Kamenoko Tawashi
A traditional Japanese scrubbing brush made by hand
The Kamenoko Tawashi (a brush like a young turtle) is a traditional Japanese brush (tawashi) made from coconut fibers. It is made by hand for already more than 100 years.


The brush comes in its traditional orange wrapper with the turtle. It is sold in the same package as in Japan, which nicely adds to its authentic aura.
From this side it looks like a turtle indeed. The fibers are bundled with a strand made from the same material. When in use, part of the cleaning effect is achieved by the mix of thin and thick fibers.
On the bottom side is an eyelet to which it can be hung to dry.

I found this brush in an organic food store and an attached sticker from the distributor said that it was for cleaning vegetables (in 3 languages), but it is way too sturdy for that. So, now I'm scrubbing my dishes and saucepans with it. That's what it's made for!


On the backside some more information. It appears that Kamenoko Tawashi has its own website where you can choose from a variety of brushes and where you can see how they are made (try tabs home/about/making and home/about/materials).


Camera: Pentax K5-II, DFA 50mm f/1.8 Macro.