In the latter half of the 1980s, the yukata, or summer kimono, began to make a comeback in Japan as casual summer wear amongst young women. Traditional versions were indigo and white, and whilst today there are no restrictions on the use of colour, the yukata has not witnessed any great variation in the basic design. The overwhelming majority employ some sort of traditional pattern such as a flower design or water pattern, with the odd ice cream cone or goldfish. In 2002, the British design team Bentley & Spens collaborated with Kawashima Textile Manufacturers Limited to produce a range of textiles for the Japanese market. The range of fabric designs created by Bentley & Spens has taken the traditional roots of the yukata and embodied it with a chic and playful image.

In 1982 Bentley and Spens sold vivid hand painted and batiked clothes from their stall in London's Covent Garden Market. Over the next five years the duo continued to work in the fashion industry, selling to major retailers such as Paul Smith and Harvey Nichols. In 1988 Bentley and Spens opened a new showroom at Lots Road, Chelsea where their work concentrated on design and production of furnishing fabrics for interiors. A series of high profile commissions at home and abroad resulted in an invitation to collaborate with interior and lighting designers on projects in Japan. In 2001, Bentley and Spens received their first commission from Kawashima Textile Co. Ltd to produce a range of designs for yukata, or summer kimono. During their seven year collaboration, Kawashima (later known as Kawashima Selkon Textile Company) commissioned 77 designs from Bentley & Spens.

Yukatas are worn with an obi, which is the Japanese equivalent of a sash or belt worn around the waist, to keep the kimono or yukata (summer kimono) from falling open. Obi are generally worn differently depending on the occasion, and they usually feature more intricate designs for women. The design for this obi was produced in house at Kawashima to complement the Bentley and Spens range of yukatas.