TAKEHIMO, the natural tying stripes

If you know Japan, you also know the traditional food wrapping here. Most of it is wrapping into leaves, as in many Asian countries. Mainly it is bamboo leaves, fresh as sasa, the green short Phyllostachis leaves. Often dry bamboo sheaths are used to wrap onigiri or natto or sweets. To tie the goodies, bamboo leaves are simply cut into stripes, soaked in water, they tie enough well to secure the food.

What an meaningful real eco packing material!!

We found them and offer them as TAKEHIMO NATURAL here at Greengabes.

Now, for food which keeps longer, like the anko sweets, the yokan, any cakes and cookies, they have to be tied better for transportation and stock keeping. And Japan has something very useful for this! The TAKEHIMO BINDER!
These wonderful and versatile binders are not made out of bamboo, they are made out of paper with a bamboo print on them. Which makes them look like bamboo! A wire is running in the center, which is to secure goods, or, for us designers, to secure structures. The TAKEHIMO BINDER can easily replace the paper wires we use for winding structures, for crossing structures, and the bamboo print adds a new atmosphere to our works!

TAKEHIMO BINDER

If you ever visited Japan, you might recognize them: usually, these thin paper binders are used to bind and decorate traditional sweets packages! Like anko or yokan. Generally wagashi.

Seen with designers' eyes, they look like little thin cut stripes of bamboo, and that's actually what they want to be. Or attempt to be.

Our TAKEHIMO BINDERS are not made out of real bamboo. It is paper, colored as bamboo. In the middle, a wire is running, turning the TAKEHIMO BINDER into a paperwire tool with a very unique look!

Fixing glass tubes with TAKEHIMO BINDERS onto wooden stems. Fixing any stems or flowers. Works all well and quick with the binders! And the ends, the long lines of the bamboo binding stripes, can turn into new design elements! Can be curled, can be straightened, can be lined up or twisted together to create new structures......

again, a really versatile material with many many options!

Gregor Lersch was the first one to use them in a floral design (see below).

Size: 25cm long and 0,6 cm wide.

Available in bunches of 10, 20, 50 and 100 strings.

Order TAKEHIMO BINDER

TAKEHIMO NATURAL SOLD OUT

Not having been in use for a long time, the TAKEHIMO are finding their way back into young ecological and sustainable orientated restaurants and food shops. Onigiri were used to be packed in bamboo sheaths and bound with TAKEHIMO, which simply means "bamboo thread".

As flower designers, we can see the stripes just as what they are: dry stripes, which can be used to weave or to line up or to be stapled, again, our phantasy is asked.

And maybe they can tie bouquets! Worth a try!

Size: 47 cm long and 0,8cm wide

Available in bunches of 10, 20, 50 and 100 strings.

Ways to use the takehimo binder

photos courtesy of Gregor Lersch