Japanese Tatami Mats- A Critical Choice for the Modern Home or Office

Micro-History

Tatami mats are a perfect example of Japanese appreciation for interior aesthetics. As a refinement of Japanese furniture, Tatami mats are rectangular mats and used as a flooring in many houses throughout the world. They originated in Japan and are still prominent today in Japanese homes, temples and teahouses. The core of the mates are made from thick straw that is covered with a softer layer made from tightly woven rush, which is accentuated with borders made from cloth, usually cotton. Traditional mat borders are black in color, yet certain modern manufacturers are also offering Sage-colored borders. The measurements of a tatami mat is usually 180 x 90 cm or six feet by three feet. And they’re usually 5 cm or 2 inches thick. Many professional dancers compare Tatami mats to a sprung-wood dance-floor because they surrender to the feet by giving away a micron of spatial depth. Of course, these natural materials place this type of flooring in a category known today as Green or eco-friendly products, which are making a comeback since the Industrial Revolution, when commerce in the Western world began to lose its longstanding connection to Nature. Before this historical shift towards artificial materials--such as plastic--since the dawn of creation humanity used raw, organic materials, so the fact that we even have to use terms like Green and eco-friendly is truly absurd, even from an objective point-of-view, sad to say.

From ancient times to present times, the floor has continued to be the common place for sleeping and sitting when it comes to Japanese culture and architectural design. In those buildings where Tatami mates were used, footwear was and still is left in the genkan (entrance hall) before one would enter the first room as a way of protecting the mats. Since the floor has a quality of intimacy for the Japanese people, its traits and dimensions are valued highly when it comes to interior design. For example, the length of Tatami mats are virtually equal to the height of shoji screens and/or sliding partitions or doors. The number of mats necessary to cover a floor is used as a convenient way of "measuring" the size of a particular room, such as a 4-mat room (pun intended) or an eight-mat hallway.

Macro-Purpose

The beauty of Tatami mats is that you can weave your own creative pattern with them. In Japan, this is almost considered an art-form, as you’ll discover if you ever visit a traditional tea-house in pretty much most countries that feature them as tourist attractions. At any rate, in Japan these patterns are believed to attract abundance and other positive experiences, and the rooms that highlighted these floor patterns were and still are called Washitsu rooms. This theme of abundance is exemplified when combined with other types of Japanese furniture, such as platform beds and shoji screens. The end result is a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts, creating an atmosphere of harmony and simplicity that exudes a quiet sense of strength and a deep sense of peace. In case you’re wondering, the Japanese word for carpet or mat is Tatami.

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