Today is the last day of the Golden Week. The weather was not so good, but it was cloudy and comfortable.Some people also do a big cleaning around this time, and I think it’s a good idea. The temperature is just right, so it’s easier than doing it at the end of the year. I also did some small cleaning and organizing at home this year, things I don’t usually have time to do. After that, I came to the workshop in the afternoon again today.
After spending time yesterday preparing the hexagonal side panels, I was able to start attaching them today. However, this takes more time than with a standard square puzzle box, so I can’t finish everything in one day. I worked on some of them today and will continue with the rest tomorrow.
Today, I also continued making the yosegi blocks for the ichimatsu (checkered pattern) sheets. This process requires time for the glue to dry while being fixed in place, so I work on it little by little each day. Today, I worked on connecting seven small blocks I had already made into longer pieces. I can’t connect all seven at once, so I divide them into groups of three and four. This step requires firm pressure using small clamps. Before joining them, I lightly shave the contact surfaces to make them flat. But only a very small amount—if I remove too much, the pattern will become smaller, so I need to be careful. It’s a delicate balance: making the surface flat while not shaving away the pattern. For this, it’s important that the parts were glued accurately in the earlier stages. If the surface is uneven, I have to shave more, and that can distort the pattern. Also, since yosegi uses different types of wood, the bonding strength can vary, so instead of using light pressure like rubber bands, it’s important to apply firm pressure with clamps when gluing.
The ichimatsu yosegi I am making now is for the 2-sun cube boxes I plan to produce next. However, after some consideration, I decided that for this project I will only make them as custom orders and will not produce extra stock. I have been reducing the production of 2-sun cubes since last year, and I plan to continue in that direction. It has become difficult to balance this work with other projects. Instead, I would like to use that time to focus on making larger boxes, such as 4-sun or 5-sun sizes.
