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| Chopstick FAQs |
Chopstick Descriptions
To help you select your chopsticks we have included descriptions of the upper handle profile and tip design features for all the chopsticks in our store. Use this guide to choose the style of chopstick that best suits your needs.
Profile - The handles of chopsticks come in a variety of shapes. Most chopsticks are a blended shape of round with a slight squaring of the faces.
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Square: Square to mostly square with some rounding of the edges.
- Round: Perfectly round handles.
- Triangle: Triangular shaped with rounded edges.
- Blended: Almost round with some slight squaring of the faces.
Tips - Some chopsticks have carving or texturing of the finish to help grip foods. If no description of the tip is given there is no texturing or carving on the chopstick tips.
Grooved: Grooved rings have been carved around the tip for about the first 2 inches.
Textured: A slight texture or roughness has been applied to the finish for about the first 2 inches.
Chopstick Origins
Traditional Style Differences
Chopsticks from different parts of Asia traditionally have distinct differences in style and construction. Japanese chopsticks are typically about 9 inches long, generally have anything but round profiles (meaning square, rounded square, hexagon, triangle, octagon, etc.), taper to a fine tip, and feature sophisticated lacquer and finish. Chinese chopsticks traditionally are about 10.5 inches long, feature round or square profiles, have a larger tip that is frequently cut and not rounded, and have lighter lacquer finishes. Chopsticks from Thailand and Vietnam are long like Chinese chopsticks, have round or square profiles, have tips more tapered than Chinese but less than Japanese chopsticks, and relish in their wood and exotic material inlays with no finish except hand polishing of the wood.
Modern Manufacturing Differences
Today China creates a seemingly endless array of what we would call "everyday" Japanese style chopsticks for the export market. "Everyday" Japanese style chopsticks are those that use primarily a decal for the design and are mass produced for use in everyday eating. Many Chinese made chopsticks have the same designs as Japanese made counterparts. However in our experience the Chinese made Japanese style chopsticks tend to have inferior or at least a different level of attention given to the finish work and construction quality, showing blemishes in the lacquer, use of softer woods, inconsistency of shape and poorer quality design of the overlay decal. For this reason we generally sell Japanese made Japanese style chopsticks which cost a bit more.
We do not see Chinese made Japanese style chopsticks in the hand-made and specialty finished chopsticks, which generally includes most Japanese chopsticks priced $8 and up. In fact each region or country's more unique, elaborate, handcrafted styles still come only from their fine indigenous craftspeople. |
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