Kanban (Dojo Nameboard) to Somerset

 I just thought I would share a few photos of a Kanban for Somerset Karate

The client supplied an existing logo which we imported into our graphics package.

The first word is Somerset so Katakana is used, the next two kanji read Golden Dragon and then the last four are a little more familiar to most reading karate dojo. Internal photos do not always show the kanban to their best so I thought I would also take a picture outside the workshop in the sunshine.

Current costings can be found in the relevant shop page please click on the button below to view.

"Click" to go to - Plaques and Name Board section shop page

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Hanko for the GM

We seem to have had a run on "Specials" recently, so here is another project to share with you.

In Japan hierarchy is important, when the Japanese meet it is usually quite formal. Business cards may be exchanged and should be shown respect, looked at closely and even admired. To a Westerner it is a little strange to need to know if your are of a "higher" or "lower" standing than the person you are conversing with. The language may also change, one person may adopt the "polite" form while the other adopts a more "common" form in word selection.

In the workplace your (Immediate) Boss would be Joushi 上司
Your (Immediate) Subordinate would be Buka 部下
Your (Immediate) Senior is Senpai 先輩
and your (Immediate) Junior kohai 後輩
The last two are regularly used in Martial Arts, anyway I digress .....

We have on file a large selection of martial art ranks, titles etc, but I also have Japanese business titles. So when a client was asking for a design for a hanko that he could use in his position of General Manager we had a source to reference.

General Manager is Buchou 部長. We also used the kanji for Great Britain - Eikoku - 英国. There other names that can be used for the UK etc, but Eikoku is the term the organisation has used in the past .

We have never mixed Kanji and English text in a Hanko before and not sure how the concept arose but we really like it. The Client was offered a more traditional stamp with kanji only, but we really like this mix of East and West, hope you do too.

If you are interested in purchasing a hanko, please contact us with some initial details of your requirements to sotosabisu@btinternet.com

Current costings can be found in the relevant shop page please click on the button below to view.

"Click" to go to - Hanko and Inkan section shop page

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This weeks hanko "Specials"

This week we have done a few "Specials" that I thought I would share with you.
Although 90% of our business is producing what I would call "semi-traditional" stamps now and again we are asked if we can look at making something a little different.

The first was for a personal hanko, this would normally be first name for a westerner, but our client requested to have both names we produced some graphics for him to look at.

and he selected the Square stamp with both his names in a square border.

The second stamp was a request to make a self stamping version of the client's traditional hanko, but the customer wanted a larger stamp to fill more of the space in the grading book.

We again produced a few graphics and the client requested to add his full name as well as the Katakana for Harris.

The Third stamp was a request for a club logo in a hanko, the graphics the club had was very poor quality so we had a bit of work to do to to convert to a vector image that we could use, but we got there in the end.

The last was a bit of a "blue sky" request from the "Karate Doctor" he had a graphic below

and requested if we could turn this into a hanko. Well there were a few challenges, a stamp can only be a single colour of course. We had to start from scratch and started with a line drawing of a doctor, we added a dogi with a rising sun and added the kanji for karate Isha - Karate doctor.

Commercially custom stamps don't make any sense, they would be very expensive if we charged for all the time it takes to create them. We are happy for them to be a "lost leader" and enjoy providing a service for fellow martial artists.

If you are interested in purchasing a hanko, please contact us with some initial details of your requirements to sotosabisu@btinternet.com

Current costings can be found in the relevant shop page please click on the button below to view.

"Click" to go to - Hanko and Inkan section shop page

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Custom Chops to Colorado

It is always nice to make Hanko for returning customers.
Richard Bennett Shihan was an early customer of ours back in 2015 and required an additional five stamps for both Uechi Ryu Kokusai Kyolai and Matayoshi Kobudo Shinbukai.

We have subsidised worldwide P&P since the previous order and are still charging the same cost for stamps four years on, so they are actually cheaper now than before.

The Hanko are not to a traditional layout or size at 35mm * 35mm; we recommend this size for certificate stamps.

Our updated file for the client

We retain the graphic design for customers in our files so we can ensure repeat orders are in the same layout if required.

The five new stamps tested before shipment

Below is our short montage of how we built up the original Hanko for Uechi Ryu Kokusai Kyokai back in 2015.

 

If you are interested in purchasing a hanko, please contact us with some initial details of your requirements to sotosabisu@btinternet.com

Current costings can be found in the relevant shop page please click on the button below to view.

"Click" to go to - Hanko and Inkan section shop page

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If you are accessing this site on your phone you may wish to view the "Web version" and access the menu in the side-bar to navigate. Just scroll down for the link.

A Dojo Nafudakake for Hakkoryu Michigan

We recently completed a nafudakake for another Hakkoryu dojo, this time in Michigan.
Every commission is custom and working with the client this piece incorporated a double width nafuda for their logo. Unfortunately they did not have a high resolution copy of the Hakkoryu mon and kanji so this was developed in our graphics package to match as closely as possible.

We have produced a short montage showing all the steps of the project from inception to completion, we hope you enjoy it.



Current costings can be found in the relevant shop page please click on the button below to view.

"Click" to go to - Nafuda section shop page

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New Style Dojo Kun plaque launched

We recently produced  a club dojo kun plaque for Haxby Shotokan Karate Club.

The Senior instructor wanted a dojo kun plague that his students could read (or be directed to) at the entrance to the dojo.

We incorporated both Romaji and English translations. The Roamji helps with students reading / learning the text and the English translation with their understanding. In this example we have used the club's / association's English translation, but we are happy to customise the English translation as required.

We also incorporated the club's logo into the design, which we had on file from a previous commission. 

If you send us your logo and we will import it into our graphic design package. If the resolution is too poor, we will look at reproducing it from scratch. If we convert your "high resolution" image there is no charge for vector conversion. If we have to reproduce from scratch or design a logo for you we will discount this service by 50%.

 The plaque is made from 12mm mdf with a grade "A" veneer on the face and grade "B" balancer on the reverse. This is far more stable than a solid piece of maple; which would warp and crack in a centrally heated environment at this size. 

The panel was sanded down to 320 grade and a few coats of sanding sealer are added, it is then french polished before the graphics are added.

We were really pleased with the finished plaque and thought we would add it to our range. The plaque in its frame measures 475 x 315mm, you can also choose to have mirror plates added or a normal cord for picture hanging. If you would like to commission a dojo kun plaque for your dojo just drop us an E Mail to sotosabisu@btinternet.com

Current costings can be found in the relevant shop page please click on the button below to view.

"Click" to go to - Kun and Mokuroku section shop page

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Something special for a rock

I had a call recently from an existing client who wanted something special to award his senior grade Sensei who had been with him for fifteen years and "been a rock."
He wanted to include a dedication to service, ideally in kanji.

We don't do translations of free text per se, but we suggested incorporating a Yojijukugo, a four character ideogram. Below is the graphic design sent to our client.

 

The Yojijukugo we selected was Ikki tousen which translates to having the capacity equal to one thousand warriors. Below is a photo of the finished commission, maple nafuda in a black kake. The very light coloured hardwoods are best for lighter colours, especially the orange in the school logo.

If you have a project in mind, feel free to drop us a E Mail to sotosabisu@btinternet.com

Current costings can be found in the relevant shop page please click on the button below to view.

"Click" to go to - Nafuda section shop page

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If you are accessing this site on your phone you may wish to view the "Web version" and access the menu in the side-bar to navigate. Just scroll down for the link.