I’ve come across some beautiful Japanese pattern books recently, and this one is a bit of a hidden gem. The series is called Nippon: A Collection of Designs for Silk and Cotton Textiles, Kimonos… of Japan, and it’s filled with elegant, repeatable patterns created for kimono fabrics.
These aren’t just decorative images; they were working designs, made to be printed onto cloth and worn.
In this post, I’ve selected over 80 of my favourite designs from the collection and made them available as high-resolution downloads.
A Pattern Book Designed for Makers
The Nippon volumes were likely produced in the late 19th to early 20th century, when Japanese textile design was both highly refined and widely produced.
Rather than being art books filled with commentary, these are essentially visual pattern catalogues. Each page presents a complete design, carefully arranged and ready to be translated into fabric.
As with much of Japanese decorative art, the designs draw heavily on nature; cranes, flowers, leaves, water, and seasonal motifs all feature throughout.
What makes them stand out is how those natural elements are simplified and stylized. Instead of detailed illustrations, you get rhythm and repetition. A scattering of leaves becomes a flowing pattern, and waves turn into structured, almost geometric forms.
Some designs are delicate and understated, while others are bold and graphic. A few even feel surprisingly modern, which makes them very easy to use in contemporary projects.
Nippon vs Shin Bijutsukai
If you’ve seen my post on Shin Bijutsukai, you’ll notice a different feel straight away. Shin Bijutsukai is more experimental and artistic. The designs are often abstract, expressive and influenced by Art Nouveau.
The Nippon books are more practical. These are patterns designed for use on textiles, so they’re more structured and repeat-friendly.
Both are beautiful, but they serve slightly different purposes. Shin Bijutsukai leans towards artistic exploration, while Nippon focuses on functional design.
How To Download The Designs
Downloading the high-resolution versions is nice and easy. Just scroll through the patterns below and click on the title of any design you like. This will open the full-size image in a new tab, where you can right-click (or tap and hold on mobile) to save it.
To make browsing a little easier, I’ve loosely grouped the patterns into four sections: general designs, animals, flowers and objects. It’s not a strict system, just a way to break things up a bit. Quite a few of the designs overlap anyway, with combinations of florals, birds and geometric elements all appearing in the same pattern.
One of the reasons these designs are so enjoyable to work with is their versatility. Because they were created for textiles, they naturally lend themselves to repeating backgrounds, decoupage, paper crafts and even embroidery or appliqué.
They also scale really well. The same pattern can be used for a large print or reduced down for smaller decorative details without losing its impact.
And, as they’re all in the public domain, you’re free to print, adapt and use them in your own projects however you like.
General Japanese Textile Patterns
There’s often a lot of meaning woven into each element of a Japanese pattern, with motifs chosen for their symbolism as much as their beauty. If you’re curious about what some of these designs represent, I’ve put together a glossary of the most common motifs in this post on traditional Japanese patterns, along with plenty more stunning prints to download.
Designs 1-10
Design 1: Peach Lattice and Cherry Blossom
Japanese textile patterns featuring peach diamond lattice with cherry blossoms and scenic design with cascading sakura over blue wave patterns.
Design 2: Radiating Pin Wheels
Radiating pinwheel motifs and plum blossoms on pink, plus a flowing water design with cherry blossoms in blue waves.
Design 3: Blue and Gold Scroll over Diamond Lattice
Grid of torii gates featuring blue water currents and dark pine trees.
Scattered fans and ox-drawn court carriages amid hollyhock blossoms and willow branches in blue, green and beige vintage Nippon collection
Design 6: Folding Fans Plum Blossom
Design 7: Iris Flowers in Blades of Grass
Patchwork design with polygonal sections containing water clouds, bamboo, irises, maple leaves, cherry blossoms, and wave patterns in pastels.
Design 10: Black With Green & Gold Pine Trees
Designs 11-20
Trailing green morning glory vines over a golden sayagata background with pixelated mosaic motifs in blue, lavender, and pink.
Design 12: Swirling Ribbons on Blue Check
Design 13: Maple Leaves & Spider
Autumn maple leaves in red, yellow, orange, and green caught in a delicate spider web on a pale green background, vintage.
Design 14: Phoenix & Butterfly
Design 15: Stylized Pine Trees
Stylized pine trees in colourful canopies above, and ocean waves in a spiral scroll pattern below.
Design 16: Pink & Red Chevrons
Autumn maple leaves border and lattice pattern with cascading purple wisteria blossoms.
Design 18: Indigo Spiral Clouds
Pattern comprising of indigo spiral clouds, green oak leaves, red diamond kanoko shibori patches and pale blue butterflies.
Design 19: Cloud-shaped Lattice
Design 20: Black Chrysanthemum
Designs 21-33
Design 21: Vertical Stripes Gourd Vine
Design 22: Pine Trees Dark Clouds
Japanese textile pattern with gnarled pine trees and dark cloud bands with small white birds on a pale green background.
large stylised peony blossoms and scrolling karakusa arabesque foliage in blue, yellow, and brown on a black background.
Design 25: Orange Red Maple Leaves
Japanese textile pattern with geometric floral motifs, including shippo circles and chrysanthemum tiles, emerging through silver and gold cloud scrolls on a black ground.
Design 27: Temple and Carriages Cherry Blossom
Temple architecture and ox-drawn carriages among pink cherry blossoms, blue streams, stylised clouds.
Design 28: Cream Cloud Forms on Green
Plum blossom branches in purple with red and green five-petaled flowers on pale silver-grey.
Design 30: Blue Maple Leaves Red Stripes
Design 31: Morning Glory Leaves in Mauve and Gold
Overlapping morning glory leaves in pink and mauve on a gold background with a blue crosshatched basketweave border.
Design 32: Spiral Cloud Motives
Japanese textile pattern with spiral cloud motifs in dark brown, blue, and green on cream with a green border of fern fronds and chrysanthemum crests.
Design 33: Teal and Red Florals On Purple
Animal Motifs
Patterns with a strong animal motif.
Designs 34-43
Design 34: Red Crowned Cranes Long-Tailed Turtles
You’ll often spot long-tailed turtles in Japanese patterns; these are known as the Minogame, a symbolic turtle said to live for thousands of years. The distinctive “tail” represents seaweed or algae growing on its shell, a visual way of showing great age and longevity. Because of this, the minogame is a traditional symbol of long life, good fortune and endurance, and it frequently appears in textile designs, often alongside waves, cranes or other auspicious motifs.
Lobsters pop up quite a bit in vintage Japanese textile designs, and they’re not just there to look pretty. They were seen as a bit of a lucky symbol, linked to long life. Their curved shape was thought to resemble an old person’s back, which sounds odd but actually ties in nicely with ideas of ageing and wisdom.
Design 37: Phoenixes in Flight
Textile pattern with white rabbits among flowing hills and geometric shibori patterns in navy blue, brown, and green with scattered flowers.
Japanese textile pattern featuring three stylised peacocks in an Art Nouveau arch arrangement, with tail feathers in teal green and dark blue.
Rooster and hen through a bamboo lattice trellis with pink and white chrysanthemums. Roosters are seen as symbols of alertness and protection. They’re the ones that greet the dawn, after all, so they’re often linked with new beginnings and keeping bad spirits away. Hens add a softer, more domestic feel, sometimes symbolising nurturing and everyday life. Together, they make a nice contrast.
Here you’ll find a beautiful collection of vintage chryanthemum paintings.
Design 43: Dragons, Cranes and Bats
Designs 44-52
Design 44: Praying Mantis And Peonies
Check out this collection of peony prints on the site.
Design 45: Peacock with Feathers
Pattern 46: Flying Birds and Waves
Design 47: Scattered Cards Featuring Zodiac Animals
There is a lovely collection of Japanese Zodiac Animal paintings on the site, worth checking out.
Design 48: Flying Cranes Hexagonal Lattice
Japanese textile pattern with interlocking rows of cranes and turtles in a tessellated scallop design, traditional symbols of longevity.
Design 51: Butterflies ong Red
Design 52: Butterflies & Moths
Butterflies and moths over dark blue flowing water with green leaf patterns, yellow florals, and geometric borders.
Flower Designs
Although florals appear throughout many of the Japanese patterns in this collection, in these particular prints, they really take centre stage.
Patterns 53-66
Design 53: White Chrysanthemums
Design 54: Pink and Blue Cherry Blossom
Pattern 55: Pink & Yellow Chrysanthemum Medallions
Design 56: Blue Morning Glories
Morning glory, or asagao, pops up quite a lot in vintage Japanese patterns and carries a really nice, slightly poetic meaning. It’s a summer flower that blooms in the morning and fades by the afternoon, so it’s often used as a symbol of how fleeting things can be.
In designs, you’ll usually see it with trailing vines and soft, curling shapes that flow nicely across the pattern. It gives everything a light, airy feel and works especially well in those relaxed, repeating textile designs.
Design 57: White Chrysanthemums & PiStylizedom
Pattern 58: Stylized Chrysanthemums
Design 59: Chrysanthemums & Bamboo
Chrysanthemums show up everywhere in vintage Japanese patterns, and once you notice them, you’ll start spotting them all the time. Known as kiku, they’re a very important symbol in Japan, associated with longevity and even the Imperial family.
In patterns, stylised flowers are often quite stylised, with layered petals arranged in neat, almost geometric shapes. They work brilliantly in repeating designs, sometimes bold and structured, other times softer and more scattered.
Design 60: Chrysanthemum Motifs In Blue & Green
Design 62: Pink, Blue, Black, Cherry Blossom
Cherry blossom clouds with striped bands and a floral maple leaf pattern.
Design 63: White and Pink Peonies
Design 64: Flowers with Green Maple Leaves
Pattern 65: Pink Camellias & Pine Trees
Design 66: Cherry Blossom & Orange Maple Leaves
Designs 67-79
Design 67: Chrysanthemums with Swirling Vines
Pattern 69: Pink & Green Peonies Lattice
Design 70: Pink, Blue & White Chrysanthemums
Design 71: Purple & White Irises
There is a stunning collection of 40 painted Japanese irises on the site.
Design 72: White Cherry Blossoms on Blue
Design 73: Crosshatched Blossoms
Pattern 74: Chrysanthemums on Diamond Grid
Design 76: Stacked Morning Glory
Design 77: Irises with Decorative Fans
Pattern 78: Chrysanthemums with Purple Leaves
Design 79: Brown Floral Border
Object Designs 80-87
Blue and white long-necked vase with wisteria and iris motifs.
Here you’ll find a whole collection of vintage kimono patterns.
Design 82: Kimono Snow-Capped Bamboo
Cream kimono with paper cranes, red and purple hexagons, black tortoiseshell motifs, and floral accents.
Kimono design with pink and yellow flowers, parasol, festival banners, and black lattice in soft pastels.
Final Thoughts
The Nippon collection is a great one if you like patterns that are actually easy to use, not just nice to look at. The designs are well-balanced, repeat neatly, and work straight away for all sorts of projects. They’re just as useful for crafts and junk journalling as they are for home decor. Think framed prints, drawer liners, or even wrapping paper, and they also make a brilliant art reference if you’re into pattern design or surface design.
It’s also interesting to see how they compare with other Japanese collections. The patterns here are quite practical and textile-focused, whereas something like the Shin Bijutsukai prints are much more experimental and decorative.
If you fancy exploring a bit more, you can browse some of the bolder, more Japanese graphic designs here. Or for something softer and more nature-inspired, the Watanabe Seitei prints are well worth a look:
And if you haven’t already seen it, the Shin Bijutsukai collection is one of the most popular Japanese design posts on the site. Between them, there’s a really nice mix of styles to dip into depending on what you’re making, decorating or designing.
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