Table Setting #131
Savor Spring with Delicious Japanese Tea and Sweets

The refreshing season of spring has finally arrived. It's a wonderful time to dine outdoors in a park or in your own backyard. Embrace the wonderful weather and plan a fun get-together with your friends and family under the cherry blossoms enjoying Japanese green and petite tasty sweets. 

Contents

• Beautiful Scenery, Beautiful Tableware
• Ready to Go
• In Style
• Featured Items

Key points of this table setting

1. Beautiful Scenery, Beautiful Tableware

Standing on a carpet of soft pink petals, we spread out a pastel pink linen cloth on a picnic table at a nearby park. It became the ideal canvas for our hanami tea party table setting. 

To match the natural theme of our outdoor hanami tea party, we placed rich Akita cherry bark items, soft-colored bamboo and wood items, warm stoneware teaware and exquisite lacquerware plates and small forks.

Cherry bark items are always a delight to use. The bark of wild cherry trees have a unique luster and austere hue different from that of the popular Someiyoshino cherry trees. The contrast in colors highlight the bark's artful patterns. Enjoy the charm of cherry blossoms all year round with these charming cherry bark teaware adorned with shell-inlays.

Kutani ware teacups beautifully add to the joyful atmosphere of the table. Pairing cups with Mt. Fuji in red and blue are decorated with cherry blossoms and are perfect for the spring season. The warm colors and texture of stoneware give comfort to the table along with the Mino ware teapot.

2. Ready to go! 

A tea box is both useful and stylish, great for home use and for outings. You can easily bring along two teacups, a teapot, some coasters and other small accessories with its spacious size.

A multi-tiered Jubako bento box is also a good-to-have item for outdoor events. With a handle and a lid, this Jubako bento box is easy to carry and perfect to take on picnics or meals outside. 

3. In Style

During the Edo period (c. 1603-1867), people dressed up in their best kimonos, and admired the beauty of cherry blossoms while enjoying delicacies set in lacquerware Jubako bento boxes. For many, hanami was a special occasion that was celebrated in style. 

A Kumiko long tray, with petite sweet treats, can be gracefully placed on a table for an idyllic setting. Splendid Echizen lacquerware plates decorated with gold truly bring out the elegance of lacquerware and complete this tranquil setting.

Enjoy this time-honored tradition of hanami with elegance using exquisite tableware. Take the time to appreciate and reconnect with those close to you in a peaceful and beautiful setting that only nature can provide.  

Featured Items

Kabazaiku "Cherry Bark Craft"

Kabazaiku is a traditional craft made in Akita Prefecture in northern Japan from the bark of the Japanese cherry tree. The mysterious silk or metal-like luster unique to cherry tree bark and the deep color of the tree are used to create tools of unparalleled beauty. It is a traditional Japanese craft with a history of about 250 years.