{"id":276,"date":"2011-01-27T11:32:39","date_gmt":"2011-01-27T15:32:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/blog\/?p=276"},"modified":"2011-01-28T12:55:21","modified_gmt":"2011-01-28T16:55:21","slug":"washitsu-japanese-interior-design-decor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/blog\/cultural-spotlight\/washitsu-japanese-interior-design-decor","title":{"rendered":"Washitsu: Japanese Interior Design &#038; D\u00e9cor"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>This is Part I in a series of posts about the Washitsu design style:<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u201cWashitsu\u201d is a Japanese word that refers to the original, authentic style of interior design developed in Edo period Japan; a d\u00e9cor that seems to impart a serenity and comfort that transcends the unassuming, well-crafted furnishings and accessories. Fine quality, natural materials, and intelligent, convenient design combine to create elegantly simple, beautiful doors &amp; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/blinds-and-shades.html\">windows treatments<\/a>, bedding, lighting, furniture, art, and decorations. Slide open the door, and almost without thinking, one naturally bends down to slip off their shoes, maintaining the cleanliness and beauty of the space.<\/p>\n<h2>The Washitsu Bedroom<\/h2>\n<p>Entered through a set of fine Japanese <a href=\"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/sliding-room-dividers.html\">shoji sliding doors<\/a>, opening onto a beautiful tatami mat floor, we\u2019d find a practical shoji paper privacy screen, an authentic shiki futon rather than a mattress, a kaki futon rather than a comforter, a <a href=\"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/japanese-lanterns.html\">shoji lantern<\/a> rather than a table lamp and a shoji floor lamp rather than a torchiere, a zaisu tatami chair, a low scholar\u2019s desk, and a richly grained wood tansu rather than a dresser, and refined oriental style art and porcelains.<!--more--><\/p>\n<h2>The Tokonomo: Decorative Alcove<\/h2>\n<p>In some washitsu, there was and is often an alcove, between 8 and 12 feet wide, built in a corner, or just inside the doors. The tokonomo is usually decorated with wall art, and dry or fresh flowers, as ikebana is a craft still popular in Japan and now in the west.  Some create a small personal shrine, with religious or artistically significant gems, statues, or symbols, and perhaps photos or renderings of departed loved ones.<\/p>\n<h2>Tatami Mats<\/h2>\n<p>Wall to wall <a href=\"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/rugs-and-mats.html\">tatami mats<\/a> can have a remarkable impact on any room, especially a bedroom. The lovely straw colored woven grass surface, and the firm, yet springy feel of the rice hull stuffing, create a comfortable and cozy, serene atmosphere, with a sense of order, simplicity, and cleanliness.<\/p>\n<p>However, as an affordable compromise, some prefer just matched pairs of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/oriental-furniture\/TATAMI-Q.html?Category_Code=rugs-and-mats\">queen sized tatami mats<\/a> or <a href=\"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/oriental-furniture\/TATAMI-K.html?Category_Code=rugs-and-mats\">king sized tatami mats<\/a> right on the wood or carpet floor, with dimensions perfect to accommodate queen or king size futons or western style mattresses. Some raise the tatami mats of the floor for a simple and beautiful platform bed, or install them on one of our solidly crafted <a href=\"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/beds-frames.html\">tatami beds<\/a>, and top them with an authentic shiki futon mattress and kaki futon cover.<\/p>\n<p><em>Read <a href=\"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/blog\/cultural-spotlight\/japanese-furniture-for-the-washitsu-style\">Part II in this series<\/a> where we discuss furniture in the Washitsu style in detail.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This is Part I in a series of posts about the Washitsu design style: \u201cWashitsu\u201d is a Japanese word that refers to the original, authentic style of interior design developed in Edo period Japan; a d\u00e9cor that seems to impart a serenity and comfort that transcends the unassuming, well-crafted furnishings and accessories. Fine quality, natural [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-276","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cultural-spotlight"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=276"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":291,"href":"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276\/revisions\/291"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=276"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=276"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.orientalfurniture.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=276"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}