Design Niwaki
Made in Japan
Dimensions 97cm long, 23 x 29cm head, 1.8kg
Colour & Materiality Steel
Incredibly strong, lethally sharp, surprisingly light - and golden. What more could one ask of a spade? Ideal for general purpose digging, tree planting, rootballing and mixing cement etc. With a comfortable YD handle of tubular steel, firm tread and rigid steel pipe shaft, but weighing in at only 1.8kg you can rely on this spade not to flex or break under heavy use. As the paint wears off, the steel will start to rust. Regular use is the best treatment.
Niwaki means garden tree, but implies far more—Japanese gardens are landscapes, microcosms of nature, and the trees are all shaped to fit into those landscapes. Niwaki was founded by Jake Hobson, who through a thoughtful collection of shears, secateurs, and sickles, has created a strong community of gardeners who appreciate the superb quality of Japanese craftsmanship. Originally trained as a sculptor at The Slade School of Art, Hobson looks to his hedges like a sculptor looks to a block of stone, anticipating the form waiting to reveal itself from under the deep mass of foliage. Beyond his natural skill with shears, it is his unique eye that has given Jake Hobson international acclaim. Shaping shrubs into rolling waves and pines into billows of clouds—these Japanese forms, in harmony amidst the English countryside, are a sight to behold. Read our interview with Jake Hobson in Volume II of MINKA.
