A material loved around the world. The appeal of smoothday, the more you learn, the more you want to touch

When you hear the words "cut-and-sew," what kind of clothing, fabric, or material comes to mind? You might picture something for everyday wear, worn mostly in the warmer seasons. Perhaps because it's such a familiar item, it can be surprisingly hard to find a cut-and-sew piece you truly love. With that in mind, the smoothday items we're introducing this time are made from fabric produced by a long-established Japanese cut-and-sew manufacturer beloved even by top fashion houses overseas, and every piece is designed for autumn and winter.

This time, we bring you the story of smoothday, a brand born from the meeting of a long-established cut-and-sew manufacturer whose fine fabrics are highly regarded worldwide, and a designer who, while living in Paris, encountered a fabric that Japan can proudly show the world—and was moved to launch this brand.

smoothday is a coined word combining "smooth" (a pleasant feeling) and "day." As the brand name suggests, smoothday's approach to clothing making pursues "comfort and ease for the person wearing it."

Ono Merias, the manufacturer behind the fabric, has devoted itself to cut-and-sew textiles for 90 years.The ZUTTO Technorama Tenjiku U-neck Topis also produced at this very factory. Ono Merias continues to create fabrics beloved not only in Japan but by numerous top fashion houses overseas, in cities like Paris, Milan, and New York. Drawing on techniques honed as a long-established maker, they pursue "fabrics of the future" never seen before, refining their craft day after day. Ono Merias handles over 2,000 different types of materials, a number that speaks to the depth of technical skill built up over their long history.

Alongside this reassuring manufacturing division, the patterns are drawn by designer Atsushi Sugihara, who honed his skills at a top fashion house. It was this very man who was deeply moved by "Cosmorama," the fabric that is Ono Merias's pride and joy shown to the world—and that encounter can be said to be the very moment smoothday's origins were born.

After studying at Bunka Fashion College, Sugihara moved to France in his younger days, where he honed his design and pattern-making skills at a top fashion house. Amid work that brought him into contact with all kinds of materials, when he encountered the fabric called "Cosmorama," he was so moved that he thought, "I want to be surrounded by fabric like this for the rest of my life." He soon returned to his home country of Japan and headed straight for Ono Merias. A fabric capable of moving a designer to this extent could only have been created by a long-established cut-and-sew manufacturer. And so, in 2012, the brand smoothday was born.
 

The raw cotton used in the fabric is a high-grade Indian extra-long-staple cotton blended according to Ono Merias's own original formula. Because it contains an abundance of natural oils, it has a distinctive luster and a smooth, supple softness—a raw cotton of exceptionally high rarity. Every item in the smoothday lineup makes full use of this superb fabric, something only a long-established manufacturer could achieve.

■A "Wool of the Future" That Overcomes Wool's Drawbacks — Wool Cosmorama

The material used for the Wool Cosmorama Tenjiku Asymmetric Pullover is "Wool Cosmorama," the wool version of "Cosmorama," Ono Merias's pride and joy. It leaves a striking impression with its clear, even surface, beautiful drape, and a smoothness so silky you'd hardly believe it's wool.

・Wool Cosmorama Tenjiku Asymmetric Pullover

The number one enemy of wool fabric is pilling. Careful care can help prevent it, but if the fabric itself resists pilling in the first place, you'll need less maintenance overall. To counter wool's usual vulnerability to pilling, "Wool Cosmorama" has been treated with Ono Merias's own special processing, making it resistant to pilling and durable enough to withstand repeated washing.

 

With a slight sheerness and a certain dressy elegance, its silhouette—featuring a loose dolman sleeve and a mock neck—has a feminine touch that gives an elegant impression the moment you put it on. And despite this refined look, it's still genuine wool at heart, so you can stay comfortable even while sweating, thanks to wool's natural moisture-absorbing and releasing properties.

■A Touch Like Cashmere — Diorama

Among the materials Ono Merias takes pride in, "Diorama" is especially popular for its cashmere-like touch. The Cashmere Touch Fleece-Lined Parka is a luxurious hoodie made using Diorama yarn.

・Cashmere Touch Fleece-Lined Parka

It's surprisingly smooth to the touch, with a plush, gentle feel that belies the fact that it's 100% cotton. Its voluminous appearance might make it look heavy, but once you actually put it on, you'll find it's light and airy. The inside is carefully brushed, making it the kind of garment you'll never want to take off.

Cut with a relaxed fit, it works just as well for slim men as it does for women. It's a parka that seems to warm the heart of whoever wears it, even on chilly days. As a staple piece for casual style, it's sure to become a favorite you'll reach for again and again.

■A Weight and Presence Unlike Any Cut-and-Sew Material — Super 140's Wool

This substantial Wool Overcoat is impressive enough to make you wonder how such a hefty coat could come from a fabric created by a cut-and-sew manufacturer. Slip it on, and you'll feel completely enveloped by the coat—a dependable ally through the winter months.

・Wool Overcoat

"Super 140," a high-quality fiber typically used for suits and the like. However, because this coat contains wool fibers, it achieves a finish that retains a dressy look while also offering the warmth of wool. The name "Over" carries two meanings: that it is an overcoat, and that it is made slightly larger than usual.

Since it comes with a top button, you can leave it undone for a casual look, or fasten it all the way up to the top button for a more classic feel. With just one coat, you can enjoy coordinating different styles.

The words that smoothday holds dear are "gentle to the skin." Beyond just the high-quality fabric and stylish looks, the designer's attention to detail can be seen throughout, so that whoever wears the clothes can spend a comfortable day—this is one of smoothday's defining characteristics.

■The coexistence of dress-like elegance and ease of movement

Take, for example, this Wool Cosmorama Jersey Asymmetric Pullover.

A loose dolman sleeve can often look bulky, but with a clean mock neck, carefully calculated sleeve placement, and a seam at the back, this piece comes together into an elegant, almost dress-like garment. Thanks to the dolman sleeves, it also offers excellent ease of movement. With its clean silhouette, it draws out a graceful, dignified femininity whether paired with a skirt or, of course, with pants and pumps.

■Three-dimensional construction with a silhouette that stays consistent even when layered

Hoodies tend to look flat, but by making the front and back panels of the pattern as one continuous piece, and by shaping the armholes so that there's no excess fabric bunching up, the whole garment achieves a soft, three-dimensional finish.

The fluffy texture of the fabric matches beautifully with this three-dimensional quality, making it a hoodie that also pairs well with skirts.

The coat, meanwhile, is designed so you can enjoy a different, beautiful silhouette depending on the angle you view it from.

The pattern is crafted so that the front and back panels appear to have different silhouettes. The front panel has a clean, straight silhouette, while the back panel gives a soft, three-dimensional impression. The sleeves, too, have a high sleeve cap at the front, which further emphasizes the straight silhouette. What's more, because the armholes are cut generously, the carefully considered silhouette remains beautiful even when you layer a lot underneath.

In winter, the bitter cold often means layering up a lot underneath a coat, which can make the whole silhouette look bulkier than intended. A pattern that keeps the silhouette consistent even then is surely the result of techniques honed in Paris.

smoothday's clothes are made through a fusion of the high-quality fabrics that long-established manufacturers proudly bring to the world and the design skills cultivated at top fashion houses. They display a truly remarkable range of expressions that you'd never expect from cut-and-sewn fabric, and teach those of us who pick them up what it really means to be "gentle to the skin." As the season ahead brings dry, sensitive skin, why not choose clothing that pays close attention to materials, and spend your days in comfort?

▼Click here for the smoothday brand page