Where special becomes everyday
A unique technique bakes natural urushi lacquer onto stainless steel.
From cutlery to tie clips, urushi for the things you hold every day.
A new form of Japanese lacquer, by Wakabayashi Butsugu in Kyoto.
Our Craft
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CHOPSTICKS
23cm / 19g in length. Surprisingly light, the smooth texture of the lacquer fits comfortably in your hand.
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Spoon & Fork
The feel of lacquer becomes familiar to your fingertips. Your daily dining table will be a little richer.
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CHOPSTICK REST
Total length 6cm / 28.5g. A small lacquerware piece that fits in the palm of your hand. Perfect as an accent piece for your dining table.
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Placemat
Washi paper placemat. 45cm x 31cm. Pair it with lacquer cutlery to set your table.
Dishwasher-safe lacquer.
Lacquerware once meant hand-washing only. Our technique bakes natural urushi onto stainless steel, fusing the two — and overturns that rule.
It takes the heat and water pressure of a dishwasher. Something you use every day should be simple to care for.
Natural antibacterial properties.
Urushi (lacquer) is a natural material that has been used since ancient times for its excellent antibacterial properties. Because it comes into contact with the mouth, its natural cleanliness is highly valued.
It's not a chemical coating. It's the antibacterial power created by nature.
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Dishwasher safe.
Achieved through a unique technique of baking natural lacquer onto stainless steel. The beauty of lacquer remains, while daily care is simplified. This lacquer doesn't require special treatment.
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Urushi for your gift.
Delivered in a quiet gift box — for weddings, birthdays and anniversaries. An everyday object that can be re-coated and used for years, it stays on the table long after the occasion.
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A piece that ages toward you.
Urushi clears and deepens with use. It isn't at its best when new — it completes itself the more you touch it. It wears in, not out.
Made to be used.
Not because it's tradition.
Made for everyday use.
That's all we set out to do.
The feel is different.
Stainless steel clad in jet black. Every time your gaze falls to your hands, your usual dining table transforms a little. Once you experience it, there's no going back.
Off the altar, into the everyday.
Wakabayashi Butsugu Seisakusho has been crafting Buddhist altars and implements in Kyoto for generations. We want to bring the skills we have inherited—lacquer, gold leaf, and maki-e—to modern life.
THE URUSHI was born from this desire.
URUSHI JOURNAL
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Building an Urushi Wardrobe: A Gradual Guide to...
You want urushi in daily life but don't know where to begin. THE URUSHI maps a sequence — chopsticks, cutlery, tableware, then small personal goods — with sample wardrobes for...
Building an Urushi Wardrobe: A Gradual Guide to...
You want urushi in daily life but don't know where to begin. THE URUSHI maps a sequence — chopsticks, cutlery, tableware, then small personal goods — with sample wardrobes for...
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Why Urushi Grows Clearer With Age: The Chemistr...
Urushi grows more translucent the longer you live with it. THE URUSHI traces the phenomenon to its source: the molecular shape of *urushiol*, the slow march of oxidative polymerization, and...
Why Urushi Grows Clearer With Age: The Chemistr...
Urushi grows more translucent the longer you live with it. THE URUSHI traces the phenomenon to its source: the molecular shape of *urushiol*, the slow march of oxidative polymerization, and...
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Lacquer on Steel: How a 500-Year-Old Armor Tech...
Lacquer on metal sounds wrong — until you learn that samurai armorers were doing it 500 years ago. THE URUSHI traces the 120–170°C chemistry behind dishwasher-safe stainless cutlery finished in...
Lacquer on Steel: How a 500-Year-Old Armor Tech...
Lacquer on metal sounds wrong — until you learn that samurai armorers were doing it 500 years ago. THE URUSHI traces the 120–170°C chemistry behind dishwasher-safe stainless cutlery finished in...
