Tatami (a straw mat)	Zabuton (a Japanese cushion)	not completed	Shoji (a paper sliding door/screen)
Fusuma (a paper-covered sliding door/screen)	Tokonoma (an alcove)	Futon

Tatami (straw and rush mats)

Traditional Japanese-style rooms have floors of tatami mats. The mats are made of straw and rush and consist of a thick base and a soft, smooth surface that covers the base. The thick base is made of dried straw that is packed and sewn, and the smooth surface of woven rush. The tatami mats are approximately 180 by 90 centimeters (6 feet by 3 feet) with a thickness of 6 centimeters (2.4 inches), but the size of the tatami mats varies in the different regions across Japan. As tatami mats have a standardized size, they can be used to measure room sizes. Then, one mat is referred to as 1 jo (ichi-jo) and the size of a six-mat room, for example, is expressed as 6 jo (roku-jo). In addition to six-mat rooms, four and a half-mat rooms and eight-mat rooms are the most common in Japanese houses.

It is said that tatami mats have been used in Japan since the Heian period (A.D. 794 - A.D. 1191), but tatami mats were only placed where people sat. The rest of the floor was made of boards then. It was in the Muromachi period (A.D. 1333 - A.D. 1568) that people began to use tatami to cover the entire floor area. Even today, most Japanese houses have at least one traditional Japanese-style room, which is furnished with tatami mats, fusuma (paper-covered sliding doors), and shoji (sliding paper doors and windows).

Tatami mats Feel smooth and never get damp. They are the ideal material for floors in Japanese houses as the humidity is high all year round due to the climate. We can always keep tatami mats in good condition by simply having their surfaces periodically replaced by expert tatami makers. We can enjoy the refreshing scent of woven rush when the surfaces are replaced.

The longer sides of the tatami are bordered with cloth. In the old days, the colors and patterns of the cloth depended on the status of the family, but people can chose their favorite colors and patterns freely today. When we walk in a tatami-matted room, it is bad manners to step on the borders. This is because the borders damage and wear easily if they are stepped on.

Zabuton (Japanese cushions)

A zabuton is a square cushion that is put directly on a tatami mat and sat on. Zabuton are generally made of strong, tightly woven cloth and cotton stuffing. Summer zabuton, however, have less stuffing and woven rush covers. This makes the summer zabuton feel cool and is more comfortable for your legs. Many people do not like to sit directly on tatami mats because the tatami surface is not soft. Many people are not comfortable on them. Zabuton, like Western cushions, prevent your legs from becoming stiff or numb.

When you want to relax on a tatami mat, you can use a zaisu, which is a chair without legs. Place a zabuton on the seat part of the zaisu, and you can recline against the back of the zaisu and relax. Zaisu, however, cannot be used on formal occasions.

Shoji (sliding paper doors, windows, and partitions)

Shoji are sliding paper doors, windows, and partitions that have been used since the Heian period (the 8th century) and most Japanese houses still use them today. Originally, there were two types of shoji. One was fusuma-shoji, and the other was akari-shoji. The fusuma-shoji, which are presently called fusuma, referred to sliding doors and partitions with both sides of the wooden frame pasted with cloth or paper. The akari-shoji referred to sliding doors, windows, and partitions with one side of the latticed wooden frame pasted with thin translucent white Japanese paper called shoji paper. The fusuma-shoji was used to divide rooms. It could divide one room into two or more smaller ones. The akari-shoji was only used to let in light. Today, the word shoji only refers to the akari-shoji. It can be used as a divider between rooms or between a room and a hallway. In addition, it can also be used as a door to a room, or it can be fitted into a window. The shoji, being quite decorative, are sometimes used for lampshades or other fittings for Japanese-style rooms.

The translucent white shoji paper is durable and does not tear easily because the fibers in the paper are intertwined with one another. The shoji paper also has an advantage in admitting soft sunlight into rooms by controlling the direct sunlight. This makes the rooms feel warm. Finally, the shoji doors, windows, and partitions have the great advantage of being removable.

When the shoji paper becomes old or tears, the whole sheet of paper can be replaced by a new sheet. People customarily repaper their shoji and fusuma at the end of the year in preparation for the New Year.

Fusuma (paper-covered sliding doors and partitions)

Fusuma, formerly known as fusuma-shoji, are also referred to as karakami. They are made by first covering a large wooden frame with Japanese paper. Then fusuma paper, which is thick and durable, is pasted over the Japanese paper. Sometimes cloth is used instead of fusuma paper.

Fusuma, like shoji, are typical fixtures in Japanese-style houses and are used as sliding doors. They primarily serve as room dividers. Fusuma can be removed quite easily, and this makes it possible to turn two rooms into one large room. The only disadvantage of using fusuma is that sounds leak into the room next door and there is very little privacy. The fusuma serve as dividers, doors to rooms, and doors to Japanese-style closets called oshiire. The fusuma are generally the same width as the shorter sides of the tatami mats. Accordingly, people can use as many fusuma as they require for a room or a closet.

The fusuma paper bears a variety of patterns. People chose their favorite patterns considering the atmosphere of the room, which depends strongly upon the pattern of the fusuma paper. The fusuma paper, like shoji paper, can be replaced by new paper when it becomes old.

Tokonoma (alcove)

The tokonoma, a Japanese-style alcove, is a recess built into the wall of a Japanese-style room. A tokonoma generally covers either half of the area of a tatami-mat or the area of an entire mat. The floor of the tokonoma is slightly raised. The floor of the tokonoma is usually wood, but sometimes it consists of tatami-mat. A tokobashira and a tokogamachi separate the alcove from the rest of the room. The tokobashira is the alcove post and the tokogamachi is the rail laid across the front edge of the raised floor. The alcove post is placed at one of the front corners of the alcove to separate the alcove from the adjoining wall. The alcove post is usually made of a valuable piece of wood that is different from that used for the other pillars. Both the tokobashira and tokogamachi are beautifully finished, and they serve to decorate the alcove space. A scroll called a kakejiku in Japanese is hung on the back wall of the alcove, while flower arrangements and ornaments are displayed on the floor.

The tokonoma originated in the fourteenth century. It is said that the origin of the tokonoma was the rooms where Buddhist priests kept their household altars. People used the tokonoma then for religious services and hanging Buddhist paintings on the wall. Low tables were set in front of the tokonoma to put incense burners, vases, and candlesticks on. The tokonoma was not a recess as we see today. This religious area became a recess built into rooms during the Muromachi and Momoyama periods (from A.D. 1338 to A.D. 1600). The tokonoma eventually changed with the development of architectural styles from a religious space into the tokonoma that is currently seen. Today it serves as a decorative space in Japanese-style rooms.

Since rooms with the tokonoma are more refined and have a solemn atmosphere, they generally serve as the room where guests are entertained. When people gather together in a room to attend a party, the order of precedence is determined. The seat closest to the tokonoma is regarded as the top seat or the seat of honor, and the farther a seat is away from the tokonoma, the lower it is regarded. The host occupies the seat of honor when receiving visitors, unless the visitor has a higher social standing than the host.

Futon

Futons are mattresses and quilts that Japanese people traditionally use when they sleep. Futons are made of strong, tightly woven cloth and cotton stuffing. The Japanese have traditionally spread sets of futons (mattresses and quilts) directly upon tatami mats when they sleep. A set of Japanese bedding includes a mattress called a shikibuton, a sheet, a quilt called a kakebuton, and a pillow. Japanese people first spread out shikibutons when they get ready to sleep at night. The shikibutons serve in the same manner as mattresses do for Western-style beds. After that, sheets are put on the shikibutons and quilts are put on top of the sheets. Then people get in between the sheets and the quilts and go to sleep. People change their quilts and pillows when the seasons turn owing to the changes in temperature that come with the changes in seasons. People use the same mattresses throughout the year. They use thin quilts during the summer season, and thick ones during the chilly seasons. People also use blankets between their mattresses and quilts when it gets particularly cold. When it is too hot and sticky in the middle of summer to sleep easily, they cover themselves with thin sheets that are made of the same fabric that towels are. People also use rattan or rush pillows that feel cool in the summer. It is very effective to dry the bedding in the sun. This makes the bedding more comfortable to sleep in and also removes mites. Many Japanese are allergic or will become allergic to mites. Recently, electric futon-dryers for indoor use at home have become widespread throughout Japan.

People only put the futons out when they sleep at night. In the daytime, when the futons are not in use, people fold the futons and store them in closets. This means that one room can be used as a bedroom, study, or living room at different times. Recently, however, Western-style beds and bedding have become popular in Japan, and younger people now tend to use Western-style beds and bedding rather than Japanese futons. Conventionally used cotton wadding is also being replaced by wool and feather wadding.