Imagine...
... a
box with no apparent way to open it, yet if you know the secret
– you can. One box might take 4 steps, another 54. Now imagine a
store with not a couple, a few, or even a dozen – but nearly
100
of these amazing Japanese
puzzle boxes.
... a
carved wooden jaguar head decorated with over 50,000 beads, each
individually placed, forming intricate patterns. An art form
perfected by the Huichol Indians of Mexico.
... a
tiny basket, so tightly woven that they say it can hold water.
Such are the baskets of the Wounaan Indians of Panama.
... a
sculpture that is half giraffe, half gazelle and just so happens
to be purple and orange. This is the whimsical work known as Alebrijes to the people of Oaxaca, Mexico.
... a gold
lacquer vase that took a master craftsman over a month to
complete. Or a jade sculpture that took 3 months. Or a tiny bottle
with a portrait painted on the inside
Imagine
these items and thousands more, each with a story, waiting to be
discovered. |
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JAPANESE BENTO BOXES
View our Bento
Boxes - Just as you can order take-out in
the United States, in Japan, you can take out food for lunch or dinner called
Bento. The bento is stored and sold
in boxes, thus the name, Bento Box. This
take away style is very popular and can be found just about anywhere – in
train stations, convenience stores, theaters, shopping areas, vending machines,
and so on. For instance, if you
were to buy a ticket to take a bullet train, you can either buy Bento boxes to
take with you on the train or relax and wait for a vendor to come to you. |
GOLD LEAF LACQUER
Gold
Leaf Lacquer - is
one of the finest crafts produced in China. It involves a 20 step process that
converts normal objects of porcelain or wood into beautiful masterpieces. Each
piece is hand painted and gilded with gold leaf, then finished with over 10
coats of lacquer, a process that can take up to a month to complete. |
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Featured Products
TEA SETS & TEA POTS
 Shop our Tea
Sets - from Japan, China, and Vietnam that match our
other Japanese Tableware perfectly. Dozens of varieties of Tea
are also available. |
CHINESE FANS
 Shop our Chinese
Fans - The Chinese elevated the common
fan to an art form. We know that
leaves and bird feathers were used as early fans but China gets credit for being
the first place where fans were manufactured. |
THAI SILK SCARVES
 Shop our Silk Scarves & Shawls - Because
Thailand is the only Southeast Asian nation to have never been ruled by a
European power, silk production is much more traditional.
Additionally, Thai silk is considered exceptionally durable and high
quality. This quality silk is
washed, and then dyed carefully to produce stunning and memorable colors. |
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