Cette page sera traduite sous peu, en attendant, vous pouvez lire la version anglaise. Merci de votre patience!

Our lacquerware products are made of wood covered with several layers of a natural lacquer called urushi, which comes from the urushi tree (Rhus vernicifera). The urushi sap contains an oily substance called urushiol. When exposed to warmth and humidity, an enzyme is activated and extracts oxygen from the water and supplies it to the urushiol. The urushiol solidifies, forming a hard film. Urushiol is the exact same substance found in poison ivy, poison oak, and poison sumac which causes rash and itchiness, so it is not advisable to handle liquid urushi with your bare hands unless you are immune to it, as are the primarily Asian craftspeople who work with urushi. Apparently, Asians and Native Americans are less likely to be sensitive to urushiol. Once the resin has dried and formed the hard coating, it is non-toxic to those who would normally be sensitive to urushiol (most people!). The dried resin forms a completely waterproof coating that seals the wood - it is also resistant to extremely high temperatures and acid (e.g., sulphuric acid).

The urushi technique is thousands of years old, and the oldest known urushi lacquerware is about 9000 years old (dating from the Jomon period in Japan). This ancient technique is completely natural and does not use any chemical additives or processes. There is an excellent 9-part BBC series by Adam Hart Davis called "What the Ancients did for us". The second episode is called "The Chinese" and features the urushi technique. Here is a small clip discussing this ancient technique:

If you would like more information on urushi, and lacquer in general, you can visit the Wikipedia entry on lacquer.  Keep in mind that there is a big difference between the synthetic toxic lacquers that use volative organic compounds, and a natural lacquer like urushi.

Our bento boxes and children's dish sets are carved in China, and the lacquer is applied in Japan. We import these products from a reputed Japanese company that sells lacquerware to the Japanese market and ensures quality control of the urushi technique and the final product. The Japanese and Chinese are the global experts in urushi lacquerware.