2025 Staff Picks: The Most Loved Products at Musubi Lab

At MUSUBI KILN, every piece we carry holds a story—and some pieces resonate with us on a deeply personal level. In 2025 Staff Picks: The Most Loved Products, our team members share the tableware they truly love and use every day.

Through their voices, we hope to reveal not only why these pieces captivate us when we reach for them and what joy or comfort they bring, but also to inspire you to discover your own favorite, a piece that speaks to your senses and enriches your everyday life.

When we asked Hanako what she’d recommend, she didn’t hesitate. Her answer was the PETARI Shallow Donabe Pot 11.8—a piece she describes as both beautifully designed and genuinely useful in daily life.

What first pulled her in was the look. Hanako points to its modern, refined profile: the lines feel clean and intentional, and the form has a quiet elegance that stands out without trying too hard. It strikes her as the kind of design you don’t see everywhere—familiar in spirit, yet distinct enough to feel special. She also appreciates the gentle, subdued color. In her words, it “never gets in the way of the food,” and seems to work with any menu she puts on the table.

But the donabe didn’t become a favorite on appearance alone. Hanako emphasizes how naturally it fits into real routines. The generous size lets her cook enough for a full table, whether it’s a family dinner or a gathering with friends. Just as importantly, it goes straight from stove to table with no extra plating. That small convenience matters to her: less back-and-forth in the kitchen, more time shared around the meal. She mentions that she uses it for guests and parties, but also for ordinary weeknights—because it adds a touch of occasion without demanding extra effort. The pot makes everyday meals feel a little more alive, and she loves seeing family and visitors respond to it with the same easy delight.

As the conversation turned to what this piece brings emotionally, Hanako’s voice softened. She talks about winter in particular, when she often prepares her family’s favorite simmered hamburger steaks in the PETARI donabe. She also added, “When you steam vegetables, they turn wonderfully sweet, and it’s such an easy way to enjoy something tasty and nourishing—I really love it.” Lifting the lid, she says, always creates a moment: steam rises in a gentle rush, and everyone at the table instinctively lights up. That reaction—the shared anticipation before the first bite—is part of why she treasures it. The stoneware retains heat beautifully, keeping the food warm as the meal unfolds at an unhurried pace. For Hanako, that warmth isn’t only physical; it shapes the mood of the table.

In the end, her recommendation is simple and sincere: this donabe is not just a cooking vessel, but a companion to the kind of meals she wants to make, comforting, generous, and meant to be enjoyed together. It’s the piece that brings a little steadiness and a little joy to her everyday life. You can find recipes for Petari in this article, offering you delicious meals for the whole day.

When we asked Ayako which tableware has quietly changed life at home, she smiled and brought up the Tiny Diners Wave Kids Dinnerware Set (Cat). Ayako was first drawn to the set for reasons that go beyond the adorable cat motif. She appreciates the heritage of Hasami ware, and she’s surprisingly specific about the feel in the hand. The weight, she notes, is “exactly right”—not flimsy, not bulky. That balance gives the dishes a reassuring stability, and it matters in a household with a child. The plates and bowls are easy for little hands to manage, which lets Ayako relax. For her, that sense of ease is part of the beauty: good design should support daily life, not complicate it.

But what made the set truly beloved was the way her child responded. Ayako shared that foods her kid would normally resist sometimes become negotiable once they appear in the cat dishes. The motif isn’t just a cute decoration; it changes the mood. “Just seeing the cat softens their face,” she told us. “It’s like they think, ‘Maybe I can try it with the kitty.’” That small shift has eased the little pressure Ayako used to feel at the table.

Ayako’s family has a cat at home, and her child seems to connect the dishes with that comforting presence—almost like sharing a meal with their own pet. Ayako describes it as a gentle kind of companionship that makes the table feel friendlier and more playful. Used together as a set, the pieces create a cohesive look that’s sweet without being overly precious, and she likes how naturally they pair with everyday food.

Listening to Ayako, what stands out is how practical joy can be. This set doesn’t try to turn every meal into an event. Instead, it offers something more durable: a calm, kid-friendly rhythm, a little extra willingness to eat. You can find more information about Japanese Tableware for Children in this article.

Mai admits that sake cups usually take a back seat to a meal. They’re functional, polite, and easy to overlook, which is exactly why this one surprised her. The first time she saw the Swimming Sea Creature Sakazuki Flat Sake Cup made from Kutani ware, she had the distinct feeling that it wasn’t meant to be a supporting actor. Tiny sea creatures—squid, pufferfish, little fish—rise in delicate relief from the bottom of each cup, turning a familiar object into a miniature seascape. “I thought, oh, this is different,” she told us. “It made me smile before I even poured anything.” That sense of playful wonder is what hooked her.

In Mai’s home, the cup slips naturally into both social and solitary moments. She brings it out when friends drop by for an easy drink, but she’s just as likely to reach for it on an ordinary night after work. When she wants a little reset, a little softness at the end of the day, this is the cup she chooses without thinking too much about it.

Part of the pleasure, she says, is how the ocean scene changes with every pour. As sake fills the cup, the creatures catch the light differently; their shapes shift and sharpen with the color and clarity of the drink. The effect is subtle, but it keeps the experience alive. Each sip comes with a tiny visual surprise, as if the small world at the bottom is stirring awake. “Even one drink feels like a moment,” she said, “because I’m enjoying what I see as well as what I taste.”

Even more interestingly, this cup has a kind of “social magic” she never expected. Whenever Mai brings it out for friends, it almost instantly becomes the center of attention. People lean in to take a closer look, react with surprise, laugh, and then start chatting, “Which little fish is your favorite?” “This is way too cute.” The mood brightens right away. Mai loves that effect: how such a small sakazuki flat sake cup can naturally draw people closer and make the table feel lighter and more lively.

For Mai, that’s the heart of this pick. The sakazuki cup isn’t just charming; it’s restorative. It turns a casual pour into a small ritual, offers comfort on tired nights, and brings people a little closer when they’re together. This article offers you a How to Choose the Perfect Sake Cup with Expert Tips—you might even find the sake cup that feels like it was made just for you.

Chieri’s pick for 2025 is the Kikka Donabe Rice Cooker (3 Gou)—not because she set out to “upgrade” her rice routine, but because a small comment nudged her into curiosity. During the new rice season, her local rice shop mentioned that the tool you cook with can change the flavor. Until then, Chieri had only used an electric rice cooker. Hearing that, she and her children started wondering what a donabe might do differently. “It made us want to try,” she told me.

When she first held the donabe rice cooker, the decision felt easy. She was drawn to the elegant chrysanthemum motif and the gentle warmth of the clay itself. That beauty was what convinced her to take the leap from electric to traditional.

Now, Chieri says she reaches for this donabe on the days that matter most—when the family has time to sit down together. She still cooks rice with kombu (kelp) the way she always has, and she loves how the donabe carries that umami through the pot in a soft, even way. What she treasures most, though, is the moment right before the lid lifts. She described watching her family’s faces as the steam gathers: a kind of collective anticipation that never gets old. It’s a small ritual, but it anchors the meal.

She also mentioned the okoge—those lightly toasted bits at the bottom. They release cleanly, which gives her a sense of satisfaction as they cook. The nutty aroma is usually followed by an immediate reaction from the table, and that response matters to her. When someone says, “This looks so good,” while she’s serving, she feels the day’s tiredness loosen a notch.

Since bringing the Kikka Donabe into her kitchen, Chieri has noticed a shift in the rhythm of family meals. There’s more conversation while the rice cooks, more checking in, more shared excitement. Her child looks forward to dinner in a new way and even eats more enthusiastically. She laughs a little when she says it, but you can hear the real point underneath: the donabe has widened the space for everyday happiness.

For Chieri, that’s the heart of this pick. The Kikka Donabe isn’t a special-occasion showpiece. It’s a steady companion that turns rice into something to gather around—warming the food and the people waiting for it. In this article, we introduce three recipes for making delicious rice in a donabe, which are sure to give your table a bit of inspiration.