Those of you who read my last post about my Chabako - Japanese Tea Ceremony chest may just remember that I finished off the post by explaining I had got a bit confused with the Japanese and Chinese tea ceremonies paraphernalia. I therefore ended up purchasing some items for each. Hmmm!! So with the Japanese chest completed, I decided to complete the purchase of a full set of Chinese tea items and make another chest for them.
So this is the my Chinese tea set chest. I was given some 'manufactured' veneers a few years ago and decided to use it. The grain was even and the tones of the veneers I thought perfect for the classic 'Louis cube ' parquetry I wanted to try.
Thinking it would be too much to cover the whole chest with Louis cube, I went for a simple straight veneer pattern on the sides back and top. The cross banding was another of the 'manufactured' veneers simulating Macassar ebony - I think!
For the interior I used jarrah veneer and solid jarrah for the edging. I also included an internal drawer for tea towels, placemats and other items.
The Tea tray in the bottom, made from Bamboo, was purchased from AliExpress for peanuts, along with all the other items. It contains some more purchased tea items - wooden tongues, a scoop and a spoon. I made a separate rack for the tea cups and a small box for the Aroma cups.
All the pottery and ceramic items were put in velvet bags to prevent them rattling and getting chipped!
I quite liked the finished chest - though maybe it's a bit loud! I always like searching for, and then choosing the bits and pieces that go into these sorts of chest and boxes - its part of their appeal!!
Job done, so it will now go for sale at the local gallery.
As always thanks for looking. Please ask if you have any questions.
I went back to look at the Japanese chest again, and looks like the Chinese set dwarfs the Japanese one. Is there that much difference in the 2, or is it perhaps that the scale of what I am seeing is different, and overall size is the same? I would have thought the Japanese would be the fussier of the 2. Plus is this something every family would have, or just the wealthy ones?
As always your work on this new chest is impeccable, well done, and thanks for sharing it with us.
Hi George. You are correct the Chinese chest is larger - well higher, but the internal volume isn't that much different. Having said that the Chinese chest is almost 100mm /4inch taller, but the Japanese chest is 85mm/2.5in deeper.
The Chinese chest does have more items. - The Tea Tray in the bottom is extra. - The Chinese set has 6 small cups the Japanese only one larger one. - The Chinese set includes aroma cups the Japanese don't use them. But the Japanese items are generally larger. The Japanese tea set chest seems to have been a traditional family item judging by the numbers from the early 1900s you can see on Etsy. And by the way there are two main styles my Chabako and a much taller one that you can see on the Etsy link. There were only a few Chinese chest on the net when I was researching, and they were much newer and more like a small suitcase! So my Chinese isn't really typical, as it is based on the Japanese Chabako design.
