Our calendars are back with 2010 versions now available in our store and online here. In addition to our usual zoo calendar, we’ve added the rocking chair calendar and the possibility of reserving a safari calendar from Japan. The Japanese woodblock calendar is also back with a new collection of woodblock prints by Kawase Hasui. And last, is the handmade 100% Kozo Mino washi calendar. The following is our translation of each page as well as some background information. We will only stock a small number of the washi calendars, and will take reservations for more.
HANDMADE MINO WASHI CALENDAR 2010
‘Mino Washi has been loved for its high quality, strength and beauty for more than 1300 years. The skill to create this paper has been perfected with great efforts of Mino paper-makers and passed on for generations.
We made these calendars for people to enjoy genuine washi in the environment of their homes. The natural color and warmth of this paper comes from the kozo bark it is made from. Please enjoy the gentle and warm feeling of these papers.
The year 2010’s theme is “Japanese Onomatopoeias.” We realized that onomatopoeias are used very frequently everyday. In the Japanese language, there are 3 times more onomatopoeias than the English language.’
Here are the translations of the onomatopoeias used:
January
Lady walking in a kimono “shanari shanari”
A man walking with confidence “shaki!”
A baby walks “yochi yochi”
February
Fox cries “kon kon!”
Snow falls “kon kon”
March
Daddy snores “guu guu”
Baby sleeps “ suya suya”
April
The string is tight “pi-in”
Tied the butterfly knot “kyu”
The butterfly flies, “hira hira”
May
The dandelions float “fuwa fuwa”
June
A little girl appears “hyokkori”
An old lady smiles “nikkori”
July
Licking an ice cream cone “pero pero”
Sucking on a straw “chuu chuu”
Gobbling up watermelon “gabu gabu”
Drinking beer “goku goku”
August
Rooster cries “kokekokko”
A chick cries “piyo piyo”
A dove cries “poppo~”
An owl cries “ho-ho-“
A nightingale cries “ho—hokekyo”
A duck cries “gaa gaa”
A crow cries “kaa kaa”
A sparrow cries “chun chun”
September
Big and round eyes “kuri kuri”
Sparkling eyes “kira kira”
Dizzy eyes “guru guru”
October
A crane (tsuru) eats so-men noodles
“tsuru tsuru”
November
A clock goes “chicku tacku”
A boiling kettle goes “shuun shuun”
A cooking pot goes “koto koto”
The telephone rings “li~n li~n”
The book flips pages “para para”
December
Christmas and New Years are knocking on the door…
“don don”(loud)
“ton ton”(soft)
We have just stocked up on the popular new 
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