FUTAGAMI

Castings of "aging and maturity." What is FUTAGAMI?

"Futagami Co., Ltd.," with its factory in Takaoka City, Toyama, is a long-established casting maker founded in 1897 (Meiji 30). It originally made traditional crafts centered on Buddhist altar implements, but in 2009, drawing on the advanced casting technology cultivated in Buddhist-implement manufacturing, it launched the brass housewares brand "FUTAGAMI."

FUTAGAMI's greatest feature is its distinctive finish that leaves the "casting skin" (ihada) texture as it is after forming by sand-mold (greensand) casting. Rather than polishing it to a shine like ordinary brass products, it leaves the rough touch and rustic expression — just as taken out of the sand mold — as the product's character.

Its brand philosophy is "Castings of aging and maturity. For the happiness of everyone connected." Viewing the color change that comes with oxidation over time not as "deterioration" but as "aging," it pursues making that grows with the user and deepens.

Four brand lines

FUTAGAMI (Flagship)

The flagship brand of Futagami Co., Ltd. It offers a wide range of brass housewares, characterized by a casting-skin finish from greensand casting and a bare finish that expresses the material itself without ornamentation. It stocks items that accompany every scene of life from the kitchen to the dining table — bottle openers, trivets, cutlery (butter knives, various spoons), kitchen-paper holders, knife stands, chopstick rests and more. Meticulous care is taken with safety too: the parts of the cutlery that touch the mouth are silver-plated, and lead-free brass is used.

MATUREWARE by FUTAGAMI (Architectural Hardware)

A series of architectural hardware and housing-related products derived from FUTAGAMI. It offers items that add the warmth of brass to living spaces — towel bars, door handles, switch plates, name plates and more. A major feature is that it can accommodate semi-orders, such as name engraving and custom pipe lengths.

Factory Made

A series in which FUTAGAMI's staff themselves handle everything from planning and design to production. It offers products born from daily making that draw on the maker's own perspective.

COCOCI

A series with the concept of "healing," developed by the second factory (established in 2023) that handles FUTAGAMI's Buddhist-implement division. Based on traditional Buddhist-implement manufacturing technique, it proposes products that bring peace of mind.

🍴 Want to learn more about FUTAGAMI's cutlery? Read on

📖 You might also like: Complete Guide to Brass Cutlery

Recommended Brass Cutlery (Made in Japan) | Spoons, Forks and Other Lifelong Tableware

Takaoka's 400-year casting history and FUTAGAMI

Takaoka City, Toyama, where FUTAGAMI is based, is a casting town with over 400 years of history as the home of "Takaoka copperware," which began in 1611 (Keicho 16) when Kaga lord Toshinaga Maeda invited seven casting artisans. Takaoka copperware, designated a national traditional craft, produces a wide range of products — from temple bells and Buddhist implements to bronze statues and vases — and is said to account for over roughly 90% of Japan's copperware output.

Futagami Co., Ltd. has continued honing its casting technology in this land of Takaoka for over 127 years. Employing the three precision-casting techniques cultivated through Buddhist implements — greensand casting, lost-wax casting and plaster casting — the FUTAGAMI brand sublimates those techniques into housewares for modern life. With a track record of export to about 25 countries, it is highly regarded at home and abroad.

Frequently Asked Questions about FUTAGAMI

Q. Where can I buy FUTAGAMI products?

A. They are carried at the official online shop "Ie to Shinchu," as well as at select shops nationwide.
At the official online shop (futagami-onlineshop.jp), you can buy the full lineup of FUTAGAMI, MATUREWARE, Factory Made and COCOCI. They are also carried at interior and lifestyle shops nationwide. Retailers can be checked on the official site.

Q. Are the parts of the cutlery that touch the mouth safe?

A. Yes. The parts that touch the mouth are silver-plated, and the brass used is lead-free.
FUTAGAMI's cutlery (spoons, butter knives, etc.) has a handle of casting-skin-finished brass, while the bowl and blade portions that touch food directly are silver-plated. The brass material itself is a lead-free spec containing no lead, so you can use it with peace of mind.

Q. Does the casting-skin texture change as you use it?

A. Yes. The more you use it, the smoother it becomes and the deeper its color grows.
The rough casting skin when new gradually breaks in each time you touch it by hand, changing into a smooth, lustrous expression. At the same time, combined with the color change of the brass itself through oxidation (golden → amber → antique gold), it grows into a one-of-a-kind texture. This is the "aging" that FUTAGAMI champions as its philosophy.

Q. How should I care for it?

A. Just wash it with a neutral detergent and wipe off the moisture right away.
After use, wash with a soft sponge and neutral detergent and wipe off the moisture thoroughly. Household dishwashers can generally be used, but commercial dishwashers may cause discoloration due to strong detergents. If the silver-plated parts darken, you can restore the shine by gently polishing with a silver-polishing cloth or a small amount of (non-grit) toothpaste. If you want to return it to its original golden color, you can also polish it with a commercial metal polish (such as Pikal), but take care not to over-polish, as the casting-skin texture will disappear.