Yukata Obi Belt 'Tobishima'

Black pre-tied obi belt with white pinstripes, the narrow kind worn low

Black with white lines, ruled straight. This narrow obi is a stiff black band with thin white pinstripes woven along its length in groups of two and three, straight and even, with a pre-tied knot at the front that hooks on. It is the cousin of the silver-striped obi in the collection, in white instead of silver, and the white reads sharper.

It is the narrow obi for a yukata, which the title says, and the one most often bought with one.

The name, Tobishima, is the scattered islands, the groups of stripes with sea between them, and the band is laid out like that.

The band is a thick woven cloth folded double and stitched flat, stiff enough to hold its line round the waist, and the knot is sewn in place on a short separate tab that hooks over the band at the front, so the obi goes on in one movement: wrap, fasten at the back under the band, hook the knot on. The closure is adjustable and hidden.

Wear it over a yukata, a jinbei top, a kimono or a haori, wrapped twice round the hips rather than the waist, low, the way a man ties a narrow obi and a woman ties one when she wants the same line. The knot sits at the back or at the side, as you prefer; the photograph shows it at the front only so you can see it. Over a plain tee and a wide trouser it works as a belt.

The pinstripes are woven in a white thread with no shine, so they read as chalk lines rather than metal, and they sit in groups with wide black gaps between. On the knot they run on the bias. The band is black on both faces.

Hand wash cool, flat, and dry flat; do not wring, because the stiffening in the band creases. Iron on the reverse if it needs it. It is a belt, and it takes a belt's life.

From across a room it is a black band with white lines. From close the lines show their groups, the knot its bias, and the white its matte. It is the obi for the yukata in the range and the person who wants the classic.

One size. The band wraps a waist from about 70 to 110 cm with the closure adjusted, and the pre-tied knot means the length does not change how it looks. It is cut to Western sizing, so there is no size to take up.