Vancouver Fashion Week FW 26 Interview w/ Fashion Designer Teori Kobo Oriiro

Please share a bit about your journey to embrace fashion design as a career. Looking back to your childhood do you see any signs this would your future?

As a child, I was clumsy and lacked confidence because I could never do things well. I was a quiet and inconspicuous presence in class, someone who preferred reading books, getting lost in imagination, and drawing. After having children, I made clothes for them, but it was simply a hobby combined with practicality. I first encountered Saori weaving at a training placement where I had gone to obtain a welfare qualification after my divorce, as I needed to support myself.

For someone like me, who lacked confidence and felt everything I did was incomplete, the freedom of Saori weaving—with its philosophy of having no mistakes—was a great relief. It became a life’s work that has since enriched and colored my life. For about 15 years after I started weaving, I learned weaving and garment-making from my teachers and fellow weavers. Occasionally, some of my works were sold at exhibitions, but I never imagined that I would pursue a career as an artist. Still, little by little, my dream of having my own studio grew stronger.  

About six years ago, I took a leap of faith and opened my studio, which marked a major turning point in my life. It was during the COVID-19 pandemic, and I started from zero—no sales channels and no students. Looking back, it may have been a reckless plan driven only by my desire to try. Even so, through markets and events, I gradually gained fellow weavers and students, and more people began to appreciate my work. The smiles of those who found joy in my creations became my support and confidence, encouraging me to focus more on my work.

While I had always strongly identified as a weaver, it was only after participating in Vancouver Fashion Week that I began to consciously recognize myself as a designer.

How did you learn your weaving and design skills? 

As I mentioned earlier, I have never formally studied design or even sewing, and I am still surprised at where I am today. In fact, Saori garment-making is quite unique, and it is often said that it is better not to have conventional sewing knowledge. For someone like me, who is not skilled with fine handwork, this approach suited me well.

In Saori weaving, there is no distinction between beginners and experts. Everyone teaches and learns from one another, while simply enjoying weaving with all their heart. I believe that this process leads to the creation of beautiful textiles and meaningful works.

Please share with readers about the philosophy of Saori Weaving (created by Misao Jo in 1969) that you use in creating your designs. Are the garments built fully from woven pieces, or do you combine those pieces with other textiles?

Saori weaving began with the idea of its founder, Misao Jo, who saw a piece of cloth with a broken or missing thread not as a “defect” or “flaw,” but as something with “character” and “beauty.” This philosophy of freedom, where there are no mistakes, liberated me from my rigid and constrained self and allowed me to express myself freely.

One of the most appealing aspects of Saori weaving is that anyone can do it—children, people with disabilities, anyone who has the desire to weave. Because it is handwoven, each piece reflects the individuality of the maker. It cannot be replicated by others, and even the same artist can never create the exact same piece twice. Each work is truly one of a kind. It is, in essence, “weaving oneself”—that is what Saori weaving is.

At OriirO, we place particular emphasis on the artistic aspect of Saori weaving and value freedom above all. My designs are primarily made from handwoven textiles, but I also enjoy working freely—collaging scraps of Saori fabric from various people or combining them with other types of fabric.

What comes easiest for you as a weaver and designer? What is hardest?

Since I am not very dexterous, delicate work and working efficiently in a short time are challenging for me. While being serious and dedicated can be a strength, it also means I can be somewhat rigid, and I sometimes struggle with flexible thinking or changing direction, which can lead to creative blocks.

I had never really thought about my strengths, but I believe I am patient and persistent. I take time and care in dyeing materials, tearing old kimono for use in sakiori (rag weaving), and paying attention to fine details in my weaving—details that may not even be noticed at first glance. I have a deep passion for weaving, and I listen carefully to my customers’ voices, using their feedback to inform my next creations. I believe this is also one of my strengths.

Where do you find inspiration for new designs? How are all the individual textiles brought together to create a final garment?

Even when I am not weaving or sewing, I am always thinking about weaving. I draw inspiration not only from interactions with fellow weavers, but from everything around me—fashion, design, colors, art, and even landscapes.

Creating a textile begins with deciding the materials, colors, width, and length. I often use hand-dyed yarns as well. After imagining the kind of textile I want to create, I go through the time-consuming process of preparing the warp threads and setting them on the loom before I can finally begin weaving.

As for the weft threads, I do not overthink balance or whether something will match. Instead, I choose them intuitively.

Readers would love to know more about the collection you showed at Vancouver Fashion Week FW 26. 

For my Vancouver Fashion Week collection, I presented designs that embody OriirO’s concept: “More freedom, more joy” and “Cherish what you love.” OriirO is known for its colorful palettes, but even within similar tones, variations in materials and yarn thickness can dramatically change the color expression and overall atmosphere. This allows for endless creative possibilities.

To fully honor the beauty of handwoven textiles, I construct my garments with as little cutting as possible. As a result, many pieces can be styled in two or even three ways, allowing the wearer to enjoy expressing their own individuality. In particular, Look No. 3, the “Arabian Skirt” (a name given by one of my students), is made from narrow-width fabric and designed as a wrap skirt with minimal cutting. In the show, however, it was styled differently—the waist ties were used as shoulder straps, transforming it into a tunic-style dress.

During the creation process, new ideas and designs continuously come to me one after another. When something doesn’t feel quite right, I leave the piece on a dress form for a while, and then one day, suddenly comes to me on another day. Even so, weaving and creating take a great deal of time, so in reality, my list of things I want to make and ideas I want to explore never seems to get any shorter.

Where can readers purchase your designs?

My works are available in person at the OriirO studio in Kyoto and at local markets. At the moment, I do not yet have a fully established website for international customers, but you are welcome to contact me through Instagram or BASE. If there is interest, I would like to gradually prepare a proper platform for international sales in the future.

I also had a wonderful and unexpected encounter on the day of the Vancouver Fashion Week show. I met a Japanese woman who was attending as a guest. It felt like a miracle—she has been living in Canada for 25 years and runs a shop called “Branches and Knots.” I am honored that my works will now be available there on consignment.

This means that customers in Canada will soon be able to purchase my pieces at her store. However, please note that it may take about two to three weeks from the time I ship the items until they are available in-store.

In closing is there anything else you'd like to share with readers?

As all of my textiles are handwoven, they are not perfectly uniform or straight like machine-made fabrics. The natural variations in the threads and the irregularities in width are all part of their character and charm. I would be truly happy if you could appreciate these qualities and enjoy each piece as a once-in-a-lifetime encounter.

Links - 

• Website - www.oriiroteori.base.shop/
• Workshop -www.orioriorimyu.wixsite.com/mysite
• Instagram - @wataashya_teorisukii
• Branches and Knots - www.branchesandknots.com/ (will stock in future)