Our Story

Ink, Earth & Fire

Obsidian & Flame is built on trips to Japan we make ourselves — kiln by kiln, workshop by workshop — choosing every piece by hand from independent artists and family-run kilns working across the country's traditional craft mediums.

Some of what we bring back is new work, made to order and fired specifically for us. Some is pottery that would otherwise have gone unsold — seconds and overstock a kiln couldn't move through its usual channels. We think a piece with a small imperfection still deserves a home, so we carry those too, alongside genuine vintage sourced from Japan, South Korea, and beyond, each piece inspected and chosen individually rather than bought in bulk.

We don't believe tableware belongs behind glass. A chawan is for whisking matcha; a guinomi is for sake, shared with whoever is sitting across from you. Our pieces are built to be used until they wear in, not admired until they gather dust. In Japan, there's a long-held idea that everyday things can be beautiful, and that living with beautiful objects — in look and in taste alike — elevates the experience of using them.

Many of our pieces draw on nature itself — earth and sky, and the endless variation nature creates. Just as no two things shaped by nature are quite alike, and no two people carry the same character, each vessel carries its own individual expression.