| The traditional Japanese lanterns or also known as chochin are made up of small pieces of washi paper, collected in a structure previously created with bamboo rings.
What is washi paper? This paper is common in Japan as it has always been made by hand and it’s completely natural. Washi paper isn’t only measured by its quality but also by what it symbolizes, because it has always been very important for Japanese people. In washi paper is also very common to write Kanjis (a type of letter), which is found in another article. It is also quite thin and delicate.
Going back to chochin, they are illuminated with a candle, which is deposited in the interior center. One of its characteristics is that while they aren’t being used, these can be folded joining rings. This is concretely thought to transport them from one place to another. These traditional lanterns have currently been exchanged by electric lights, but they keep fighting for their objective: continue being part of the design and be a sign of tradition for Japanese restaurants, commercials, and summer festivals. As mentioned previously, chochin has arrived in the occidental world, meaning that they are already found in touristic shops such as in the city of Barcelona or online shops such as Amazon. Even if one of your lanterns doesn’t contain a candle inside, this will give a very Japanese design to your oriental decoration! If you’d like to know more about Japanese interior design take a look at our web page https://hjapon.com/japan-style |
