A unique product handmade by traditional craftsmen at Kyoto’s Kaikado, Japan’s oldest tea caddy manufacturer.

As a globally recognised brand that prides itself on traditional, handmade processes, Studio Ghibli is always keen to promote other like-minded artisans, often teaming up with them to produce high-quality, limited-edition products with a traditional flair.

Now, the studio has joined forces with Kaikado, Japan’s oldest handmade tea canister manufacturer, to produce the “My Neighbour Totoro Tea Caddy“.

This copper and tinplate caddy displays the same level of craftsmanship as all of Kaikado’s other highly acclaimed cannisters, which are made with old tools that have been in use since the company’s founding some 150 years ago.

▼ Kaikado, located in a quiet street of Kyoto, is now run by sixth-generation owner Takahiro Yagi.

What makes a Kaikado caddy so elite is its precision craftsmanship – as the joints of the lid and body are perfectly aligned, the lid slowly descends on the cannister in a smooth motion without even needing to be touched (similar to how Japan’s magical jam jar lids work), expelling superfluous air to create a supremely airtight seal.

▼ It’s a design feature that has remained unchanged for over a century, and it involves a 130-step process, starting with precision metal cutting.

Other important steps include temporary fastening of the rolled material, using handmade clips…

…and soldering, which is done by two people while facing each other, with one painting on the solvent and the other soldering it. Breathing of the two workers is said to be important to help keep them in time.

Then there’s the process of meticulously finishing a circular piece to the rolled-up cylinder to create the lid.

Fine-tuning here involves sensory skill achieved after many years of experience, as the craftsman relies on the response in his fingertips to know when the work is done.

Soldering the bottom plate to the body is another step that requires the skill of a craftsman, as the optimal temperature is gauged by sound.

Then there’s the all-important process of fine-tuning the main body and lid to create the silky smooth closure that makes these canisters so unique.

Finally, the caddy is polished, using an old-fashioned polishing process, which itself involves over 10 steps and the craftsman’s intuition, to bring out a warm, soft glow.

Another unique feature of these caddies is the fact that the colour naturally changes over time, depending on who uses them. Vegetarians and meat eaters, for example, will end up with slightly different finishes after years of use, due to the varying amounts of alkalinity and acidity in the oil and sweat from their hands.

▼ This photo shows a brand new Totoro caddy on the left, and one after around two months of use.

▼ The tins are so well made they can last you 100 years and even be passed down to new generations, with good maintenance and repairs.

Image: Kaikado

If you’re thinking that a 130-step process that draws upon the intuition of numerous craftsmen from a 150-year-old Kyoto establishment to individually handcraft a Ghibli caddy doesn’t come cheap, then you’d be right.

▼ Especially when you take into account the original design on the outside…

▼ …and the unique caterpillar-in-an-acorn feature on the lid handle.

So how much will you have to pay for one of these tea caddies? Well, brace yourself, folks, because the My Neighbour Totoro Tea Cannister costs… 49,500 yen (US$312.59).

Granted, a plain, non-Ghibli Kaikado tea cannister of the same size (designed to hold 200 grams [7 ounces] of green tea) will set you back 23,000 yen, so they’re never cheap. However, if you’re a Ghibli fan with deep pockets, then this caddy will be a very unique addition to your tea cupboard, and it can be pre-ordered at the Ghibli Museum online store here, with shipping scheduled to start in mid-June.

Source: Ghibli Museum
Featured image: Ghibli Museum
Insert images: Ghibli Museum (1, 2), Kaikado
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