About Soshina

Soshina, pronounced So-Sheena is an online shop and in person pop up at outdoor markets that emerged out of the love and adoration I have for my beloved, mother-in-law. Soshina means little gift - small gift and having my mother-in-law in my life was a gift I received daily.

At Soshina Japanese Home Store I sell items she would love use that are made in Japan. 

The store first opened online in 2006 just a few months after mom passed away. It served as an outlet for me to deal with the grief of losing her. 

That grew into a purpose and passion to continue introducing the Japanese culture and customs to our children, her grandchildren as she would have done for them. For me it was a way to continue to cook the meals she cooked and taught me to cook and learn how to cook new Japanese recipes, use the products she depended on in the kitchen and add unique Japanese made products like windchimes , photo albums, chawan, ceramic tea pots, Tokonamae pots, decorative iron tetsubins with built-in stainless steel tea infusers and much more.

I was so very lucky to have my mother-in-law in my life. She was kind, loving and treated me like a daughter. She always said, "You are the daughter I never had." I could not have prayed for a better person to help me as I became a mom of my own. The gift of having her in my life is one I will treasure forever and while I wish we could have had more time together, this store all these years later has helped me learn so much about life and family. She taught me Ikebana and after my first lesson she said I was a natural. In my heart of hearts, I always felt I must have been a Japanese woman in another lifetime. That may seem silly, but even my family feels that at times I a more Japanese than them and they all Japanese, EXCEPT for me. That is so funny to us. Especially at the dinner table, since the kids were itty bitty, and even when we had the cousins over someone would yell out at dinner, "Raise your hand, if you are Japanese!" And my sister-in-law and I would just make a pout face and everyone else would LAUGH with their arms raised high. 

The store has at times been so very busy and other times in my life, I have been tooo busy for the store and kept it on simmer.  Most items I chose to offer were only available in a small quantities and then never reproduced. Some items in the shop now, go way back and have never been purchased and cannot be found anywhere else today in the United States. My personal favorites are the lacquerware and the windchimes and the photo albums. They are the most overlooked and oh so beautifully crafted. 

In January 2024 I took a Beginner Ceramics Art class at our local community college to get back into my love of ceramics that I had set aside at too young of an age. This time around I participated in a Raku firing and it changed my trajectory. To learn more, my choice for the required term paper was on the History of Raku and Teaware Master Raku Kichizaemon, the fifteenth member of the Raku clan appointed in 1981 to head the family. It is a fascinating history and you can read more about it by doing an online search. 

Thank you for coming to the shop and we look forward to shipping your order.

P.S. As of April 11, 2025 I understand the current circumstances between the U.S. and the rest of the world. For my little adventure here I am unsure how or if it will affect us and while it is too early to determine the full impact, I remain committed to filling your orders with minimal disruption.

I am grateful to be on the Shopify platform and because of shopify, I have an excellent shipping platform as well.

I hope you find something you like in the shop to keep me up and running and that brings you enjoyment. 

Thank you

 

Soshina (So-Sheena) Japanese Home Store は、私の最愛の義母への愛と崇拝から生まれました。Soshina は小さな贈り物という意味です。小さな贈り物であり、義母が私の人生にいてくれたことは、私にとって毎日受け取る贈り物でした。

Soshina Japanese Home Store では、私たちが愛用している日本製の商品のみを販売しています。

この店は、母が亡くなってからわずか数か月後の 2006 年に初めてオンラインでオープンしました。私にとって、母を失った悲しみを癒す場となりました。

それが、子供たちにおばあちゃんがしてくれたように、日本の文化や習慣を紹介し続けるという目的と情熱へと成長しました。私にとって、それは日本の家庭料理の作り方を学び、彼女が台所で頼りにしていた製品を使い、風鈴、茶碗、陶器の急須、床の間、ステンレス製の茶漉しが組み込まれた装飾的な鉄の鉄瓶など、ユニークな日本製の製品を追加する方法でした。

義母が私の人生にいてくれて、私はとても幸運でした。彼女は優しく、愛情深く、私を本当の娘のように扱ってくれました。私が自分の母親になったとき、これ以上良い人が私を助けてくれるとは思いませんでした。私の人生に彼女がいたことは、一生の宝物です。もっと一緒に過ごせたらよかったのにと思う一方で、この店は何年も経った今でも、人生と家族について多くのことを学ぶのに役立っています。以前は世界中に発送していてとても興奮していましたが、現在は米国内の発送のみです。

2024年1月、私は地元のコミュニティカレッジで初心者向け陶芸アートのクラスを受講し、あまりにも若い頃に諦めていた陶芸への愛を取り戻しました。今回は楽焼の焼成に参加し、それが私の進路を変えました。さらに詳しく知るために、必須の学期末レポートで、1981年に樂家の15代目に任命された樂吉左衛門と茶器職人の歴史を選択しました。それは魅力的な歴史であり、オンライン検索でさらに詳しく読むことができます。

ご来店ありがとうございます。ご注文の商品の発送を心よりお待ちしております。