Japanese Plate Carving Kit

We found these DIY wood chiselling kits in Japan and couldn’t wait to bring them back.

There’s a real beauty to tactile, hand-chiselled wood: each knife impression showing the mark of the maker’s hand.

This kit contains everything you need to create your own hand-carved wooden plate. It includes a basic square Japanese Katsura wood plate, English instructions, a U carving gouge, three grades of sandpaper and beeswax for finishing.

Use the gouge to carve organic patterns and grooves in the surface of the wood, sand down any rough edges and then varnish with the beeswax. A knife is not included but you could use a standard penknife to add another dimension to the carving and even write the date and your initials in the base.

Wrapped in fun Japanese packaging, they’d also make a great gift for someone who loves making things, as a first step into the world of woodcraft.