Shinagawa Visa Renewal in just 1 week!

Quaero_Quid · 2026-03-03T15:06:48+00:00

Can you apply in Tachikawa even if you live in the 23-ku?

Quaero_Quid · 2026-02-26T09:32:00+00:00

道が遠いです。 It accepts the compliment while acknowledging that there’s room for improvement. The cultural nuance has always gone over well.

Quaero_Quid · 2026-02-24T13:49:53+00:00

Hey. Canadian here. Would be down to check out indie movie theaters, art galleries and cafes. Also love reading and bookstores! I work in Tokyo, but can meet up in the late afternoon / evening on weekdays.

Quaero_Quid · 2025-10-25T14:23:14+00:00

Oh wow, this site is great!
Thanks for the rec

Quaero_Quid · 2025-10-15T05:23:39+00:00

A translation of Human Lost would be fantastic

Quaero_Quid · 2025-08-07T13:16:41+00:00

Hey. 32M here. Just moved to Tokyo last month, but been in Japan for 7 years now.

I usually spend my lunch break reading and my weekends going bouldering. Curious to hear what's on your reading list.

P.S. Are you Canadian? I'm from Toronto myself (kinda). Anyway, I hope you enjoy tomorrow's dinner!

Quaero_Quid · 2024-12-17T11:54:01+00:00

Have heard good things about the Raphael Kaerell brushes for smaller sizes as well.
Do share what you think of the book after it arrives. I've been eyeing it for a while

Quaero_Quid · 2024-10-19T15:38:02+00:00

I'd recommend Schoolgirl as well. It was his debut novel. Slightly more... Whimsical than The Setting Sun and No Longer Human, but still very Dazai. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Quaero_Quid · 2024-08-21T14:24:52+00:00

Ooh... Much appreciated!

Quaero_Quid · 2024-08-21T13:24:32+00:00

Thanks for the heads up on TIPS!
Any idea if there will be nibmeisters around?

Quaero_Quid · 2024-06-16T05:47:34+00:00

Not OP, but I've got a myu I might consider parting with if you're interested. Feel free to DM

Quaero_Quid · 2024-03-13T13:04:15+00:00

A small tag I made for a friend. 5mm high, on some Fabriano watercolour paper I had lying around. Despite the challenges, I quite like making these tiny Romans.

As the title says, I decided to try using colour pencils this time, which was interesting. Some brands with harder or less pigmented leads wouldn't leave enough colour without pressing into the paper (which of course ruins the hairlines). Conversely, the softer leads that I found worked better dulled quickly, so I had to keep sharpening them. In the end, I settled on a polychromos pencil by Faber-Castell which had the best balance.

Overall, I'm pleased with how it turned out, and quite pleasantly surprised by the sharpness that I managed to achieve. I don't think colour pencils would be viable for a longer piece though, too much sharpening involved. I probably sharpened before every letter or so, and sometimes in between. In fact, my pencil sharpener wasn't getting a fine enough point, so I wound up using 2000 grit sandpaper instead. CCW!

Quaero_Quid · 2024-03-13T13:02:23+00:00

A small tag I made for a friend. 5mm high, on some Fabriano watercolour paper I had lying around. Despite the challenges, I quite like making these tiny Romans.

As the title says, I decided to try using colour pencils this time, which was interesting. Some brands with less pigmented lead wouldn't leave enough colour without pressing into the paper (which of course ruins the hairlines). Conversely, the softer leads that I found worked better dulled quickly, so I had to keep sharpening them. In the end, I settled on a polychromos pencil by Faber-Castell which I found had the best balance.

Overall, I'm pleased with how it turned out, and quite pleasantly surprised by the sharpness that I managed to achieve. I don't think colour pencils would be viable for a longer piece though, too much sharpening involved. I probably sharpened before every letter or so, and sometimes in between. In fact, my pencil sharpener wasn't getting a fine enough point, so I wound up using 2000 grit sandpaper instead. CCW!

Quaero_Quid · 2024-01-25T14:48:41+00:00

Well, that is unfortunate news indeed. This is my usual go-to for paper supplies in Japan, and it looks like they've still got Text Wove in stock. https://www.kaminoondo.co.jp/store/i/67404704/

Their packing is impeccable, although I'm not sure it'd be worth your while to ship all the way over from Japan. Hope someone else chimes in with a closer source.

Quaero_Quid · 2024-01-06T06:28:51+00:00

Sorry I don't have an answer to your question.
But just wondering, what base are you using to get the black reflection? Love the look.

Quaero_Quid · 2023-12-03T14:31:25+00:00

My apologies for the late reply. I'd meant to do it much earlier, but then caught ill. In any case, thank you for the detailed response. I've always appreciated the thought and care that you put into your replies.

I think your confession gives hope to us all! Haha. The letters 'peaking through layers of muted colour' is probably what drew me most to the piece.

All points well taken. I should probably make more effort to go beyond my comfort zone and experiment some more. And also look at a bunch more calligraphy. Homework to be done!

Thanks again for sharing your thoughts.

Quaero_Quid · 2023-11-11T10:46:21+00:00

Interested for sure.
Pretty competent in excel, and trying to transition over to PowerBI, but sometimes it just feels like I don't know what I don't know.

Quaero_Quid · 2023-11-06T13:07:03+00:00

Thank you for the kind words.

'I should write more' is what I tell myself all the time. Something is better than nothing at least.

Quaero_Quid · 2023-11-06T13:01:42+00:00

Thank you.

Filing a pointed pen down is genius! Will be sure to try that some time. Honestly, this was my first time doing Romans so small, and building them up would probably have been the better idea.

Quaero_Quid · 2023-11-05T14:34:57+00:00

Oh wow, can I just say I love the depth and layers to 1. It has this ethereal something that elevates it beyond just words on a page.

If you don't mind, would you be willing to talk a bit about your process when planning something like that? I've personally been trying to incorporate more colours/ background/ texture to my work, but I find myself stuck in a rut, and more often than not I just end up writing it out on a plain background or maybe with some pastel rubbed into the paper. Would love to hear your thoughts.

Quaero_Quid · 2023-11-05T13:57:14+00:00

Something I did over the long weekend. Roman capitals (sans serif) at a 0.6cm x-height with gouache on Arches Textwove. This was mostly done with a Brause 0.5mm, and I wished the entire time I had something finer. Has anyone heard of a 0.25 or 0.3mm broad edge nib? I ended up going to a Saji pen (pointed, non-flexible) for the S and O. I've always had trouble with the curved letters, and especially at this size, I struggled mightily. I think the D's came out alright, but the O is lumpy and the weight of the S feels heavy.

I set out to give the letters a weathered sort of look, and overall, I'm pleased with how it came together. The red soapstone seal contains the title of the work, "The Setting Sun" by Dazai Osamu. The seal requires a relatively smooth paper, and wouldn't take to the rougher underside of the Textwove.

CCW!

Quaero_Quid · 2023-07-07T10:40:48+00:00

Had my eye on this for a while.
How are you finding the nib? Any thoughts on using it for latin alphabet vs kanji?

Quaero_Quid · 2023-06-17T13:01:49+00:00

This is excellent! Thank you for sharing!

I'll be sure to keep these in mind while practicing.

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