Dream Pen Kyushitsu - Raden

Important Note:

• Some customers may mistake the distinct characteristics of Chinese lacquer as poor quality or doubt whether the pen has not been polished or is not polished enough, whereas this is because the Chinese natural urushi is slightly darker and matte.
• Some dots might appear on the body of the pen due to the unique characteristics of applying the Chinese Urushi. Please do not mistake this for defects.
• This technique includes Raden applied on the pen to sliced very thin beneath the hon Urushi. Therefore, the brightness of the Raden may appear inconsistent due to the darker hue of the Hon Urushi. 

Natural material - 本漆 Hon-urushi

Similar to our previous Chinese Urushi collections, the Kyushitsu's main component is the Hon Urushi 本漆 or Raw Urushi of Chinese lacquering art.

As its name suggests - Raw Urushi, no oil is added to the lacquer during the making process. Therefore, the initial result will come out dull at first, yet become glossier after years of usage. Since the nature of urushi is dark, in order to make the art visible, meticulous craftsmanship and years of experience are required to carefully apply lacquer in very thin layers to display the beauty of art.

There is a Japanese proverb saying: 経年変化 （けいねんへんか) means with age comes wisdom. And the same applies to the traditional aesthetic philosophy. The more it ages, the deeper, glossier it gets, revealing the true beauty of Chinese lacquer underneath.

Despite the semi-matt first look resulting from the characteristics of Raw Urushi, the durable material allows you to enjoy the aging process as the pen's appearance grows more and more lustrous.

Kyushitsu - Raden

A different technique is applied on Raden version:

Raw Urushi is used for the final fixate layer instead of transparent Urushi. The thin cuts of the Raden inlay are placed slightly below the lacquer layer, and thinner final layers of Urushi are applied to allow Raden to be seen through the color of Raw Urushi, which is darker than the transparent one. Only a high level of craftsmanship is practiced to produce consistent intensity in showing Raden despite the multiple layers of lacquer.

After the craftsman's patient hand polishing, the colored raw lacquer on the surface is polished to the same texture as transparent lacquer, so that the Raden fragments underneath and the art are clearly visible. This is believed to be a test of a craftsman's patience and skill to accomplish a final artwork.

The Kyushitsu - Raden design comes in two shapes: Dream Pen and Sekai.

Specifications

Base material: Ebonite

Art: Hon Urushi, Raden

Filling mechanism: Converter or Cartridge (European International Standard)

Nib: #6 Jowo stainless steel, Wancher 18K gold

Feed: Plastic, ebonite black, ebonite red

Compact air-tight cap: Preven dried-out ink problem

Size & Shape

Packaging

Traditional Japanese Wooden Box + Pen Kimono + Instructional Materials + Converter + Cartridge