Takubo Straw amulet ornament "Ume-musubi"

Description

The plum (=“Ume” in Japanese) knot, from the ancient Japanese lucky charms of “Pine, Bamboo, and Plum", is often used as an auspicious knot at ceremonies and is used in celebratory gift wrapping. This straw ornament can also be used as a coaster for hot pots.

Warazaiku, straw amulets, made from rice straw by the Japanese Kai family, who have been growing and braiding rice straw into traditional objects of good fortune for generations. Based in the township of Takachiho, Miyazaki prefecture, an old, sacred ground, sometimes called a “mythic village”, each Warazaiku shape and knot type offers a different story, from guarding against evil to bearing good luck.