Do you ever feel something is missing?

Faster, cheaper, more.

Click a button, and it arrives tomorrow.

Life feels more convenient — yet somehow, less satisfying.

Buy something, feel good for a moment, then buy the next thing.

Have you ever paused and questioned this cycle?

Do you own something you’ve treasured and used for years?

Something where you know who made it — and why?

Something crafted with time, meant to be used with time.

If this resonates with you,

I’d like to share my story.


If that sounds familiar,
I'd like to share my story with you.


Did you know?

Most “indigo-dyed” products on the market use chemicals in key steps of the dyeing process.

That’s not necessarily wrong.

It’s efficient and produces consistent colors.

But traditional Japanese indigo — the craft that earned worldwide recognition — is different.

It predates chemical development entirely.

Only natural materials and microbial fermentation.

This 400-year-old method still exists today.

About Me

I was a color science student before I became an indigo artisan.

It all began with a single encounter — at a botanical dyeing exhibition.

Meeting my mentor.

Every piece of naturally dyed textile on display was beautiful, yet gentle in its hues.

I was captivated by the depth of this tradition — colors born from plants alone.

“I want to dye with my own hands.”

That feeling led me down this path.

I became an apprentice that very day, blessed with countless opportunities to dye alongside my mentor.

But there was one color even my mentor couldn’t create.

Indigo.

Indigo dyeing demands immense time and effort.

I decided to dedicate myself entirely to this craft.

The road has been difficult. I’ve made countless mistakes.

I still do.

Each piece of cloth takes a long time to dye.

Beauty that emerges because I don’t rush.

Attachment that deepens because we grow the color together.

That is Indigo Handz.

My Mentor's Teaching

In my mentor’s botanical dyeing workshop, I received my first lesson.

“Create with materials that are good for the body, as if making for your own family.”

At first, I thought it was about technique.

Use good materials. Work with care.

But over time, I understood.

This wasn’t about technique at all.

It was about how to live — as a person, as an artisan.

Choosing quality over efficiency.

Choosing beauty over speed.

Making what I want to give — not just what sells.

This teaching is the foundation of everything I do.

That’s why I dye only with natural materials.

That’s why I continue with natural ash-lye fermentation, even though it takes time.

I want to create for you the way I would for my own family.

Life with Ai-chan

In my kitchen at home lives “Ai-chan” — my indigo vat.

An indigo vat is a large vessel where indigo ferments.

She’s not just a tool.

Ai-chan is alive. She’s family.

365 days a year, I talk to her and check on her condition.

“How are you feeling today?”

“Can we dye something beautiful?”

When Ai-chan is in good spirits, she creates the most extraordinary colors.

Deep, gentle indigo blue. Colors born only from nature’s power.

It takes time. It takes effort.

I think modern society demands everything too “fast” and “efficient.”

But my work with Ai-chan is different.

Truly beautiful things cannot be born without time.

Just as relationships need time to deepen.

Beautiful colors, too, are nurtured over time.

What I Carry Forward

Indigo dyeing arrived from the Asian continent during the Nara period.For 1,200 years, it has been cherished in Japan.

Natural ash-lye fermentation was established during the Edo period.Sukumo (composted indigo leaves), wood ash, lime, and water.

And the power of microorganisms.The technique I practice every day is the same one artisans used 400 years ago.

Inside the vat, hundreds of millions of microorganisms work in silence.

Every day, I measure the temperature, check the condition, and speak to the vat.

This is an unchanged ritual since the Edo period.Depth that emerges because time is given.

Beauty that dwells because nature is trusted.For 400 years, artisans have known this.

As one of them, I talk to Ai-chan again today.

Three Commitments

  • 🌿 Only Natural Materials

    A 400-year-old tradition: natural ash-lye fermentation.

    Composted indigo leaves, plant ash lye, and lime.

    Colors born solely from microbial fermentation.

    Gentle on skin. Gentle on the earth.

  • ⏰ Beauty Nurtured by Time

    365 days with Ai-chan, my indigo vat.

    Choosing quality over efficiency. Beauty over speed.

    Living colors that deepen with use and with the seasons.

  • 💙 Growing Colors Together

    Delivery is not the end — it’s the beginning.

    Care consultations. Re-dyeing suggestions.

    I’ll support your indigo as it grows more beautiful, for as long as you need.

Every Piece, a Different Blue

Even with the same number of dips, no two pieces are alike.

The temperature that day, the humidity, Ai-chan’s condition.

Perhaps even my own state of mind.

One dip yields a pale sky blue.

Five dips, a clear azure.

Ten dips, a deep navy.

Yet “five dips” yesterday and “five dips” today produce different colors.

That’s the wonder of natural ash-lye fermentation.

Your piece is the only one in the world.

It can never be made again.

I hope you’ll treasure this once-in-a-lifetime encounter.

Who This Is For

Those who want truly good things — and want to use them for years.

Those drawn to a life in rhythm with nature.

Those who want to know the face behind what they buy.

Those curious about tradition.

My indigo doesn’t arrive quickly.

I watch Ai-chan’s condition and dye each piece over 4–6 weeks.

Even after it arrives, it’s not immediately “complete.”

The more you use it, the more you wash it — the more the color grows.

You’ll find the changes beautiful, I think.

Over time, a one-of-a-kind character emerges.

I believe there’s value in that time.

Would you like to enjoy a slower way of living — together?