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Top and bottom panels of 3 sun box

Continuing from last time, I'm currently attaching the top and bottom panels to the 3 sun boxes. This time, the design features three types of ko-yosegi, Ichimatsu and walnut wood. Some of these are made at the request of my client shop owners.

This red and white color checkered pattern (Ichimatsu) made with walnut wood was actually created quite some time ago (3 or 4 years ago) and will be sold out while supplies last. This Ichimatsu yosegi has already been glued to the boards and is in storage. Sticking unused pieces of yosegi-sheet to boards is a good way to store them. If the parquet sheet is left for too long, it will dry out and fall apart. Therefore, it is necessary to maintain moderate humidity and store it in a plastic bag, but I am a little worried. Gluing it to the board in advance like this is a good solution. After applying it, I must store the boards away from UV rays, as they will discolor if exposed to sunlight.

The usual ko-yosegi is pasted on plywood made of a wood called "Shina." Shina wood is very white, so when the ko-yosegi pattern is pasted on it, the colors can be seen beautifully. However, in the past few years, the price of this Shina plywood has risen significantly (it is now about twice what it was three years ago). Therefore, this time I stuck the walnut sheet onto an MDF board. MDF is a little lower in cost. I will have to use MDF boards from now on for small boxes and sheets with opaque backing like walnut sheets.

MDF boards are good because they give crafttsmen less trouble when processing them, but they are heavier than plywood and are weak against water. If you spill coffee or something on an MDF board, the board will swell and deform due to the moisture. Please be careful😅