Nashiji & Pigmented/Kawari-nuri Effects

Nashiji ("pear-skin ground")

Nashiji sprinkles a thin gold powder shaped like hiramefun across the surface, then covers it with repeated coats of transparent lacquer rather than opaque black — so the powder stays visible beneath a warm, glowing, semi-transparent field instead of being buried and re-exposed. The clear lacquer used for the ground is traditionally tinted with gamboge for a warm yellow cast (see Chapter 3). (Shizendo)

Kawari-nuri ("variant lacquer")

Kawari-nuri is an umbrella term for a family of textural and patterned surface effects achieved by deliberately manipulating how layers cure and interact — distinct from tamenuri (Chapter 19), though related in spirit. This guide has not been able to source a verified step-by-step for a specific kawari-nuri recipe; the standard technical reference is Jyussei Practice: Kawari-nuri (ISBN 4-88536-551-1), listed in Chapter 36's bibliography.