Catch us at @objectprojectartbookfair debuting resurgent artefacts, the artist book!
You’ll also be able to see original prints on display and listen to us on panel alongside @spicybabycrab , and @51personaeproject , moderated by @shanikparsons !
We’ll only be carrying 15 copies of this super limited run. See you there ❤️🔥
See you tomorrow at @japanesecanadianculturalcentre ’s Hina Matsuri from 11am-5pm! 🌸 I’ll be bringing a very limited number of books with me, as well as freshly printed postcards and prints.
Ft. Handmade sakura made by my sister.🌸☺️
#hinamatsuri #hiddenjapan #hiddenjapanbook #hanami #花見
I will be tabling for this year’s Hina Matsuri at @japanesecanadianculturalcentre on Sunday, March 8th from 11am-5pm. 🌸 Please come say hi and check out all of the wonderful vendors and events happening that day!
Thank you to Izumi at @japanesecanadianculturalcentre for the generous invitation. :-)
#hinamatsuri #jccc #japantravel #foodillustrator
Update: ALL SPOTS FULL 💕
💌 Wanting to do something a little fun in the depths of winter and to celebrate the arrival of the Fire Horse Year!
If you or someone you know is interested to receive a little snail mail pick-me-up:
▶️ Pls tag yourself or a friend below and DM me a name and address. If you prefer to email your address, you can let me know.
*Taking a limit of 15 people and will be first come first serve.*
Been really loving working with inks and pens from @paperpluscloth and @wonderpens . The mail will include a handwritten note with my favourite inks and maybe a little doodle!
Open to everyone and open worldwide. 😌
#incowrimo #incowrimo2026
Happy holidays and some much needed rest time to all of you! I was finally able to finish this little painting this week. ☺️☘️
I have been really letting myself indulge in rest this holiday season, cooking, bringing in flowers, laying horizontal, making eyes with the pens and inks I really want at @paperpluscloth and @wonderpens . 😅
All the small good things.
& thank you to the three mysterious buyers of my chawan designs at @secretteatime ! I hope they bring you so much joy into the Year of the Fire Horse! 🔥
#kakimori #holbeinwatercolors #watercolorillustration
Fun little painting-in-progress! I’ve been having fun with the @kakimori_japan dip pen. Tried it out with the Platinum Chou Kuro black ink this week and while it is water-resistant, it was not water-proof. 🥲 The intensity of the black pigment is stunning though. I managed to make it work by brushing lightly. Regardless, I am very excited to practice more line work with it in the new year.
Nib: @kakimori_japan
Watercolour: @holbeinartistmaterials@holbein_art@beampaints
Ink: @platinumpencanada
#kakimori #platinumchoukuro #platinumink #watercolour
YEAR OF THE HORSE CHAWAN COLLAB - @secretteatime X @patternsandportraits - 3 bowls one/one chawan
Justine Wong is a Toronto-based food, book, and lifestyle illustrator and a student of Traditional Chinese Medicine and acupuncture. Believing food and art are medicine, she created this series to honour the Fire Horse, inspired by hanabi fireworks, inviting courage, warmth, and mindful inner momentum with every tea ritual experience..
📅Sat Dec 13, 1:00pm EST
💵 $165+hst (comes with a CHAWAN JOURNAL)
📷@puchi.mori
#secretteatime #secretteatimecollabs #yearofthehorse2026 #chawan #torontomakers #torontopotterystudio #handmadeteawares #fortheloveoftea
Happy to be home, after another ten weeks in Japan this year.
New places always bring new connections, and this trip was no exception. I met some wonderful people, including creative souls I’ll be collaborating with in 2026.
So while new content is in the works, I wanted to share a few cherished memories from last year in Tokyo.
These were taken during a quiet stroll through Nakameguro with illustrator @patternsandportraits . We’d “known” each other on Instagram for years, but despite both being Canadian (just living on opposite coasts), our first meeting happened in Japan. A very on-brand coincidence for two people who seem to live parts of their lives in transit.
Justine is wearing the Tacit Coat here in espresso brown. Long coats just sync perfectly with the big-city rhythm. That feeling of being carried through crowds, yet wrapped in something that moves with you. The Tacit is incredibly lightweight too, making it an ideal travel companion. Seeing it in motion on someone else always brings me quiet joy.
I first discovered Justine’s work years ago through her illustrations of Japan. She painted while traveling, with beautiful little vignettes of meals and moments. The charm of those drawings is still ingrained in my mind.
Today, she’s an illustrator with published books. She is now working toward a larger project that merges her love for Chinese medicine and illustration. Watching someone evolve while staying true to their core is one of the most inspiring things.
Time passes quickly—alarmingly so as we grow older.
Running a small business often makes it feel even faster; days blur into checklists, and checklists blur into seasons. It can be scary, like the world is racing ahead while you’re still catching up.
But I’m learning to pause and celebrate the tiny improvements, the subtle breakthroughs, the ones that rarely make it into launch announcements but quietly shape the future.
Those small changes, almost imperceptible in the moment, are the true markers of time.
———
#japan #japantravel #japanbook #traveljapan #japanillustration #TravelWardrobe #SlowFashion #WoolCoat
🍥 After 3+ years, I am entering my last week of Acupuncture & Chinese Medicine school! While I wait for my license, I can already feel studio time opening up—clearing out old pieces, setting up a refreshed space, a long-awaited return to painting.
I’ve especially loved working with @travelers_company watercolour paper and various inks lately, allowing me to flow freely between writing and painting. Working with new tools gives me the chance to recalibrate within my creative processes. Feels good to be back. :’) 🌱
Paint @beampaints
Pen + nib @kakimori_japan
Ink @tonoandlims Bechorium bicarbonate
#travelerscompany #tonoandlims #kakimori #水彩画
I spontaneously purchased the Pentax 17 just before this last trip to Japan. 📷
After the passing of my parents, I have spent endless hours looking through their old photographs; photos of different sizes and shapes, some with writing on the back, some date stamped, many fingers over the lens, many unfocused and precious moments.
There is a certain kind of feeling I haven’t been able to capture on the phone for a long time. So I am happy to have been able to find some of it on film again. :-)
Moments caught on film in Onomichi, Omishima, & Ikuchijima. 🐢
#pentax #pentax17 #film #japan #尾道 #生口島
‘Hidden Japan’ is now available in *Italian*!!💗
I love painting for books so much — artwork can exist beside so many different languages. It’s been so nice to have the book be available all over the world.
Very grateful to @smithstreetbooks , @chiara_terzuolo , and @librimondadori for pushing the book into so many different spaces and places.
I have a few Italian copies to gift to anyone in Toronto who is studying Italian / who would like to use it to study! Please DM me.
#hiddenjapan #japan #japantravel #japanbook #foodillustrations #traveljapan #japanillustration
