11 ms·

Chopstick sleeves as emissaries of Japanese typography and culture

134 points by NaOH 2y ago

vvpan 2y ago
I deleted my twitter account not too long ago and now more and more often I scroll down to the bottoms of websites hoping there is a Bluesky link and tada: there is. @letterformarchive.org
- stewf 2y ago
  We are proud to be part of what we hope is a trend among all orgs.
  - tecleandor 2y ago
    BTW, the link to Mastodon on the feet of your page doesn't seem to be working.
    - stewf 2y ago
      Still? Working for me.
      - tecleandor 2y ago
        Now it works! Maybe it had a hiccup that day!
tkgally 2y ago
Nice article. I have only one chopstick sleeve in my collection, a humorous, slightly risqué one from a ramen and gyoza shop in Yokohama that I frequent. Here is a photograph with transcription and translation: https://gally.net/temp/20250120sanyochopsticksleeve/index.html https://gally.net/temp/20250120sanyochopsticksleeve/index.ht... Another kind of commercial ephemera that people collect in Japan are the paper covers that bookstores provide for customers. Each bookstore typically has its own design. Here is one collector’s blog: https://bookcoverfan.livedoor.blog/ https://bookcoverfan.livedoor.blog/ Some bookstores also provide their own bookmarks. Here is a collection of those: https://hyohyosya.hatenablog.com/entry/2015/09/13/%E3%81%97%E3%81%8A%E3%82%8A%E3%82%B3%E3%83%AC%E3%82%AF%E3%82%B7%E3%83%A7%E3%83%B3%E3%81%8C%E6%B0%97%E4%BB%98%E3%81%91%E3%81%B0135%E6%9E%9A%E3%81%AB%E3%81%AA%E3%81%A3%E3%81%A6%E3%81%84%E3%81%9F https://hyohyosya.hatenablog.com/entry/2015/09/13/%E3%81%97%...
- krispyfi 2y ago
  Wow, it's cool seeing you here! I used to lurk a lot on the honyakkers group and your posts were always very educational and entertaining. Cheers!
  - tkgally 2y ago
    Thanks!
- OhMeadhbh 2y ago
  Was just looking at your web page and really wish I had a copy of "Start Speaking Japanese Today" when I lived in a small town east of Fukuoka a couple decades ago. #UnsolicitedTestimonial
  - tkgally 2y ago
    Thank you! The book is out of date and better language-learning tools are available now, but if anyone might find an old-fashioned phrasebook/textbook useful or interesting, they can download the PDF for free, no strings attached: https://www.gally.net/start/index.html https://www.gally.net/start/index.html
kopirgan 2y ago
Everything they do is a thing of beauty, showing lots of effort, care and aesthetics. Even those warning signboards at construction sites or road and cable works.
- pezezin 2y ago
  [dead]
- xandrius 2y ago
  There are quite a lot of not beautiful things once you actually live in Japan. So that might just be rose-tinted glasses.
  - kopirgan 2y ago
    True of most places.. But they do put a lot of effort into making ordinary things "cute" or artistic. Like those construction site warnings or info boards. In most places it's just functional and bare. In Japan they add cartoon characters, nice layouts, fonts etc. That was my point.
kmoser 2y ago
I used to collect them but gave up because it seemed to be never ending. Here are some: https://www.kmoser.com/chopsticks/ https://www.kmoser.com/chopsticks/
OhMeadhbh 2y ago
I'm thinking the next time I have to spin up some swag for a conference, it will include hashiibukuro. Mostly just to be memorable.
wizardforhire 2y ago
That origami sleeve is sweet! I picked it up during my travels while watching an elderly patron perform the trick, but its great to see it in print.
presentation 2y ago
I was at Ichiran (ramen shop) today, I liked their chopstick sleeve - you can order extra noodles with it. https://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/0d/e7/bb/a7/where-you-can-order-extra.jpg https://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/0d/e7/bb/a7/... That said, before they translated it to English for the tourists, you could order more stuff with it. https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49277747203_7f23e589cf_b.jpg https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49277747203_7f23e589cf_b...

134 points by NaOH 2y ago

I deleted my twitter account not too long ago and now more and more often I scroll down to the bottoms of websites hoping there is a Bluesky link and tada: there is. @letterformarchive.org

stewf 2y ago
We are proud to be part of what we hope is a trend among all orgs.
- tecleandor 2y ago
  BTW, the link to Mastodon on the feet of your page doesn't seem to be working.
  - stewf 2y ago
    Still? Working for me.
    - tecleandor 2y ago
      Now it works! Maybe it had a hiccup that day!

tkgally 2y ago

Nice article. I have only one chopstick sleeve in my collection, a humorous, slightly risqué one from a ramen and gyoza shop in Yokohama that I frequent. Here is a photograph with transcription and translation: https://gally.net/temp/20250120sanyochopsticksleeve/index.html https://gally.net/temp/20250120sanyochopsticksleeve/index.ht... Another kind of commercial ephemera that people collect in Japan are the paper covers that bookstores provide for customers. Each bookstore typically has its own design. Here is one collector’s blog: https://bookcoverfan.livedoor.blog/ https://bookcoverfan.livedoor.blog/ Some bookstores also provide their own bookmarks. Here is a collection of those: https://hyohyosya.hatenablog.com/entry/2015/09/13/%E3%81%97%E3%81%8A%E3%82%8A%E3%82%B3%E3%83%AC%E3%82%AF%E3%82%B7%E3%83%A7%E3%83%B3%E3%81%8C%E6%B0%97%E4%BB%98%E3%81%91%E3%81%B0135%E6%9E%9A%E3%81%AB%E3%81%AA%E3%81%A3%E3%81%A6%E3%81%84%E3%81%9F https://hyohyosya.hatenablog.com/entry/2015/09/13/%E3%81%97%...

krispyfi 2y ago
Wow, it's cool seeing you here! I used to lurk a lot on the honyakkers group and your posts were always very educational and entertaining. Cheers!
- tkgally 2y ago
  Thanks!
OhMeadhbh 2y ago
Was just looking at your web page and really wish I had a copy of "Start Speaking Japanese Today" when I lived in a small town east of Fukuoka a couple decades ago. #UnsolicitedTestimonial
- tkgally 2y ago
  Thank you! The book is out of date and better language-learning tools are available now, but if anyone might find an old-fashioned phrasebook/textbook useful or interesting, they can download the PDF for free, no strings attached: https://www.gally.net/start/index.html https://www.gally.net/start/index.html

kopirgan 2y ago

Everything they do is a thing of beauty, showing lots of effort, care and aesthetics. Even those warning signboards at construction sites or road and cable works.

pezezin 2y ago
[dead]
xandrius 2y ago
There are quite a lot of not beautiful things once you actually live in Japan. So that might just be rose-tinted glasses.
- kopirgan 2y ago
  True of most places.. But they do put a lot of effort into making ordinary things "cute" or artistic. Like those construction site warnings or info boards. In most places it's just functional and bare. In Japan they add cartoon characters, nice layouts, fonts etc. That was my point.

kmoser 2y ago

I used to collect them but gave up because it seemed to be never ending. Here are some: https://www.kmoser.com/chopsticks/ https://www.kmoser.com/chopsticks/

OhMeadhbh 2y ago

I'm thinking the next time I have to spin up some swag for a conference, it will include hashiibukuro. Mostly just to be memorable.

wizardforhire 2y ago

That origami sleeve is sweet! I picked it up during my travels while watching an elderly patron perform the trick, but its great to see it in print.

presentation 2y ago

I was at Ichiran (ramen shop) today, I liked their chopstick sleeve - you can order extra noodles with it. https://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/0d/e7/bb/a7/where-you-can-order-extra.jpg https://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/0d/e7/bb/a7/... That said, before they translated it to English for the tourists, you could order more stuff with it. https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49277747203_7f23e589cf_b.jpg https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49277747203_7f23e589cf_b...