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A New Brewery in Yobuko Wants to Revive the Former Whaling Town
The 2023 Spoon & Tamago Gift Guide
Trains Intersect with Everyday Life in Nostalgic Illustrations by Shinjiro Ogawa

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The Latest Posts

Tsuchiya Kaban Creates Leather Randoseru For Dogs
October 25, 2023
Laxative Literally ‘Empties Out’ All Other Ads in Creative Campaign Targeting Tokyo Metro
October 24, 2023
Elongated Engawa Defines this Community Welfare Center in Chiba
October 23, 2023
Shibuya Unveils Graphics Discouraging Halloween Parties in Their Ward
October 17, 2023
The Conran Shop, A New Chapter For Hillside Terrace by Keiji Ashizawa Design
October 13, 2023
A VHS Cafe is Opening in Tokyo’s Shimokitazawa Neighborhood
October 12, 2023
School Lunch Provider Creates Manga Milk to Encourage Kids to Finish Their Milk
October 10, 2023
Whale Butter Dish Designed by Akira Yoshimura
October 5, 2023
Designed by Kengo Kuma, Kiki’s Museum of Literature to Open in Tokyo
October 5, 2023
Creatures of the Echigo Sea Emerge from Straw in the 2023 Wara Art Festival
October 3, 2023

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TRENDING RIGHT NOW

A New Brewery in Yobuko Wants to Revive the Former Whaling Town
The 2023 Spoon & Tamago Gift Guide
Trains Intersect with Everyday Life in Nostalgic Illustrations by Shinjiro Ogawa
The Takenaka Carpentry Tools Museum is Keeping the Spirit of Wooden Architecture Alive
Uenosuke Shitanosuke: Twin Tumblers that Fit Perfectly Together

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The Town of Yobuko, located at the tip of North-We

The Town of Yobuko, located at the tip of North-Western Kyushu, is named after the migratory path that whales swam. Beginning in the 1700s, Yobuko prospered as a whaling town. Whales were a symbol of vitality, prosperity and hope. But times change. Fast-forward to today and the town’s population has fallen below 6000.

But the spirit of whales lives on. One local restaurant operator known for serving fresh squid is investing in the town’s future by renovating one of the many vacant townhouses and establishing a brewery in hopes that the energy and prosperity that once was, would return. They’re calling it Whale Brewing.

Read more about the new project on the blog today: spoon-tamago.com

(Photos by Hiroshi Mizusaki)

Uenosuke Shitanosuke are a set of 2 tumblers inspi

Uenosuke Shitanosuke are a set of 2 tumblers inspired by the humble act of drinking water. Made from high-grade, durable tritan and hand-polished to perfection so they shine like glass, Uenosuke (the older sibling) fits snugly over Shitanosuke (the younger sibling) like a capsule keeping the rim clean and the water fresh.

The tumblers are a combination of creative art direction (by @zariganiworks) thoughtful product design (by @tent1000) and high grade manufacturing (by @sakaekogyo)

Join us in our New Year’s resolution to drink more water and less of everything else!

More: https://shop.spoon-tamago.com/collections/uenosuke-shitanosuke

Roughly 70% of Japan is forested and therefore woo

Roughly 70% of Japan is forested and therefore wood has been historically tied to architecture and design since ancient times. In fact, the world’s oldest surviving wooden structure is the Horyu-ji temple that was built in the early seventh century. From the harvesting of Japanese cypress to production and restoration, numerous tools, skills and techniques have evolved alongside wood building. The Takenaka Carpentry Tools Museum in Kobe is the only museum in Japan dedicated to collecting and conserving these tools and techniques, curating exhibitions to pass on this cultural heritage to future generations.

More today on S&T: spoon-tamago.com

Azabudai Hills looks amazing! The new development,

Azabudai Hills looks amazing! The new development, which includes Japan's tallest skyscraper, opened yesterday. We love all the green spaces and how landscaping was such a central part of the project, which includes a hotel, international school, offices, residences and retail shops.

Art is also central to the project, with sculptures by Yoshitomo Nara and exhibitions by Olafur Eliasson and TeamLab.

(Photos courtesy @officialheatherwickstudio )

Japanese artist @lito_leafart has been living with

Japanese artist @lito_leafart has been living with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) his entire life. Lito had been searching for an outlet where he could channel his above-normal levels of concentration and hyper focus when he discovered the Japanese art of kirie (切り絵, literally ‘cut picture’).

Several years ago he began experimenting, not with paper, but with leaves, which turned out to be an ideal medium as their decomposing nature forced him to work quickly.

Over time he got faster and his daily creations, which he began posting to social media, became more intricate.

If you would like to see the artist’s work up-close, he’s having an exhibition at @daimarukobe department store from 11/30 – 12/11/2023 where you can even purchase select works.

Read more about the artist and his latest creations on S&T today: spoon-tamago.com

Bro must have rescued a lot of drowning orphans in

Bro must have rescued a lot of drowning orphans in a previous life to land this job.

(📹 tomoko_elephant)

Houtokuji Temple in Gunma has what is perhaps Japa

Houtokuji Temple in Gunma has what is perhaps Japan’s most-famous floor. The highly polished surface is particularly beautiful this time of year.

Fall viewing through December 3.

(Photos: Sankei)

We published our 2023 gift guide! 2023 felt like

We published our 2023 gift guide!

2023 felt like a turning point for Japan. After several years of covid-induced seclusion, tourism rebounded to pre-pandemic levels. It truly felt like Japan was *the* place to be this year.

With that in mind, we put together this year’s gift guide for everyone who took an interest in Japan, whether vicariously or through travel. With an emphasis on craftsmanship and quality, we’ve curated a list of items that are both functional but also serve as an extension of learning about Japan and its culture.

We hope you find something special for your loved ones. Here are just a few of our favorites. Visit the blog for the full list: spoon-tamago.com

Yuho Tanaka (田中幽峰) was an accomplished art

Yuho Tanaka (田中幽峰) was an accomplished artist and draughtsman active in Kyoto during the late-1800s. At the height of his career in the 1890s he created numerous graphic patterns inspired by butterflies that were eventually compiled into a book titled hyaku-cho-zuan, or One Hundred Butterfly Designs.

And thanks to Japan’s National Diet Library (NDL), all of Tanaka’s images have been made available copyright-free, and for use both for individual and commercial purposes.

Find out more on S&T today: spoon-tamago.com

Today, the historic village of Shirakawago conduct

Today, the historic village of Shirakawago conducted their semi-annual fire drill.

Japan is probably the only place in the world where a fire drill becomes a tourist attraction, right?

True story: we were signing for a delivery this we

True story: we were signing for a delivery this week in our hallway when our delivery man goes, “what’s the smell?”

“Oh, that’s matcha fragrance”

“Match what?”

“Japanese green tea. We sell it”

“How much?”

And just like that, our delivery man became a customer.

(You can explore our other Japanese fragrances with the tester kit - 3rd pic)

🍵

Tsuchiya Kaban, a 58-year old Japanese leather bag

Tsuchiya Kaban, a 58-year old Japanese leather bagmaker, has released their very first line-up of pet products. And their doggy randoseru is absolutely adorable.

Made with the same craftsmanship that goes into any of their bags, the doggy randoseru can even be worn as a shoulder pouch the dog’s human.
(model doggo is 4kg)

More: spoon-tamago.com

POV: you walk into a Japanese train car and it’s

POV: you walk into a Japanese train car and it’s been “emptied out” of all ads, which is actually itself an ad for a laxative 🤣

More: spoon-tamago.com

As Japan’s population continues to grow older—

As Japan’s population continues to grow older—one in 10 residents are aged 80 or above—care for the elderly becomes an increasingly important issue. And while elderly populations are typically seen as a burden, there are places around rural Japan that offer glimpses of a more hopeful future. One where innovators and designers are demonstrating what’s possible, not with robotic caregivers, but with a fundamental redesign of what care for the elderly could look like.

Today on S&T we take a look at what one of those possibilities looks like. A new welfare center that rejects the transactional nature of nursing homes and offers something more symbiotic: spoon-tamago.com

Bring the aromas of autumn into your home with our

Bring the aromas of autumn into your home with our leaf-shaped paper incense.

Made by Kunjudo, a 120-year old maker of incense founded in 1893 on Awaji Island.

#spoontamagoshop

Thar she blows 🐳 The whimsical whale butter d

Thar she blows 🐳

The whimsical whale butter dish, designed by @akirayoshimura_, is guaranteed to bring a sea of change to your kitchen.

The entire process from modeling, casting, polishing, and coating to the engraved eyes, is done in the city of Takaoka—famous for its metalwork—in Toyama prefecture, Japan.

https://shop.spoon-tamago.com/products/whale-butter-dish

Reminder as we head into autumn that Japan takes t

Reminder as we head into autumn that Japan takes their fall foliage very seriously

A slight disturbance in Osaka yesterday after a ro

A slight disturbance in Osaka yesterday after a rogue watermelon was found growing in a roadside median.

Worried that spectators would begin gathering to observe the symbol of grit and perseverance, authorities conducted an operation to carefully transplant it and are deciding on its new home.

Never change, Osaka.

(Photos via Sankei News)

Shibuya really doesn’t want you coming to their

Shibuya really doesn’t want you coming to their hood to party for halloween. They even hired art director Koichi Kosugi to create a series of visuals.

#shibuya #shi-boo-ya 👻

Of course Tokyo is getting a VHS cafe. And of cour

Of course Tokyo is getting a VHS cafe. And of course it’s located in Shimokitazawa.

Today on the blog we’re taking a look at @tanpenton, which is much more than just a throwback to the 70s and 80s.

More: spoon-tamago.com

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