Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Futons on top of tatami mats - Manida Thiensiripipat/Shutterstock In the U.S., sleeping on the ...

For three generations, the Morita family has been wrapping, stitching and trimming modular blocks of woven grass, known as tatami, in Tokyo's old downtown. But now, beset by cheap knockoffs and ...

Most tatami mats are a natural golden color, but those made by Mitsuru Yokoyama may be jade green, pink or even black. Tatami color swatches by the master maker Mitsuru Yokoyama. With its fragrant ...

When we were thinking of buying a condominium, we visited several old danchi — apartments built by Japan's former public housing corporation — because they were cheap and, we thought, easy to renovate ...

Tatami mats are a unique aspect of Japanese culture. Made of woven straw, filled with a soft material (traditionally rice straw, but nowadays foam), and bordered with beautifully-patterned cloth, ...

KYOTO--With demand for tatami plunging in Japan, a specialized trading firm here is eyeing a potential market of 2 billion people for the traditional mats. The company is selling tatami mats that ...