Issey Miyake Enclothe Cardigan

Paper as a clothing material is not a novelty in Japan; washi has been worn for centuries, and it is prized for being light, strong along its fibre, and stiff in a way no textile quite matches. At seventy percent of this cardigan it is the dominant material, and it gives the garment a dry, papery hand and a structural rigidity that holds a shape in the air rather than collapsing onto the body. The nylon and the small amount of polyurethane beside it are doing the work washi cannot: supplying resilience, so the garment survives being folded and worn rather than creasing permanently. What is built on top of that stiff cloth is a garment with two adjustments. The front zip runs both ways, with a button at the top, so the opening can be set high, low, or split at both ends. The back hem carries a cinch, which draws the bottom in and changes the silhouette from straight to bell. Because the fabric is stiff, those adjustments do not merely change the fit; they change the shape the garment holds. It is a garment with settings.

Why we selected it

Genuinely structural outerwear that a wearer can reconfigure is rare, and doing it in washi rather than in a technical synthetic is the part we found hard to stop thinking about. The texture is unlike anything a woven textile produces.

Issey Miyake‘s studio has drawn on Japanese material traditions for its whole history, and a paper-based cardigan is one of the more literal expressions of that.

Materials and construction

70% paper, 25% nylon, and 5% polyurethane, made in Japan, in Midnight Navy. The paper is washi, which is what gives the cloth its dry hand and its stiffness. Construction features a double zipper front with a button at the top, and a cinch at the back hemline that alters the garment’s shape.

Fit notes

The stiffness means it holds its own volume and stands away from the body rather than following it, so read it as a shape. The back cinch is the main fit control, and it meaningfully changes the silhouette rather than just tightening it. It layers over, not under, since the cloth needs room.

Styling

Midnight navy and a dry papery surface want smooth things beneath. Worn open with the cinch released it reads architectural and straight; drawn in, it reads sculpted. Both are worth trying before deciding which one it is.

Care

The paper content puts this outside ordinary laundering. Treat it as a specialist clean, keep it dry, and do not press it. Our fabric care guide covers the nylon side of the blend.

Related pieces

The Two as One Shirt and the Two as One Pants are cupro and paper rather than paper and nylon. Everything we carry from Issey Miyake is listed together.