Lacquered Small Plates / Meimei-zara / Set of 5

Product Description : Why is it so EXPENSIVE?

Product Story

General Product Information

Hida Shunkei Nuri lacquerware has a 400-year history and is characterized by the simple beauty of the natural grain of the wood, which becomes more beautiful and shiny as being used.
This set of 5 plates will be a great gift for everyday use or when you have guests over! Why don't you pick it up and feel the warmth of natural wood?
Please enjoy the changing expression of the lacquerware as it ages!

 Product History

When did these crafts start to craft?：400 years ago / 1600AD / Edo period in Japan

In the early Edo period (1600s), a woodworker was ordered to finish a tray with transparent lacquer to bring out the beautiful grain of the hammered and split Spanish mackerel wood. At the time of its birth, it was mainly used as tea utensils. But from the later Edo period (1800s), trays, stacked boxes, and other common household items were also produced and became available to the general public. During World War II, the use of the product temporarily declined, but after the war, it made a comeback as a production center. In recent years, demand for souvenirs has been increasing.

Craftsman Story

Craftsman Profile

Nakayama Urushi
More than 40 years ago, we started producing Hida Shunkei Nuri, a traditional craft in Gifu Prefecture. They have produced many types of products such as trays, chopsticks, and tissue boxes in order to bring Hida Shunkei Nuri, a craft that has continued for more than 400 years, to as many people as possible. As the top manufacturer of Hida Shunkei Nuri, we carry on the traditional techniques with the desire to be the vessels that contribute to Japanese culture.

Craftsman Passion

"We want to make an everyday household item and at the same time a vessel representing Japanese culture"
We make products for daily use. Lacquerware is not a work of art, but a household item. Lacquerware can be scratched and the lacquer peels off if it is used frequently, but we still want our customers to use lacquerware every day. Even so, we want our lacquerware to be used every day, and in doing so, each piece of lacquerware takes on its own expression.

Achievement

Exhibited at Flame Association Trade Fair
Exhibited at Tokyo Big Sight Tableware EXPO

 

Your Contribution to Craftsman

Customer Voice

Due to the market structure (link for full articles are attached bottom), craftsman have not known who the customer is and how customer reacts to their work. We made a “Message to Craftsman” box at purchase page. We will deliver all message to every craftsman. Our review will be also shared to craftsman so please leave your comment and evaluation on review section!

Income for Craftsman: Craftsman get only less than 10% of selling price?

As written above, craftsman have not controlled last phase of sales channel that resulting in selling price is set by third-party without craftsman’s recognition. There are some cases that only less than 10% of selling price is given to craftsman. We promise with our customer / craftsman that we offer the fair trade with craftsmen in our contract!

We made an article about above problem and our challenge. Please have a read from below link.
Current state of the Crafts Market / Benefits brought by Suigenkyo

Measurement

Width：13.5cm
Depth：13.5cm
Height：1.8cm
Weight：40g

 

Material & Caution

Materials

Natural wood
Lacquer

 

Caution

Individual Difference

Each piece is handmade, so there are individual differences even in the same series. We hope that you will understand the change by handmade.

Delivery Date

Please note that it will take about 3 months for delivery if we do not have the item in stock.

Manufacturing Process

We have not uploaded this craftsman’s video yet, please discover another craftsman’s video from below link.

YouTube