Hi, everyone. When you go to a Japanese restaurant, have you seen the cloth hung in front of the entrance like the above photo? This is called noren in Japanese, and they’re found in lots of places from restaurants to homes.

What is Noren? (暖簾)

Noren is a traditional Japanese curtain or Japanese fabric divider. There are many sizes, cloths, colours, and designs. It is used for dividing between rooms and hanging on walls, in doorways, or in windows. Noren was originally used to protect a house from wind and dust. I have often seen a noren hung in front of the shop entrance. There’s often the shop name printed on the noren. It plays a function as an advertisement. Although there are still shops using noren, I see more modern coverings nowadays. Let’s compare a noren and modern ones.

Noren

Modern fascia style

It is really different, I feel like the noren is warmer than the modern style. It makes me feel calm. It is easier to come to a shop through a noren than a door because it doesn’t divide outside and inside as strongly. We can’t see well inside of the shop with a noren in front of an entrance, so it makes people curious to see what’s inside.

Noren also shows when a shop is open, and they are always taken down at the end of the business day. If the shop has a long history, people often point out that the “noren is old”.

There are noren in places like…

Hot spring

If you have been to traditional hot springs, you might have seen this one. It is called Yu-noren, Yu(湯) means a hot spring. It is used for the sign dividing a woman’s bath and man’s bath. For most yu-noren, woman’s bath uses a red or orange noren and navy blue for men’s bath.

Wedding

It is called Hanayome Noren which is a bridal custom that started in some parts of Japan since the end of the Edo and Meiji periods (19th century). It is hung to the Buddha's entrance to the marriage house, passing through the hanayome noren means you are greeting the ancestors. A parent’s warmhearted feelings to their marrying daughter are expressed through the hanayome noren.

Let’s try using noren at home ！

Noren has a lot of variations, we can use it in the home as well. It is used dividing between rooms like the front of the kitchen or living room.
I hung it in front of the kitchen. Let’s compare to the entrance without noren and with noren.

Without noren

With noren

My impression

Having a noren changes the vibe of the space. The kitchen tends to be a space cluttered with things but by hanging a noren at the kitchen entrance, the clutter can be blocked from view, so the space looks neater. This is a simple way to create the impression that the space is tidy by partially covering the room that’s a little cluttered like the kitchen.
Another positive effect is that the connecting rooms can appear roomier by not using a door to separate the spaces and you can also use the noren to bring a retro feel to the space and make the space feel a bit more fancy.

You can easily make a noren at home, so please try making it. If you use a noren at your house, it’s also important that the colour of the noren matches the overall theme and vibes of the house.

I found the method of how to make a noren online, so if you are interested, please check it out here.

I hope you understand more about noren and I’d be happy if you’re more interested in it. There are a lot of noren in Japan and the design is really different depending shop, so you can enjoy checking the designs when you go to Japan.

Writer: Yuki Takatani

Reference:
*1 公式ブログ「問屋の仕事場から, Noren
*2 温泉や銭湯の入り口にあるもの。。。それは湯のれん！
*3 花嫁のれん館, 花嫁のれん | のとの文化 | 能登名所・観光ガイド