March 2023 Update:
Are you planning to bring a Noh Coat to the conference? A display featuring Bonnie Cashin and the Noh Coat Challenge is being developed. The coats themselves will not be on display but we want attendees to have the opportunity to view our fabulous fabrics prior to the fashion show on Saturday when the coats will walk the runway after the fashion show submissions have been presented.
Please help us with the display by submitting the following:
- A 5″x7″ swatch of your woven fabric to the address below.
- Include your name, guild, and location.
- Include information about your fabric, such as weave structure, threads(s) used, draft information, sett, and inspiration.
- Include a photo of yourself wearing your coat.
Send to: Kathy O’Hern 2804 E. 10th St The Dalles, OR 97058
Include your contact information – email/phone – in case there are questions. Kathy’s cell is 406-640-1567- text or phone with questions.
We invite weavers to join us in weaving cloth for, and making, American designer Bonnie Cashin’s Noh coat as it appears in Threads Magazine Oct/Nov 1990 No. 31.
The coat is very simple and is especially suitable for handweavers who do not sew often. The coat is unlined, does not have set-in sleeves, and has binding for the edge. This means that the coat is all about the quality of the cloth. We have seen this design on all sizes and shapes of women. Our idea is that anyone interested will weave the coat in time for the ANWG conference in Bend, Oregon in June, 2023. The more the merrier. It would be a spectacular expression of handwoven cloth. This is not a juried event, but we will have some event to show off our coats at the Conference.
We hope you can join us. Here are the rules:
- The version of the Noh coat is the one mentioned above, no other. Cashin designed several coats she named Noh and you can find many pictures of them on the internet. But the one we will all be making is the one on the cover of Threads Magazine Oct/Nov 1990 Issue 31.
- The design can be tweaked for sizing but the character of the coat in all its fullness must not be erased. No adding of collars, cuffs, hoods, or darts, for example. Keep it pure.
- You do not have to bind the seams or opening edge with leather as Cashin did.
- Treat the seams any way you like.
- You may line any part of the coat to make it easier to slip on.
The identifying feature of the Noh coat is its volume of cloth. Take this into consideration when designing your fabric, so that it does not become too heavy.
Drape is a crucial element in this cloth. Be sure to sample and adjust your sett and beat accordingly. At the same time, be aware that if you have too open a sett, the fabric may drape well, but it may also stretch out. But if the sett is too close, you will end up with a dense Bog Jacket. Sample, sample, sample.
Most of us will have to seam the coat down the back. We have figured a warp of 31” wide in the reed and 7 yards long, which includes a sample, but it is probably advisable to add more length for more sampling. However, it is always best to do your own calculations to suit your own sizing and loom requirements. The important measurement is from the back of your neck down to the wrist, over the shoulder. This will give you half the width of the coat and will give you the finished width of your warp.
We are very grateful to Threads magazine for giving us permission to use the photo of the Noh coat on the front cover of Issue 31, and for permission to use the pattern they developed for the coat.
For more information about the challenge, to request a copy of the pattern, or to join the online discussion group, please contact tobysmith.3920@gmail.com or Isabelle Fusey at ifusey@telus.net