What is Tufting?
Hello. We are Tufting studio & shop RUGMATAG, which operates a tufting workshop and a specialty store for equipment and materials in Morinomiya, Osaka. This time, I have summarized what tufting is in the first place. I would be happy if this article could be of some help to those who have the question, "I've been hearing a lot about tufting lately, but what is it?"
Tufting has recently started to be seen on Japanese TV and social media.
If you search for "Tufting" on social media, you will see many people from Japan and abroad making their own rugs in their homes, garages, and other workshops.
A few years ago, an American artist created a piece using a tufting gun and posted it on social media, which became a hot topic, and from there it spread all over the world.
*In Japan, it started to spread in 2021.
It was very fascinating to see the tufting gun, a machine similar to a hand sewing machine, used to drive yarn into cloth to complete the work, and when I saw the finished rug, I thought, ``Is it possible to make this myself?'' I will set it.
Tufting is the name of a fabric manufacturing technique
To begin with, tufting is the name of a technique and is one of the fabric manufacturing techniques. This technique has been used by Japanese rug manufacturing companies for a long time in the production of rugs and mats, but it is becoming less popular.
The tufting gun (sometimes called a hook gun by rug manufacturing companies) used by Japanese rug companies is an industrial type, and the machine weighs about 3 kg.
One of the reasons for this boom was that the tufting gun was manufactured in a household size of about 1.4 kg with performance optimized for amateurs .
The charm of tufting
Anyone who can prepare a working environment at home can perform home tufting.
Some people create their own designs, while others create their favorite characters. By transferring the prepared design using a projector and copying it, you can create a rug with your favorite design even if you can't draw. Some people hand-paint their designs directly onto the cloth, so the method of creation can be tailored to suit each person's style.
*If you create a copyrighted work, please enjoy it for personal use.
The tufting gun used to drive the yarn weighs 1.4 kg.
It's a little difficult to work while pushing the gun into the cloth, and it takes a lot of physical strength to the point where you break a little sweat.
*At first, some people may experience muscle pain because they use muscles they don't normally use and tend to use unnecessary force. 
I trace the design onto the fabric and concentrate on driving in the yarn with a tufting gun. The excitement of seeing the rug you want to create and the design you want take shape.
The sense of accomplishment and joy we experience when we complete a project gives us great motivation.
Tufting can be enjoyed by a wide range of people, from those who are already involved in art and would like to adopt tufting as a new method of expression, to those who don't think they are good at making things themselves.
The rug you create will be wonderful to place in your favorite spot in your home, or to display on a wall as art.
It also makes a perfect gift for a friend, someone you care about, or someone who runs a shop.
And if you are serious about it, you may be able to turn it into a professional job.
We at RUGMATAG believe that tufting will be one of the opportunities for people to reconsider its appeal in Japan, where manufacturing has decreased.
summary
This time we introduced what tufting is. If you read this article and want to try it, please also check out this article on how to start tufting . Our store is located in Morinomiya, Osaka, where we actually sell equipment and materials, and we also hold workshops in the studio attached to the store, so if you want to try it out first, please feel free to visit us. Please join us.
Regarding notification of new information
Until the end Thank you for reading. RUGMATAG plans to continue posting various articles about tufting in the future. We plan to regularly notify you of the latest information on Instagram , Twitter , LINE official account , email newsletter (see below), etc. If you are interested, please follow us on social media, add friends to our official LINE account, and sign up for our email newsletter.
