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 the twentieth (!) WORKING HANDS, we visited Sachiyo, the shop owner of Yoka at one of her recent pop ups at Small Shop in La Canada.
Q1. How do you use penco PP ruled A5 & grid A6 notebooks and Storage Caddy in Small? We really like that your penco stationeries are all color coordinated in navy.
We also see you’ve been using the 2024 Weekly Planner Iris B6, how do you like this planner?
I always keep a PP ruled A5 notebook in my purse for writing down tasks, work, personal, anything that comes to mind. It's like my go-to for detailed reminder notes. I'm constantly taking pics and adding new products to my website, and honestly, I easily lose track of what I need to do… This small notebook helps me organize everything!
I bring the gridded PP notebook to my pop-up events as my nice newsletter sign up book. My customers can write their contact info using a cool Hightide pen!
The storage caddy is my go-to box for organizing my tools that I take to my events. It holds all necessary tools – scissors, staplers, pens, and tapes all in one place. This makes it so much easier! Just grab it and I'm all set for the event without forgetting anything!
Lastly, for the 2024 planner, it's basically my full day-to-day life in book form, keeping all my schedules straight…including my kids’ schedules too! There’s something about physically writing down and seeing the whole month laid out on paper that really helps me visualize everything I need to do. I absolutely love the feeling of filling out my calendar - it’s so satisfying!
It especially helped me organize my business trip plans. Meeting with 3-6 artisans a day can get tricky for my schedules, but having a physical calendar helps me keep track of my tight schedules.
The two sections (one for the calendar and the other for planning/notes) help me switch gears in my head. The main calendar keeps me track of plans, and the notes section reminds me of all the little details.
The two bookmark strings are handy for flipping between the calendar and notes - like switching from work to being a full-time mom!
Q2. In our online / tech driven world, what does it mean to do things by hand to you?
Doing things with my hands is like a direct line to my brain, feelings, and memories. I run this little online shop, but everything I do is super hands-on and physical.
Visiting the artisans in Japan, handpicking every product, pack & ship, taking pics, bringing products to the event, handing items to everyone, writing thank you letters to my online customers - all by hand!
I believe that hands-on experiences are something we just can't live without. They give us deeper memories, even in today's digital age. I really enjoy meeting people and exchanging stories, and I love that way.
Q3. Pen or pencil?
Ah! That’s a tough question! If I had to choose I would say…pen!
Q4. What’s in your pen case, if you don’t use a pen case, how do you organize and store your stationeries?
I don’t use a pen case since I always forget where I place it….! I keep my stationaries in the ceramic cups and bowls I adore. They sit on my desk, and I just love the view of my favorite things snuggled up together!
Q5. What is your most favorite stationery?
MONO eraser and Tombow pencils! These are my forever must-haves since I was a kid. Also love that old school dragonfly logo. Dual brush pens are also my obsessions too!
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Sachiyo Itabashi is a Kumamoto native, and now lives in LA. She curates artisanal craft goods from Kyushu and runs Yoka store online. She visits her home town, Kumamoto and other Kyushu areas to meet the craftspeople and hand selects each piece. The buying trip videos are a must watch!
Check out her shop link below for more info and future pop up events.
Yoka – Good Things
