Edo Kiriko is a traditional craft that has been around since the Edo period. The Kiriko culture is still deeply rooted in the Asakusa area. In this town, there is a store that offers Edo Kiriko experiences to tourists. Glass Factory Sokichi sells glass products, and has started offering experience classes in the hopes of spreading the culture of Edo Kiriko even further. We spoke to Soichiro, who is in charge of the experience business.

His passion led him to open a specialty store for glassware for bars

Glass Factory Sokichi started selling glass products more than 30 years ago when it was founded by Soichiro's father.

"It seems he always liked glass products. He also liked going to bars, so he started a store specializing in glass products for bars as a job that would allow him to use both of his interests. I heard that at the time he often went directly to bars in Ginza to do business, rather than to Asakusa."

The current store opened 20 years ago. Even back then, there was only one machine available for experience making, and people who were interested in Kiriko glass would visit.


We want more people to know the fun of Kiriko! Expanding our experience business

While applying water, the glass is scraped with a diamond blade.

Demand for experience classes began to increase 10 years ago, and multiple machines were installed. Currently, there are a total of 18 machines, and the company can accommodate up to 36 people. Soichiro, who is in charge of the experience business, was originally interested in craftsmanship and joined Sokichi with the desire to further expand the glass-related business. He is working hard to spread the culture of Kiriko, such as by serving foreign tourists in English and Chinese.

"We have a wide variety of people, including tourists from overseas, school trip group from other regions, and domestic tourists, of all ages and genders, who come to experience the craft. Many people from Asia are familiar with Edo Kiriko, so some even come here for the Kiriko experience."

You can take the activity home on the day you experience it, or you can have it mailed overseas, so it's especially popular with customers who want to do just one more activity before they go home.

There are over 100 different patterns that can be engraved in a one-day experience. Draw lines along the prepared template, then use the lines as a guide to carve the glass. The appeal is that you can freely combine patterns on the bottom, sides, and other accents to create your own Edo Kiriko.

If there are any difficult patterns, there are also glass pieces available for practice on, so you can check the amount of pressure you should use and the thickness of the lines.

Use the template to draw the pattern

There are also classes for those who want to master Kiriko.

By combining basic techniques, you can create patterns like this.

For those who want to try patterns that cannot be mastered in a day, we also have Kiriko classes available. You can also aim to improve your skills through a full-fledged curriculum.

"People of all ages attend as a hobby. They seem to enjoy continuing their studies over a long period of time and acquiring new skills. We've even had international students attend almost every day."

Edo Kiriko may seem difficult at first glance. At Glass Factory Sokichi, the instructors provide detailed explanations and support, allowing even beginners to create satisfying pieces of work. At the end, you can even take a photo of your own illuminated work on a simple photography set. Glass Factory Sokichi is not just a place to purchase Edo Kiriko products, but a place where you can fully enjoy the experience.

グラスファクトリー創吉
電話番号：03-6802-8948
住所：〒111-0034 東京都台東区雷門2丁目1−14
アクセス：東京メトロ銀座線浅草駅から徒歩1分
HP：https://www.sokichi-workshop.com/
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