Ainu Pattern Imabari Towel Blanket cikarkarpe Navy and Orange

Where the kaparamip pattern fills its field continuously, the cikarkarpe works differently. In traditional Ainu garment-making, the cikarkarpe is constructed by cutting cloth into strips and assembling them into a geometric framework, with embroidery added over the structured ground. The pattern on this blanket reflects that logic: angular forms, symmetrical axes, and linear frameworks built from the center outward, the design opening and closing around a central point rather than repeating across the surface. Nibutani Works, founded by Kayano Kimihiro in Nibutani, Hokkaido, works to keep Ainu craft knowledge in active production — drawing from a tradition in which every pattern carries meaning, made as a form of protection and prayer for the person who would wear it. The blanket is woven in Ehime Prefecture using Imabari cotton, a textile standard held to strict quality criteria in one of Japan's most established weaving regions. The blanket is reversible: navy ground with orange pattern on one side, orange ground with navy pattern on the other.