Tableware for Tea Time 3

Japanese tableware is unique in many ways when compared to Western tableware.   Rather than buying a complete set of dinnerware with matching colors and patterns, we Japanese usually purchase each item separately and match them to create our own dinner set.  We sometimes even buy one piece at a time for personalized items like tea cups, rice bowls, and chopsticks, so family members may all have different rice bowls with various sizes and designs. In hopes that you will find a special, personal cup for your relaxing tea time, we gathered quite a selection of tea wares made by various artists for our event “Tableware for Tea Time”.    

 

 

 It’s just too difficult to choose just one from these charming mugs by Kenichi Muso!   Muso-san’s meticulous craftsmanship can be seen in the flower pattern on the surface called “Inka”, which are carefully made by making indentations with stamps in equal intervals.  

We also carry cups without handles and sake cups from the same “Inka” series.  

 

 We Japanese love to enjoy the change of seasons by switching tableware to match the season.  These refreshing pastel color tea cups are perfect for spring and summer season.

With faint gradation of pink that is created during firing, these white teacups by Taro Sugimoto from Kyoto prefecture are perfect for sipping roasted green tea and brown rice tea. We also have a teapot from the same series in stock.

 

Using local clay that he digs himself, Kazuhiko Kudo makes pottery with distinct warmth in Hokkaido, the Northern Island of Japan with harsh cold winter.  The white birch series is done with glaze made of ashes from the white birch tree near his neighborhood.  This earthy tea set is sure to be a warm delight in a cold winter day.  

Shiho Takada’s signature series with gray cracklings is always a popular choice among our customers from overseas.  The simple, stylish form seems to make Takada-san’s work universally appealing.  

 

We can’t miss out on some sweets if we’re having some tea!  These lovely bowls with high foot by Taira Kuroki are great items to have ice creams and frozen yogurts with.  Yum yum.  
 

Come join us at our event “Tableware for Tea Time” to find an item that will make your tea time even more pleasurable experience.  

Tableware for Tea Time 2

We are delighted that so many of our customers are enjoying our event “Tableware for Tea Time” that started in April.  

We will showcase some popular items from the event in the following.  

[Kazuhiko Kudo   Buck Wheat Noodle Cup   2700 yen      Small Plate 3780 yen]

 

The two separate items that we used as cup & saucer are “soba choko”, a cup for buck wheat noodle dipping sauce, and small plate.  We actually recommend this set to have some cold tea or coffee.  Having cold drinks in earthenware might seem a bit strange, but it actually makes sense for a couple of reasons.  The clay absorbs cold liquids and retains coldness so your drinks will stay cold.  Also, the clinking sounds made against the clay when the ice melts is charming and refreshing.  

 

[Kazuhiko Kudo   Cold Sake Cup   3780 yen]

We absolutely fell in love with these unique shaped pieces by Kazuhiko Kudo. The tall cup is great to have cold sake, but also goes well with cold tea and beer.  

 

 

We received charming tea cups with delicate paintings by Maki Oida from Kyoto prefecture.   We also have a sugar pot with most intricate paintings and small plates perfect for sweets by Oida-san in stock as well. 

 

 

 

 

Manabu Tanaka’s highly coveted mugs are in stock.  We received a wide range of items from Tanaka-san, so please come see them before they’re sold out!  

 

 

The good thing about Japanese tableware is that you can be creative in how you use your wares.  For instance, these sake pourers can be used as a “yuzamashi”, a type of pourer used to cool down boiling water before poured onto green tea or Chinese tea.   

 Caffeine lovers, elevate your coffee time with special accessories!  These coffee measures measure beans for about one cup serving.   The brass coffee scoop is by Shunsuke Tanaka, and the cherry tree scoop is by Koji Ishii.

 

To all of those tea lovers and caffeine lovers, we still have wonderful items related to Japanese tea, Chinese tea, black tea, and coffee in our store.  Please come and see items that will bring your tea time to another level if you are in the Shibuya area.