About Japanese Patterns - Guide to choose meaningful items
The Power of the Patterns and Motifs
Traditional Japanese patterns and motifs have significance and meanings to wish for something special. Various motifs are often blended together to create more powerful and sensational meanings.
Why don't you pick an item to wish for good luck? Carry the items as a lucky charm or get a meaningful gift to your loved ones?
Blue Ocean Waves: Blue Ocean Wave pattern is a very popular geometric patter of ocean waves. As the waves spread and continue eternally and widely, it evokes endlessly peaceful and quiet life. It is also used to pray for everlasting prosperity and success.
Snow Flake Rings: The distinctively cute and round patterns are stylised as snow flake ring patterns. People found beauty in the ephemeralness and modesty of snow, and at the same time, considered the snow as a positive sign for lots of spring flowers and good harvest. Hence, the patterns are often accompanied with lots of flower motifs.
Although the snow symbolise the winter season, the patterns are also used for summer kimonos as they give cool and refreshing impression for the hot climate.
Seven Treasures: Seven Treasure pattern is a very traditional and auspicious pattern with continuous round shapes that consist of 7 treasures of gold, silver, crystal, tridacna, agate, coral, and lapis lazuli. As the layers of round patterns continue eternally, it represents peaceful and harmonious relationships with other people, and wishes prosperity.
Fawn Spots: Kanoko, Fawn Spot pattern is the brindled and spotty pattern on the back of bambi. Bambi was historically believed as a messenger of the Gods. With their vitality and prosperity, the pattern is used to pray for prosperity of descendants and safety and well-being of family. It is a popular pattern for children's kimono and used all year around.
Cranes: As coupled cranes stay together for their life time, they represent longevity, happy marriage and happy relationships. This auspicious motif is very popular for wedding celebration and wedding garments. "Cranes live thousand years, turtles for ten thousand years" is the Japanese proverb commonly mentioned at wedding celebrations and festive occasions such as retirement and the New Year. An ornament of a thousand of origami cranes are decorated to pray for peace, recovery from illness and happy marriage.
Peacocks: As peacocks have habits to eat venomous snakes and pests, they were believed to ward off evil spirits. It is told their gorgeousness and beauty remind of the phoenix. Because of the reason, phoenix represents wealth and prosperity and so are the peacocks. Coupled peacocks stay and act together and hence they symbolise marital bliss and strong bond between couples. Peacocks are also known for their abundant offspring. The image of spreading the feather adds the sign of the prosperity of descendants.
Sparrows: Since the sparrows flock together and are believed to ward off evil sprits by eating pests, the sparrow pattern is considered as auspicious and symbolises abundant harvest, family prosperity and peace and safety within the home.
Butterflies: Butterfly patterns are classic and auspicious. The magnificent life cycle of butterflies, growth, transformation, and rebirth reflect the symbolism of butterfly patterns. The way butterflies fly gracefully also represents healthy growth, successful career and longevity.
Fish Scales : A scale pattern is a geometric pattern of triangles. As it reminds of fish scales and snake scales, it is named as uroko, scales. In the ancient eras, triangle shapes were used for the talisman to ward off evil spirits and to be protected from illness. Since snakes keep shedding and fish protect themselves with their scales, the pattern also symbolise rebirth.
Turtle Shells: The continuous hexagon shapes of turtle shells represent eternal prosperity, stability and steadiness. There is a Japanese proverb commonly mentioned at celebrations and festive occasions - "Cranes live thousand years, turtles for ten thousand years." As the proverb suggests turtles live long, turtle shell patterns represent longevity. Hard shells are the symbol of protection that can ward off evil spirits.
Cherry Blossoms: As cherry blossoms bloom in the spring all at once, the pattern represents the beginning. It is said to be auspicious to have the motifs when you start something new, or go for new opportunities. It also represents prosperity and beauty of spirit. Having this pattern in the winter time implies we are to look forward to the arrival of spring. It is the national flower of Japan and people enjoy wearing the patterns all year around.
Paulownia Flowers: Paulownia flowers symbolise nobility, thrivers and happiness. As they grow very quickly, it represents prosperity and success. Historically, the paulownia was used for the crest by the emperors and imperial family.
Plum Blossoms: Plum blossoms are one of the earliest blossoms we have in Japan after the cold winter. As they survive the winter with strength and vitality and bears lots of ume fruits, it represents patience and prosperity of descendants. With their dignifying presence, it is also the symbol of elegance and nobility.
Chrysanthemum Flowers: Lovely and elegant autumn flowers of Chrysanthemum are used to pray for eternal youth, longevity, no disease and no disasters. It also represents nobility and loftiness. Chrysanthemum flowers are very common as sympathy flowers, but they are originally regarded as flowers that bring good luck. The motifs are largely used for kimonos for celebrations and special occasions. Also, it was historically used for the crest by the emperors and imperial family.
Japanese Maple Trees: As Japanese maple leaves change their colours with the seasons, and the leaves are attractive all year around, they symbolise longevity and represent people being good at socialising, and getting along with all circumstances. It is a very traditional and classic pattern and often strongly associated with the autumn season, but are also combined with variety of other motifs and used all year around.
Pine Trees: Pine trees are the symbol of eternal youth, longevity and strong vitality as the leaves are always green even in the harsh cold winter. They also represent unchanging love and bonds. Because the trees never loose leaves through the year, and leaves never change the colour. People believed the gods reside in the pine trees.
Arabesque Pattern: This traditional Karakusa, Arabesque pattern represents vigorous vines endlessly spread in all directions, symbolising prosperity of descendants, longevity and business growth.
Magic Mallet: It is believed shaking magic mallets (also called lucky mallets) make wishes come true and bring wealth, business success, and good fortune. There are a few Japanese folk tales that mallets appear as an key item. One of the most famous tales is "Issun Boshi" ("Little One-Inch"): a tiny boy with a chopstick sword sailing in a tea bowl to defeat an Oni demon to protect a princess. In the tale, the Oni demon left the magic mallet and the boy used it to make himself grown to the normal size and he lived happily after. The photo shows Seven Lucky Gods (七福神 Shichi Fuku Jin.) They are an eclectic group of seven deities in Japanese culture who bring good luck, wealth, and happiness. One of them has a Magic Mallet in his hand.
Fans: Since fans have the nature that gradually spread outwards, that expresses expanding prosperity and widening the future. This auspicious pattern is also the sign of success, longevity, and bright future. It is very popular to be used for weddings and celebrations, and often seen in formal Japanese attire.
Play Balls: With the round and smooth shape, these traditional embroidered play balls carry wishes for a peaceful life and harmonious family. Also, the balls require a huge amount of threads to be made which represent to tie good, unbreakable, lasting relationships.
Arrows: Yagasuri is a traditional and geometric pattern of feathers of arrows. Since arrows fly straight to the target, they symbolise shooting and catching good luck, bringing success, achieving goals, and warding off evil spirits Once the arrows fly, they never return. Hence there used to be customs in the Edo period that Yagasuri patterned kimono was given to brides to take with them, to pray for happy marriage and so they never return to their parents' home. Also it has been a beloved pattern for graduation and to pray for academic success for never looking back but moving forward, flying and thriving in the future.
Japanese Check Pattern: This traditional Japanese check pattern in 2 colours is called Ichimatsu. In the mid Edo period, a Japanese Kabuki actor named Ichimatsu wore this pattern on the stage that made the pattern extremely trendy among ladies, which led this pattern called Ichimatsu. As the patterns continue towards all directions, they represent prosperity of descendants, business expansion and eternity.