Unique Coloring Pencils With Japanese Colors

Seria, a 100-yen shop (equivalent to a one-dollar shop), produces a set of coloring pencils that a features colors that are traditionally Japanese.

Seria's coloring pencils are really nice. Although there's plenty of lead left, I liked it so much that I bought some spares. I like Seiji and Tobi in particular.

Wait a minute... Seria's coloring pencil's really good! The color comes out really well too.

So we decided to get it ourselves!

Understanding colors the Japanese way - 12 Japanese coloring pencils

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The length of these Japanese coloring pencils are slightly shorter than the standard size, at around 9 cm (about half the length of standard coloring pencils).

Inside are 12 Japanese colors. Although there may be an English alternative colors, the names make it quite traditional and poetic.

(Sumi)
(Tobi)
(Kuri)
緑青 (Rokusho)
青磁 (Seiji)
露草 (Tsuyukusa)
瑠璃 (Ruri)
菖蒲 (Shobu)
牡丹 (Botan)
(Beni)
(Anzu)
金茶 (Kincha)

Let's un-box it. what we've noticed first was the darkness of the color "Rokusho". It's quite difficult to tell which color is which just by looking at them.

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To work out the depth of each color, we scribbled each of them on paper. We were expecting colors that are dark, but they are actually quite bright. The colors might give us a different impression if we use textured paper, like the Japanese washi.

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The great thing is that this 12-color set is only 100 yen (approx. 0.80 USD). Getting this much quality at this price is fantastic. Because it's short, it's easy to carry, and it might be easy for kids to use.

If you are in Japan, we recommend you go and visit a Seria store and check this out. It could turn out to be a great souvenir gift as well!


By - grape Japan editorial staff.