Custom Acrylic Shop Tokyo

[CMadok]

I laid down on my office floor and now i can’t get back up, so I’m typing this on my phone. I’m too tired.

Today i went to an acrylic shop that is only open 3 days a week for 4 hours each day. The train was going to be almost 2 hours because of all the weird transfers, and the weather is nice, so i decided to ride my bike, which google maps said was faster than the train.

Getting there wasn’t so bad. I got to the shop, and it turns out the owner is a second generation acrylic maker. His father started the shop and now he makes acrylic. He’s at least in his 50s, so they’ve been doing this for a while. Tons of cool acrylic, none of them were what I was looking for, but came out with a bunch of stuff i didn’t need.

The shop is set up like a record store, and the larger sizes are record sizes.

Since he makes the acrylic, they are all unique, even from piece to piece. And he likes to recycle. So, the confetti from party poppers, he uses those in his acrylic, old kimono, paint, scraps from cut acrylic, even used coffee filters and coffee grounds.

Even the scraps, they polish them and sell those too. Every part is used from the cuts (they’ve got 3 trotec speedy 300s in there).

I bought some pieces with lace, recycled obi from a kimono, and coffee grounds. The coffee grounds one looks really cool, because he added air bubbles… not sure how well it’ll cut, but I’ll try later… maybe when i get off the floor.

Going back was tough because it was so dark…and i was already tired when i got here… it’s been a few years since i rode my bike 25 miles… sometimes i don’t remember the mileage i put on this body of mine and putt around like I’m a kid, I’m past my warranty and starting to fall apart… and I’ll forget again in a few weeks…

Edit:

This is why i was looking for an acrylic shop. I could not find grey acrylic online here. So i went in person to search, so i could turn this building-provided office door sign:

Into this office door sign (even though i couldn’t find the exact grey, this one worked, and it had a matte side and glossy side-matte was used):

[evansd2]

Sounds like a fun trip. That’s really cool.

[CMadok]

It was very cool to talk to the guy who makes it all. He was happy to have a customer from the US. It’s not a tourist area of Tokyo.

[cynd11]

Oh gosh—I’d be like a kid in a candy shop! Japanese goods are so appealing anyway.

[dwardio]

@cynd11

Japanese goods are so appealing anyway.

With the exception of “Saki ika,” aka ‘torn squid’ aka ‘squid jerky.’ YMMV, of course.

[evermorian]

An artisanal acrylic maker! How fun!

[deirdrebeth]

Oh that store looks dangerous! You’re definitely lucky to have something so cool within (long) biking distance

Think of it was an exercise/reward system!

[CMadok]

I love squid jerky/shredded and whole dried squid and there are different flavors too.

[dwardio]

Yup – I was introduced to it back in the late '60s. Still not a fan.

[shogun]

I would be totally broke after leaving there. That looks amazing! I don’t suppose he sells online?

[evermorian]

I grew up eating squid jerky. Sensei described it as “Japanese chewing gum.”

[kelley1]

I had some dried squid when I traveled in Korea. I thought it was pretty good–taste and texture–but I couldn’t look at it, as it appeared to be something run over by a piece of asphalt rolling equipment. Tasty, but very very flat.

Did I say it was flat?

[shop]

very cool stuff. makes me think a lot of going into a high-end stained glass store. in face, a lot of that could make really cool faux stained glass pieces.

[PrintToLaser]

A lot of the guys from Hawaii in the Navy got ‘care packages’ from home, no cookies, but dried squid was a favorite treat. You think onion on someone’s breath is bad? IMO that stuff leaves you with the strongest ‘fish’ smell and taste I’ve ever experienced. I tried it, and finished it, but 50 years later I can still smell it just remembering…

[ekla]

@kelley1

Did I say it was flat?

Curious, I’ll have to try the Korean version. The Chinese and Japanese versions are no flatter than any other jerky, tho more stringy appearing. My favorite ones are almost ‘fluffy’.

[MakerMatthew]

Love to see his process! Wow! Totally cool!

[emilyhuh]

So cool. Stores in Tokyo/Japan are amazing.
This is me in every single store in Japan:

[shop]

onion breath is one thing. but when i was in the army, i could have told you which guys in my unit married a Korean wife based on the smell of the kimchee in their sweat when we ran in formation.

[CMadok]

I grew up on the Korean kind. The whole squid, and the fluffy shredded stuff that @ekla mentioned. Here in Japan, my favorite is this one that is also flat, but has a semi-spicy yakiniku sauce on it…i don’t think it’s technically squid… might be some kind of fish blend, but it’s delicious (my favorite korean jerky is the seasoned filefish).

My mother is Korean. My dad is not a fan of kimchi or squid and used to complain when she would heat it up over an open stove top flame or microwave it to heat it up and make it softer. They aren’t married anymore

@shogun they do sell online, and i think they even will ship overseas on a case by case basis. But it’s pricey. The one record sized board i bought i think was 3250 yen, so like 22 dollars. And the others i bought were postcard sized. I spent about 10,900 yen (like 73 dollars) for 6 pieces of acrylic total (the 5 small pieces i have shown and a plain grey-record sized). Forgot to add the link

オリジナルアクリル販売Tokyo Acryl | 東京都

If i had to take the train, that would’ve added another 2,100 yen to the cost

[CMadok]

Right now is a good time for that. The yen is so weak against the dollar. I’m so happy when i see how much i spent at the grocery store. Not only is the food cheaper, but it looks even cheaper to me because I’m still running on US dollars.