Boro boro is a traditional Japanese fabric-patching technique that originated in the 17th century. Boro boro is now used to create quilts, wall hangings, pillows, and other household items.
The word "boro" means “to tatter” or "to tear” in Japanese. The word "bore" means “to patch” or "to mend" in old English. The term "boro boro" can also be used as an onomatopoeia for the sound of tearing fabric, which may explain how it came to mean both tearing and mending fabric.
Boro boro is not a traditional form of art, but rather an vernacular form of needlework. It originated as a way for impoverished women to use up scraps of fabric and old clothes without wasting any resources, as well as sewing together items that would otherwise be unusable due to their lack of uniformity or condition.