Toda Toshio: Maestro of Edo Sashimono.

(From Journal of Japanese Trade & Industry (JJTI))

Byline: Article by Elizabeth Kiritani and illustrations by Kiritani Itsuo

Several years ago I was disturbed by the number of disposable chopsticks I was using. As they are doled out by restaurants, at drinking establishments, hotels, even on airline flights and packed into those ubiquitous bento lunch boxes, it is difficult to avoid going through three or four sets a day. Not wanting to waste a resource, I asked an Edo Sashimono artisan, a special kind of traditional joiner, to custom-make me a pair that I could carry in my pocketbook.

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