Everyday Japan

at a drugstore in Tokyo. photo by @junp.kur #tokyo #drugstore #makeup #everydayjapan #everydayeverywhere

two employees in uniforms wear facemasks outside a department store in Tokyo. photo by @sugawara_hpc #tokyo #covidlife #newnormal #everydayjapan #everydayeverywhere

a bank of clouds over Tokyo. photo by @rio_cam1991 #tokyo #weather #cloud #everydayjapan #everydayeverywhere

a man wearing facemask rides on an escalator. photo by @_____ellie12__ #facemask #covidera #newnormal #everydayeverywhere #everydayjapan

a rainbow over Shinjuku. photo by @hiroyuki_m_69 #rainbow #shinjuku #everydayjapan #everydayeverywhere

Washi Papermaking Japan Photo by @jameswhitlowdelano 9/9 Men from Chichibu prepare magnificent floats, festooning them with candle-lit washi paper lanterns, at Chichibu Yomatsuri (Chichibu Night Festival). The floats are actually portable kabuki stages on wooden wheels pulled through the streets of Chichibu, famous for its washi papermaking along with its immediate neighbor, Ogawamachi. The washi paper lanterns make the hand-carved wood and guilded floats radiate their bright colors. Chichibu, Saitama, Japan #washi #papermaking #washipaper #japanesepapermaking #Chichibu #Saitama, #everydayjapan #everydayeverywhere

Washi Papermaking Japan Photo by @jameswhitlowdelano 8/9 Tadashi "Nangaku" Kawamata, master Sho-do calligrapher, signs his name to the washi paper after writing the character for bird. #washi #papermaking #washipaper #japanesepapermaking #Mito #Ibaraki, #everydayjapan #everydayeverywhere

Washi Papermaking Japan Photo by @jameswhitlowdelano 7/9 Midori Kubo prepares wrinkled washi paper used as wrapping paper in the "tatami" mat room at Kubo Shotaro Papermaking Studio. Midori married into this washi papermaking family and says she loved the process from the start. #washi #papermaking #washipaper #japanesepapermaking #Saitama #Ogawamachi #everydayjapan #everydayeverywhere

Washi Papermaking Japan Photo by @jameswhitlowdelano 6/9 Individual sheets of washi paper before the process of "assaku", where the water is pressed out. #washi #papermaking #washipaper #japanesepapermaking #Saitama #Chichibu #everydayjapan #everydayeverywhere

Washi Papermaking Japan Photo by @jameswhitlowdelano 5/9 Akiko Okonogi executes "kamisuki", the process of dipping a bamboo "sugeka" screen into the "sukibune" papermaking vat immersing it into a paper pulp solution to make an individual sheet of paper. #washi #papermaking #washipaper #japanesepapermaking #Saitama #Chichibu #everydayjapan #everydayeverywhere

Washi Papermaking Japan Photo by @jameswhitlowdelano 4/9 “Kozo" (paper mulberry) bark, stuffed into a cauldron with a 12% alkali solution to be boiled for about 2 hours. The hardwood pole stuck into the cauldron is used for stirring the mixture every 30 minutes to further soften the "kozo" bark in a process called, "shajuku". Kubo Shotaro Papermaking Studio. Ogawamachi, Saitama, Japan #kozo #washi #papermaking #washipaper #japanesepapermaking #Saitama #Chichibu #everydayjapan #everydayeverywhere

Washi Papermaking Japan Photo by @jameswhitlowdelano 3/9 Bracing against the steam while pulling out "kozo" (paper mulberry) branches, after the first stage in the washi papermaking process, ""kozo mushi". Washi no Sato. Higashi-Chichibu, Saitama, Japan #kozo #washi #papermaking #washipaper #japanesepapermaking #Saitama #Chichibu #everydayjapan #everydayeverywhere