Kuroneko Delivers at Osaka Expo

"The Crow Dipper Sprouts"

The crow-dipper is a plant that's native to Japan and other parts of Asia. Hange is it's ancient name but today it's also known as karasubishaku: karasu means crow and bishaku means dipper (yes, that's where it gets its western name) but refers to the wooden ladles that are often used to scoop water as part of purification ceremonies held around Japan. Heavy rains that sometimes fall towards the end of the rainy season are called hange rains

the spoon & tamago dispatch

Kuroneko Stickers

If you’re heading to the Osaka Expo, you need to stop by Kuroneko Yamato’s booth. Trust us. And while they do offer baggage storage and shipping, that’s not why you want to go. There's a display of over 100 stickers that the company uses to indicate the content of packages and corresponding levels of fragility

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Rice Paddy Art

Every summer, the city of Gyoda in Saitama Prefecture turns rice paddies into giant canvases, planting colorful rice varieties to form massive works of art. For 2025, Gyoda is celebrating the world of anime with a detailed portrait of Tanjiro Kamado from Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba.

A Garden on Rails

To celebrate the 25th anniversary of Kochi prefecture’s Monet’s Garden Marmottan, a beloved recreation of Monet’s iconic garden in France, Kitagawa Village has brought the garden’s peaceful beauty to a local train line.

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tidbits from all corners of Japan

Sesame Street kakigori — available this summer at the official Sesame Street Market cafe in Ikebukuro

Move over, Murakami. A Hokusai exhibition opened last week at the Nantes' history museum, in France and apparently tickets are sold-out 1 month in advance

From the Shop

Bread Wrapping Paper

Just in time for ochugen: summer gift giving season!
With toasty brown hues, signature flour dusting, and even hand-scored patterns mimicking artisanal baguettes, this genius wrapping paper turns all your gifts into bread.

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