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©Kaikado
©Kaikado
©Kaikado
©Kaikado
©Kaikado

Takahiro Yagi

  • Kaikado
  • Metalworker
  • Kyoto, Japan
  • Master Artisan
Takahiro Yagi Metalworker
Contact
Japanese, English
Hours:
Monday to Saturday 09:00 - 18:00
Phone:
+81 753515788
©Kaikado

Making tea caddies into heirlooms

  • • Takahiro is a master in using tin to make traditional tea caddies
  • • Tea caddy designs have not changed in nearly 150 years
  • • A single caddy takes 130 to 140 steps to create

Kaikado is a metal working studio in Kyoto specialising in tea caddies, and Takahiro Yagi is its 6th generation metalworker. Since 1875, the workshop has been crafting softly sheened, sleek, minimalist tea caddies that are engineered to be opened easily yet airtight when closed to keep the contents dry and fresh. Takahiro is bridging the past and the future by applying traditional techniques to upcycle materials into tea caddies such as tin food cans with dynamic graphics. He collaborates with companies to design cans for various uses. He believes that his family's craft legacy is not only to make objects that can be enjoyed now, but for them to be lasting household items, almost an heirloom to pass on from one generation to the next.

Read the full interview

Works

  • ©Kaikado
  • ©Kaikado
  • ©Kaikado
  • ©Kaikado
  • ©Kaikado
Photo: ©Kaikado
Remade Mobiloil can

This is a vintage Mobiloil tin can with the iconic pegasus logo. It has been made as a double-structured tin tea caddy with a soft sheen which is obtained by a traditional process called dobozuke. This processed tinplate is used for both the exterior and interior. The inner lid has a small brass knob.

Photo: ©Kaikado
Sclafani

This is a double-structured brass tea caddy with a gold, soft sheen surface. The inner lid has a small knob and the interior of the can is lined with a tinplate with a dull sheen, obtained by a traditional process called dobozuke. A Sclafani tomato recreation lines the exterior.

Photo: ©Kaikado
Remade nori can

This is a remade vintage nori (seaweed) can with a crimson circle on which dynamic Japanese lettering spells out nori in a brown charcoal colour. The texture of the can is dull and patina adds character to the surface while the form of the caddy remains clean and the beveled edges give it a softness.

Photo: ©Kaikado
Porsche oil can

This is a sleek Porsche motor oil tin can with an image of three vintage cars, used as the material for this double-structured tin tea caddy with a soft sheen surface. The inner lid has a small brass knob and the interior of the can is lined with a tinplate with a dull sheen, obtained by a traditional process called dobozuke. The coffee spoon is made of brass.

Photo: ©Kaikado
Copper tea caddies

These signature double-structure kaikado tea caddies have a sleek and futuristic form, but the design is in fact the same as what it has been for over a century. The inner lid has a small knob and the interior of the can is made with a tinplate with a dull sheen, obtained by a traditional process called dobozuke.

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