Somehow I go out to write a handwritten card.

When I am going to write a handwritten card to someone I care about, for some reason, I get excited and want to go out. With a humming tune, I open my desk drawer, pick out a few cards or postcards from my stationery box, and place them in a clear carrying case. It’s like going on a picnic. I put them in a tote bag along with fountain pens, colored pens, masking tapes, and other stationeries, and I am ready to go.

Recently, I have been frequenting a public library that just opened near my house, an old private house café run by a lovely couple, and a shared office that I use as a subscriber. I choose the place according to my mood and schedule.

I went to the library yesterday. The library has a drop-in coworking space where I can immerse myself in my work to my heart’s content. Sitting at a comfortable desk facing the window, I open the clear case with the cards and think, “Which card should I send this person? It’s fun to spend time like that.

Embossed Washi Cards that do not have concave backsides and appear gorgeously

First, I thought of the face of my senior colleague, H. She was a great help to me when I was working at an advertising company. I chose “Haibara Card, Embossed Washi ‘Chou-you,’ for her. The advertising production company she manages as president and copywriter is celebrating its 10th anniversary. So, I wanted to write a congratulatory message to her. I admire H, who is stylish, attractive, and has a great sense of. Her words, “Copywriting has the power to influence people and society,” really stuck in me at the time, and I still cherish them today.

The “Haibara card embossed washi” series is made of high-quality Echizen washi (Japanese paper) handmade by a unique technique and embossed with Haibara Chiyogami’s original patterns. The Haibara embossed designs are not the embossing often seen. Most embossed cards are usually made using a convex and concave mold and sandwiching the card from the top and bottom, resulting in a concave backside; the backs of Hibara cards are not dented.

Since this is a trade secret using a special technique, I cannot tell you how they are made in detail, but the gorgeous and lovely patterns appear softly and three-dimensionally on these cards, making them tasteful. In addition to the “embossed” design, the card’s charm is further enhanced by “deckle-edged” (the edges of the washi are not trimmed off), which allows you to enjoy the original texture of the washi. In addition to “Chou-you” with a chrysanthemum motif, the lineup includes “Rokka” with snow, “Kingyo” with a cool goldfish, and “Shima ni Sakura” with a cherry blossom. Other than adding congratulatory messages and gifts, I recommend using them for seasonal letters.

The elegant pearl foil on the “Colored glass card” makes my heart flutter.

Next, I took out from the case the “Haibara card ‘Colored glass Snow'” to give to my sister, whose birthday is coming soon. I immediately wrote with a fountain pen, “Happy birthday! I found a nice French restaurant in Nihonbashi. Let’s go out for a delicious meal soon.”

Colored glass card is made of high-quality foreign paper instead of washi. It features the typical Haibara chiyogami Colored glass pattern using a processing technique known as foil stamping. Foil stamping is usually used to make a design stand out or to add a sense of luxury. This card uses pearl foil (a transparent film with a pearl print) to make the Colored glass design appear in a pearl and elegant way.
You can use this card for many purposes, including spelling out congratulatory messages, invitations to wedding receptions, and formal greeting cards for companies. Colored glass cards were also used to announce Haibara’s newly renovated Nihonbashi head office.

Gyokkou cards with graceful Japanese paintings and beautiful postcards with Haibara designs.

The third card I took out was the “Haibara Card: Gyokkou series – Orchid.” I chose this beautiful card with Japanese paintings to give to my grandmother, who lives far away, and I don’t get to see her often. In addition to Orchid, the Gyokkou series has six other patterns: Cherry blossom, Plum blossom, Wisteria, Rose, and Bird, painted by Gyokkou Tanaka, a renowned cherry blossom painter and an orthodox inheritor of the Shijo School of Japanese painting, who contributed to the teaching of Japanese painting. It is one of Haibara’s long-selling products and has many fans from long ago.
In addition to sympathy cards and seasonal letters, the Bird is used for weddings, and the Plum for new year’s greetings.

The last one is picture postcard “Sasagiri Jutai-bird (bamboo No. 3)” (Yushin Ayaoka). I send a cheer to my friend who recently changed jobs and started walking in a new stage of his life says, “I will always support you!” The auspicious design depicts bamboo and paulownia, considered sacred plants since ancient times, and the legendary “Jutai-bird.”

Haibara’s postcard lineup includes many other attractive products featuring Haibara’s original designs. You can choose according to the recipient and the purpose of the message, such as those made of washi, those with a large margin for writing a message, and those with a full-page design.

If you always write handwritten messages at home, why not go out and write them? In an unusual space, write your letter while thinking of the recipient on a card with extraordinary excitement. I am sure you will come up with more new and beautiful words than usual.