The Japanese Crafting Supply You Didn't Know You Needed
(Photo: Sweet Bella)
Polka-dotted ceiling fans, chevron personal planner tools, birthday cards with a little added oomph — washi tape has taken over.
For those new to the washi-holic phenomenon, let’s start from the beginning.
Washi tape originated in Japan. Washi combines the words for Japan and paper, so this is paper tape. It’s easy to tear by hand, so no scissors needed, and it’s transparent, so you can layer different styles, or see what’s on the page (or wall) underneath. The adhesive makes the tape easy to move around, to stick and re-stick. A good-quality tape can move about seven times, on average, says Nina Allen, whose Sweet Bella wholesale company is the U.S. distributor for MT tape.
Washi tape was born in 2006, when crafters approached Japanese makers to see if they could produce a tape with different designs for crafting. The tape would be like masking tape, but more delicate, and more colorful. “MT,” for masking tape, stuck, and that’s the tape that Sweet Bella imports from Japan.
Related Story on Yahoo Makers: 6 DIY Labels For a More Organized Life
Marisa Edghill, who runs the Canadian online shop Omiyaga.ca, wrote “Washi Style: Over 101 Great Projects Using Japanese-Style Decorative Tape,” published in January. In her book, she notes some drawbacks of washi tape — not all are safe for food, it’s not strong (sealing moving boxes isn’t recommended), it will wear or peel after prolonged use (such as decorating a cell phone case), and water will wear them down.
But that hasn’t stopped a small army of washi devotees from creating a new art form.
Today, the tapes come in thousands of different styles, colors, widths — dream it, and it’s probably been featured on a roll of washi tape, from flowers to architecture to Hello Kitty.
Prices vary, but even the relatively expensive rolls from Sweet Bella run $4 for 33 feet. They also sell 8-inch wide decor tape, meant for interior decorating, at $36 a roll.
(Photo: Sweet Bella)
General craft stores may sell tape at $5.99 for a roll of three, at three yards each.
Quality can differ — it’s in the paper, and the adhesive, says Allen. But that may make the largest difference to a connoisseur.
But what about the ideas?
If you’re a renter, washi tape can be a designer’s dream. Rework the light switches, add flocking to a wall, dot up a ceiling fan, or let the kids run stripes up the wall — it’s all removable and won’t leave any damage behind.
Christina Dalton, from Massachusetts, uses washi tape to stay organized.
"I learned about it from all the planner fanatics," she says.
She runs patterned tape across her personal planner to denote a week-long event, and then writes on top of it.
(Photo: Christina Dalton)
The suggestions are boundless:
Easy: Create colorful wine glass tags for your next party by writing guests’ names on washi tape, and affix to the glass. Or wrap around string for a simple decorative bunting.
(Photo: Poppytalk.com)
Trickier: Take advantage of the tape’s transparency to personalize your laptop keyboard. The black keys you stare at daily get a boost, and you can still see the letters and numbers.
Kid-centric: Create a Matchbox racecourse, on the floor. Or a dollhouse outline on a wall. Let kids go nuts on their bedroom walls — you can always remove it at bedtime.
Let Yahoo Makers inspire you every day! Join us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, and Pinterest.
