. It's free.
Made by us, start to finish
We design, assemble and pack every kit ourselves in Berks County, Pennsylvania. If you get stuck partway through, scan the code on your card for the full guide, or send us a message and one of us will get back to you.
