Migakidashi Tea Caddy

A beautiful tea caddy hand crafted in Kakunodate, a former samurai town in today’s Akita Prefecture, famous for its samurai traditions and hundreds of weeping cherry trees.

It’s a stunning example of kabazaiku (樺細工), the traditional Japanese art of fashioning woodworks out of the bark of a cherry tree, which began as a secondary vocation for samurai in the town over 200 years ago. These skills and techniques have been passed on artisan to artisan through the generations.

Through a process called ‘migaki-dashi (polishing up), the craftsmanship of kabazaiku highlights the warmth of the cherry bark and makes each piece one-of-a-kind. That warm red will deepen with use.

Tea caddies are great for storing loose leaf tea and transporting it around.

This tea caddy is made from a tin interior wrapped with wild cherry tree bark and matching lid. Cherry bark acts as a natural insulator against heat and humidity, as well as being antibacterial, whilst the tin helps keep tea leaves fresh.

Comes gift boxed.