Is now a good time to replace shoji screen? Why spring and early summer are better times than the end of the year?

In this issue, I would like to talk about “when is the best time to replace the shoji screen?” This time, we would like to talk about “when is the best time to replace the shoji screen?

Many people may have the image that the replacement of shoji screens should be done at the end of the year when the house is being cleaned.
It is true that the end of the year is a time for cleaning up the house, and we understand the feeling of wanting to welcome the new year by replacing the shoji screen as well.
In fact, until the Showa and early Heisei eras, many households replaced their shoji screens every year at the end of the year.
If there were a large number of screens, they would ask a mounting store like ours, ・KYOSHIYA, to do the job, but if it was only a few screens, many people would replace them themselves during the cleaning process.

As you can see, there is an image that the re-covering of the shoji screen is done at the end of the year. In fact, when is the best time to re-cover aoji screen?
In fact, the best time to reupholster youroji screens is from spring to early summer.

There are two main reasons.

(1) Without a shoji screen in winter…it is quite cold!
When we reupholster a shoji screen, we remove the shoji screen, as a matter of course. If there are a large number of screens, we may need to keep them for a few days.
A room normally divided by a shoji screen becomes a large space without the shoji screen, and the air conditioner may not work as well,
It is very cold and the air conditioner doesn’t work well.
I think most people think, “It’s hard to live without aoji screen in this cold weather.

But this time of year, there are many days when you don’t need to turn on the air conditioner.

(2) In winter, the air is dry and it is difficult to finish!
these is especially true in Kanto, but the air is dry in winter. How does this affect the replacement of shoji screen?
Not only shoji paper, but also Japanese paper stretches when moist and shrinks when dry.
To put it extremely simply, during the dry season, Washi paper is in a state of shrinkage. In the humid season, it can be said to be in a state of expansion.
Therefore, if you stretch shoji screen during the dry winter season, it is rare that the shoji paper feels slightly loose in the humid summer season.
(To avoid this, the humidity in the workshop is always controlled.)

(We always control the humidity in the workshop to avoid this.) So, the humidity is moderate this time of year, and there is a high possibility that the finished product will be beautiful.

That’s why we highly recommend you to replace your shoji screen while it’s still possible. is actually a very good idea.

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If you recommend it to others, practice it! So, I would like to report on the shoji screen replacement at my wife’s parents’ house, which has more shoji screens.
(We worked on it when we went back home with our family during Golden Week.)

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First, the BEFORE. It is hard to see in the photo, but the paper is yellowed and torn in some places overall.

First, remove it.

It is nice and open in this season, but in mid-summer or mid-winter, it is hard for the air conditioner to work well.

Next, the shoji paper is peeled off. From this point on, a small apprentice mounting master also joins in.

Once the paper is cleanly removed, let it dry. This time of year, if the weather is nice, it dries quickly.

After drying thoroughly, we will stretch the SHOJI PAPER.

The little apprentice mounting master No.1 also joined the project, glued and stretched the shoji paper, and then the re-covering was completed without any problems!

Here’s the after.

The room looks brighter now that the paper is pure white. This time, we used shoji paper, which has a tear-resistant finish.
This paper prevents accidental penetration of fingers when opening and closing.

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Summary
It is recommended that shoji screens be reupholstered during the season when you can spend time without relying on air conditioning.
Especially during this season when there is moderate humidity, the finish is likely to be better.
Please consult us!

For more information about shoji screen reupholstery, please see here.

Click here to learn more about the process of requesting shoji screen replacement.