No, it is not a computer this time. And yes, it is off topic, but I wanted to thank a Japanese friend for his gift and, at the same time, promote his work :
He owns a small company in Hokkaido producing a number of wood toys. He is an artist and designs them, which are all hand made and from the local wood.
In our industrial society, where all toys are made of plastic in chinese factories, it is refreshing to see such authentic and nice wood toys.
So think about it for your kids. His website is only in Japanese for now but if you are interested, drop an e-mail and my friend will certainly answer to you shortly (last link in the menu page).
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Comments 4
Way cute. Nontoxic paint, I hope. It’s a quaint thought, and plastic is a huge problem, but I’d rather my kid see the actual forest. I hope it’s sustainable.
This was a big issue the last time I visited New Zealand:
Posted 16 Mar 2010 at 11:06 pm ¶“New Zealand forest owners started shipping logs to Japan in the late 1960s, but for decades exports were restricted by government policy (from Government forests) and by domestic log demand. However, when the Government sold its forests to private interests in the 1990s both the volume and market spread increased.”
Of course, the paiting is non toxic and has passed many tests about it. The Japanese law is very strict.
Concerning the wood material, there is the official text, translated :
“The main material for Milcar products is the alder wood in Hokkaido’s trees. This is because alders grow more quickly than other trees used for creating wooden toys, such as beeches, and thus we believe they are more eco-friendly. As a matter of fact, almost all wooden toy makers, both in Japan and Europe, have preference to use beech, and the greater part of the beech forest in Japan has disappeared. We take this fact seriously and believe that we should be careful in choosing wood for the sake of our future. As for our building blocks, we use Hokkaido’s birch. This is also well planned in logging. Another reason for our preference for alder and birch is that they are both wood of fine grain. The rods used in our products, as seen in axles, are made of Japanese cypress, too. We are very proud of our products being 100% made in Japan, including production as well as material. “
Posted 17 Mar 2010 at 10:29 am ¶the good thing about wooden toys is that they are biodegradable and is organic too ”
Posted 31 Oct 2010 at 1:52 am ¶there are wooden toys that uses artificial wood which lasts longer compared to organic wood -*-
Posted 22 Nov 2010 at 9:39 am ¶Post a Comment