Japanese urushi lacquer scoops

I love lacquer and have been fortunate to receive lacquered bowls, chopsticks and bento boxes from my relatives in Japan over the years.  And I was so pleased to learn that lac dye is derived from shellac, which I assumed was where lacquer came from.  It was a very nice tie-in with the beautiful lac color and the muted and matte earthy reds of traditional Asian lacquer.  Well, I wasn’t exactly accurate when it comes to Japanese lacquer. While it is true that shellac is used in making lacquer, what I discovered is that this type of Japanese lacquer is … Read more