Journal

Essays on Japanese textile history, craft, and the culture of ceremonial silk — alongside guides to caring for and living with ceremonial silk objects.

Silk in the European Room

A question we get asked often: how do you actually put Japanese ceremonial silk into a European home without it feeling like a costume? It is a fair question. The...

Silk in the European Room

A question we get asked often: how do you actually put Japanese ceremonial silk into a European home without it feeling like a costume? It is a fair question. The...

A Colour Palette for 2026

Every year at Renaras, certain colours rise to the surface. Not because we planned them — we work with vintage textiles, so we take what the estates offer — but...

A Colour Palette for 2026

Every year at Renaras, certain colours rise to the surface. Not because we planned them — we work with vintage textiles, so we take what the estates offer — but...

A Letter for the Year of the Horse

We wanted to write you a proper letter. Not a manifesto. Not a trend forecast. Just an honest account of where Renaras stands as we move into 2026 — what...

A Letter for the Year of the Horse

We wanted to write you a proper letter. Not a manifesto. Not a trend forecast. Just an honest account of where Renaras stands as we move into 2026 — what...

From Dejima to the Jordaan

For two hundred years, during Japan's period of sakoku — the closed-country policy that sealed the archipelago from almost all foreign contact — the Dutch were the exception. Not because...

From Dejima to the Jordaan

For two hundred years, during Japan's period of sakoku — the closed-country policy that sealed the archipelago from almost all foreign contact — the Dutch were the exception. Not because...

The Japandi Interior Styling Guide: Where Japan...

What Japandi Actually Is Japandi — the portmanteau combining Japanese and Scandinavian design philosophies — has become one of the most durable interior design movements of the past decade. Like...

The Japandi Interior Styling Guide: Where Japan...

What Japandi Actually Is Japandi — the portmanteau combining Japanese and Scandinavian design philosophies — has become one of the most durable interior design movements of the past decade. Like...

Japanese Ceremonial Silk Care: A Complete Guide...

Vintage Japanese obi silk is a compound textile: a pure silk ground, patterned with floated supplementary wefts, often gilt paper wound around silk cores. Water attacks the gilt. Dry-cleaning solvents...

Japanese Ceremonial Silk Care: A Complete Guide...

Vintage Japanese obi silk is a compound textile: a pure silk ground, patterned with floated supplementary wefts, often gilt paper wound around silk cores. Water attacks the gilt. Dry-cleaning solvents...