The vivid colours of Kabuki realised in the Japanese home of towels. Wrapped around the neck the towel imparts colour to the face. Its soft feel lifts the heart. Imabari in Ehime, on Japan’s Shikoku island, is an area of fine towel production. Even within those that they make, this one uses a particularly softly woven fabric. Imabari towels are known for their absorbency, and their quickness to dry. For this reason, to dye a pattern on to one was a difficult challenge even for craftsmen deeply experienced in making costumes for Kabuki performers. The designs they chose are from this work, with Kabuki three coloured theatre curtain motifs, and one from the play Sannin Kichisa achieved with a “Hikizome” dye style. Meanwhile designs based on the plays: Kanjincho, Dojoji and Sagi Musume are completed with the “Katazome / Silk Mesh dye” technique. In conventional dyeing the work would be done with a stick like tool known as a Shinshi, but on the coarse fabric of a towel this was not effective. Also to cope with the frequent washes in a towel’s life, the dye used is different to that typically applied to Kabuki costumes. To know how to do this is the fruit of many years spent acquiring skills in the dye workshop. That hidden words from popular performances are incorporated within the design, is also part of the fun.