Does it ever happen to you that you come across some amazing designs and end up finding out that one person is behind it? In my case that person that captured my attention is Shigenori Uoya, an architect in Kyoto specializing in Machiya (Japanese for “town house”) remodels. First time...
If you’re interested in design or architecture as well as into Japan (which is probably why you’re reading this) the likelihood of you being familiar with the term “wabi-sabi” is pretty high (if not, I highly recommend reading Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers). “Wabi-sabi” is a way to...
Blue Bottle founder James Freeman has always had an obsession with Japan. You can see his love for the culture in the Japanese flower arrangements (Ikebana) that can be found in every shop in the Bay Area as well as everything they sell in the store being from Japan. “Anybody who’s...
Kaikado was established in 1875, shortly after Japan opened its doors to the rest of the world. With civilization came the import of tinplate from England.
My relatives recently went on tea picking / hiking experience via Airbnb in the countryside of Kyoto, Wazuka. That area has been producing tea for over 1000 years which is around the same time as the introduction of tea to Japan itself. You’d often hear about how the tea culture originated...
Did you ever wonder why Blue Bottle Coffee sells so many things from Japan? It is because the founder James Freeman was inspired by the Japanese coffee culture which lead him to start the company. The coffee culture in Japan has been around for a few decades now but recently...
If you are a foodie and love Japan, you might have heard of the term “Kyoyasai” which means “Kyoto vegetable” and is used to describe heirloom vegetables from the Kyoto prefecture. According to research the vegetables have more minerals, fibers and vitamins compared to regular vegetable and they also have...
I don’t know how I have never heard about this absolutely impeccable hotel chain Hoshinoya. The hotel pretty much has everything I’d ever want in my future house.No matter where you go you are surrounded by amazing craftsmanship and a perfect blend of old and new. This specific hotel can...
Naoto Fukasawa to me is like the Dieter Rams to many designers. He is behind many of the internationally beloved MUJI products and author of Super Normal: Sensations of the Ordinary. Him and Kenya Hara both spend a lot of time thinking about how they could scale their success to...
Japan is one of the oldest countries in the world with a median age of 46.5. A big percentage of the older population can be found in rural areas where the average ages are even higher and the younger people usually leave for one of the big cities and never...
A new tea house called Uji-Kochakan recently opened in Uji, the tea capital of Japan. They specialize in black teas, 30 varieties to be exact, that come with cookies in multiple flavors or a beautiful. On their menu is this beautiful 30mm thick pancake with an original sauce that is not at...
I often wonder what differentiates Japanese crafts from the ones in China where a lot of them originated. One thing that immediately stood out is the weight of things: Chopsticks for example are much lighter weight than the ones in China or Korea and the same thing goes for Shoji....
In Japan it is still quite common to wear uniforms to school. Just like the uniform the school bag is usually a specific type called “Randoseru”. Until recently it was the norm for all boys to have a randoseru in black and for girls in red. My mother had a...