Thank you to all who joined us at the Alderney Gate Public Library last night! We hope your interest in ikebana has been piqued!
Thank you to the Halifax Public Libraries for inviting us!
(Photo by the ikebana shop. All rights reserved.)
Our Tea Is Safe (Part 2)
There has been recent news that radiation has been detected in Japanese tea leaves produced in Minami-ashigara City, Kanagawa Prefecture. Certainly a cause of concern but this place is still far away from Kyoto, where our tea is produced. But to be prudent, the Kyoto Tea Industry Cooperative Association had this year’s new tea crop tested for radiation. Result: NO RADIATION DETECTED. On top of this, our tea farmer went the extra mile and commissioned an independent test to check specifically the new tea crop produced in 2011 on their farm. Result: NO RADIATION DETECTED.
Copies of the certifications are reproduced here.
We do our best to provide correct information. But in the end, it is up to each individual to choose what to believe. If one is not comfortable with Japanese tea at this point in time, we well respect that. What we can promise is that we will not compromise safety and quality.
And by the way, at the time of writing, all the tea being sold in our shop are from last year’s harvest. So far, we haven’t ordered any new harvest tea yet. We will make it known to you when we start putting 2011-harvest teas on our shelves. [See also “Part 1” of why our tea is safe: /theikebanashop/our-tea-is-safe-part-1]
Origami Spinning Top
(Photo by the ikebana shop. All rights reserved.)
We made an origami spinning top and we thought you might like to see what it looks like and what it does. It is made from 3 sheets of square origami paper. No cutting, no pasting.
We are thinking of including this in our next origami workshop. No date has been decided yet so please wait for our announcement.
Enjoy!
Origami At Keshen Goodman
Thank you to all who joined us at the Keshen Goodman Library. We did an origami demonstration and workshop as part of the Asian Heritage Month Open House. People got to see flat pieces of paper transform into cats, dogs, cranes, boxes, watches, balloons, etc.
The workshop followed right after the demonstration. Many people came to learn a few tricks. What was the most popular item? The wristwatch origami!
Thank you to the Halifax Public Libraries for inviting us!
(All photos by the ikebana shop. All rights reserved.)
Always Upright Daruma
“Nana korobi ya oki.” (七転八起) is a Japanese proverb that means “fall down seven times, get up eight times.” It attests to the never-give-up-spirit. Our little daruma dolls will always stay upright no matter how much you tip them over!
“Daruma” refers to the Buddhist monk Bodhidharma (ca. 5th/6th century). He is credited to be the founder of Zen Buddhism. In Japan, daruma dolls are symbols of perseverance (towards a goal) and good luck. They are gifts of encouragement.
Hand-made right here in Nova Scotia! $2.50 ea. Limited supply.
(Photo by the ikebana shop. All rights reserved.)
Origami Workshop 4/08-09 (Fri-Sat)
Start spring by having fun and learning something new!
Our Tea Is Safe (Part 1)
Recently, customers have asked if our tea is "all right". Many are worried that our tea supply might be disrupted due to the current troubles in Japan (Thank you for liking our tea so much!) and not a few voiced out concerns about elevated radiation levels affecting the tea...which I believe is a very valid concern.
First of all, all the tea being sold right now are from last year’s harvest. This year’s spring harvest has not begun yet. (Normally it is around latter part of April.)
But will 2011 harvest be bad? No.
Our tea is farmed in Kyoto. Kyoto is about 670 km from Sendai and is about 600 km from the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant. Kyoto did not suffer any damage from the earthquake. Kyoto is not experiencing higher than normal radiation levels. Our tea is shipped out of Kansai International Airport (in Osaka) which is also far from affected areas.
Our promise: If we hear of any kind of incident/news that will have an adverse affect on our tea supply, we will be the first one to pull the plug. [See also “Part 2” of why our tea is safe: /theikebanashop/our-tea-is-safe-part-2]
We are monitoring the situation closely. But please don't take our word for it. The internet can provide almost real-time information. The following links we found most useful to check on radiation levels in Kansai (the Kyoto-Osaka region). We are sure there are still other sources out there.
http://gebweb.net/japan-radiation-map/
http://www.aris.pref.kyoto.jp/map_00.html (Japanese only)
http://www.o-ems.pref.osaka.jp/ (Japanese only)
Below are snapshots (taken on 3/29) of some data.
Below is what radiation levels measured in Kyoto looked like in the past month (from 3/29 back). Note that the earthquake happened on 3/11. All six locations are on the northern part of Kyoto. The purple line graph is the radiation level measured in nGy/hr (the left Y-axis). The bar graph is the amount of rain measured in mm (the right Y-axis). For reference, on the left Y-axis, you’ll see some diamond marks. The purple diamond is last year’s highest measured level. The green diamond is last year’s average level. The blue diamond is last year’s lowest level.
Please note that 10~200 nGy/hr is the normal range. Let’s do the math... 200 nGy/hr x 24 hrs x 365 days = 1.752 million nGy for a year...which is well within the 2 million nGy/year estimate of typical background radiation experienced by the average person.
Below is a chart of radiation levels measured in Osaka. (Please note that 10~200 nGy/hr is the normal range.)
Bedford Library Ikebana Workshop
Thank you very much to all participants of the ikebana workshop at the Bedford Public Library last night. We hope you enjoyed it!
Thank you to the Halifax Public Libraries for letting us participate in the Art Attack program.
(All photos by the ikebana shop. All rights reserved.)
Tsurushi-bina
In celebration of Girls’ Day (Mar 3rd), we display these hanging stuffed ornaments called tsurushi-bina. Mothers hand-make them as a prayer for the health and well-being of their daughters.
(All photos by the ikebana shop. All rights reserved.)