As a stationery brand, we are always curious how and what people use our stationery goods for. With this blog series, focusing on the hands at "work" and beyond, we ask five questions about the usage and meaning of the stationery tools to our friends in Los Angeles.
For our thirty eighth Working Hands, we visited Maho Motoyama, a designer and artist who makes intricate paper boxes from Tokyo. She lives and works in Culver City since 2024. Maho invited us over her home studio and showed us the processes of making her paper boxes, including her stationery goods she uses.
Notes on the header image: A mock-up of a replica that Maho made based after Tokyo Apartment, designed by a renowned Japanese architect, Sou Fujimoto
It was created as a merchandise sold at the exhibition, The Architecture of Sou Fujimoto: Primordial Future Forest exhibition at the Mori Art Museum in 2025.
Q1 a: What do you store in the Flat Steel Tool Box? We love that you chose the red out of all the colors. Is there a reason for this specific color?
I use it to store paper scraps. Since I’m always assembling 3D paper models from paper templates, I end up with a lot of leftover scraps when creating the flat patterns.
It seems wasteful to throw them away, so I cut them into manageable sizes and collect them.
I was looking for a box that could hold a lot, so this Flat Steel Tool Box is perfect for that.
I chose the red color because I usually wear black or navy blue, so I like to keep my personal accessories colorful. It lifts my spirits.
Plus, putting them in a red case makes the colorful paper inside look even more fun,
which stimulates my creative motivation. I really love it.
Q1 b: How do you use your penco Storage Container set?
I keep paper patterns and paper boxes in it. When giving paper craft presentations, I need to safely transport my creations to the client’s office, and the penco Storage Container is perfect for that.
I used to put them in cardboard boxes, but I was worried they’d get crushed in my bag, so this plastic container is great.
It’s also nice because it looks cute when I take it out in front of a client.
Q1 c: What do you put in your Compact Tool Box?
I keep all sorts of things in it. For example, tools, a magnifying glass, a craft knife, glue, paper clips, and more. It’s large enough to hold everything all together.
It’s exactly the same depth as my shelf, so even though it has a large capacity, it fits neatly.
I like the orange and gray colors on the outside, but on top of that, there are red and yellow dividers inside, the handle is cute, and I love every little detail.
I really love it.
Q2. In our technology driven world, what does it mean to make things by your hand to you?
I think the best thing about making things with my own hands is that I can think as I create.
I own a 3D printer and use it occasionally, but while it’s convenient, the constant back-and-forth between the digital and physical worlds means I sometimes start to doubt.
“Did I really make this?” or “Is this shape really the right one?”
When I make things by hand, I feel it’s easier to get immediate feedback on the finished shape and the process itself, and it makes trial and error more accessible. So I believe there’s great significance in that.
Q3. Pencils or Mechanical Pencils?
It is difficult to choose. Before I started working, I loved mechanical pencils and used them all the time.
Lately, I’ve started using pencils when I want to sketch loosely or jot down notes quickly, so now I use both pencils and mechanical pencils.
Q4. What’s in your pen case?
My pen case holds colored pencils and pens. I often use colored pencils when brainstorming ideas.
I could put the pencils directly into my toolbox, but they’d get mixed in with other items and be hard to find, so I keep them in a pencil case.
I made this pencil case myself. I found some fabric I liked at a fabric store in Japan and used it to sew it.
For the print on the label, I carved a rubber stamp myself and stamped it on. I think I made it about 15 years ago.
Q5. What is your most favorite stationery?
The Vitra Tool Box is one of my favorites.
My former boss gave it to me. My boss was always very dedicated to craftsmanship, so seeing this reminds me of that and inspires me.
I love the shape and color; it adds a splash of color to my desk and lifts my spirits whenever I take out my tools.
Here, Maho is showing us a folder-full of patterns she's designed and the unfolded papers before they become paper sculptures.
The large format paper cutter that Maho hand-carried from Japan —it can be used for both scoring and cutting.
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Maho Motoyama is a designer and artist. Her work was shown at Milan Design Week and as window displays for Bao Bao Issey Miyake, and recently her paper sculptures have been in the group exhibition, Papier perFormt at Galerie Handwerk in Munich which ends this weekend.
It is such a pleasure that we carry one of her beautiful paper work, Poster Light series. Maho designed the geometric shaped ones, ZIGU, ZAGU and GIZA.
Her Paper Boxes Instagram
hakoyamaho
