12-Sep-2024
I finished the work on the 4-sun 27-steps Japanese puzzle box yesterday, and today I am completing the square 12-step box that I’ve been writing about. Today, I’m applying the undercoat. The five extra boxes I’ve made are also progressing with their one-point yosegi designs. Additionally, today I attached the top panels to the 3-sun 12-step boxes. Half of them feature traditional yosegi, while the other half have one-point yosegi designs, using plain plywood made from Shina wood. The one-point yosegi will be applied to this plywood just before the final coating is done.
In addition to the above, today I assembled and glued some solid wood pieces, creating solid yosegi. As shown in the photo, it forms a striped pattern. Each layer is about 2mm thick, and with six layers, it becomes 12mm thick. Tomorrow, I will cut this block into 2mm pieces again and glue six of them together. This will form a solid marquetry with a checkered design (Ichimatsu). I am making this in order to create products using solid yosegi, though not for puzzle boxes. I haven’t decided exactly what to use them for yet, but they will likely become keychains or accessories.and The second photo shows the leftover solid yosegi from something I made before.
For the past few years, I haven’t been making marquetry products, but I used to create and sell them. While they weren’t as popular as the puzzle boxes, I received positive feedback from customers. Recently, one customer told me that he had used a keychain he purchased from me about 10 years ago for his car keys, but he lost it somewhere. He tried to buy another one but couldn’t find any available, so He requested that I sell them again. Since I’ve been spending so much time making puzzle boxes, I haven’t had the chance to make these products. But today, I decided to start working on them again. I’m not sure if I’ll be able to sell them yet (because I don’t know how well I can make them this time😂), but I’ll give it a try!
In the past, I also made keychains and small desk items with yosegi designs, such as small trays, boxes, smartphone stands, card holders, and small plates. I’ve also wanted to try making accessories. Yosegi accessories are already sold as souvenirs in places like Hakone, and I have experience making them from when I worked at a previous company. So this time, I’d really like to add them to my product lineup😁
