Cats in a Sunny Spot by Atelier Yu

Two cats curled up together in a patch of afternoon sun — a small scene, painted by hand onto every piece, and the most loved thing we stock. The series runs across a full table setting: a mug for the morning, a teapot and yunomi pair for the afternoon, rice bowls and a plate for dinner, and a matcha bowl for the quiet part of the day, each carrying the same cats so they read as a set without ever looking matched. They come from Atelier Yu, a studio at the foot of Mount Hakusan in Ishikawa, the sacred mountain that has watched over Kutani potters for centuries, where a small team of women paint in the five traditional Kutani colours known as Kutani gosai but soften them — the line lighter, the subjects warmer, animals and wildflowers rather than formal motifs. Kutani ware has been made in the Kaga region for more than 350 years, known for bold outlines and the brilliance of those five colours, and it is still made in small studios by hand, which is why no two pieces are identical: colour depth shifts, lines run a little heavier or finer. That is the point of it. Every piece arrives in its own gift box. Made in Japan.