FAQs

Full payment is required at the time of booking to secure your spot.

Late Cancellations & No-Shows: Because we custom-prepare materials and reserve studio space for each guest, cancellations made within 48 hours of the workshop or no-shows are non-refundable

Free Cancellation: You can cancel or reschedule your workshop up to 48 hours before your start time for a full 100% refund—no questions asked.

1. Submit Your Request — Preferred date, time, group size, and any special requests.

2. Availability Check — We confirm your slot and reserve it for you.

3. Secure Payment (24-hour hold) — You’ll get a Stripe payment link by email. Complete it within 24 hours to lock in your spot — after that, it reopens for other travelers.

4. Confirmation — Once paid, you’re booked! We’ll send meetup details by email.Traveling with spotty Wi-Fi or time zone gaps? Just reply to your confirmation email if you need a bit more time.

Yes you need to book in advance and a walk-in is not possible as of now.

The earlier, the better — availability is naturally wider further out. If you’re booking close to your visit, evening slots tend to be your best chance at an open spot.

Yes — but it takes a bit more coordination and time than running one workshop for everyone, since two activities are managed in parallel.

Kanji is personal and reflective — you choose a character and take home a meaningful object. A manhole cover is discovery and novelty — you print something exclusive and visually striking.

With Google map it’s simple, here is the meeting point: Biwako-Hamaotsu Station. Alternatively, see the Full Directions page for all the details on how to get to the venue, or just type “Biwako-Hamaotsu Station” in Google maps. Plan a block of at least 3 hours total, with the 90 min. workshop itself sitting in the middle of that window (i.e., allow travel time to Otsu and back on either side).

Booking through this site means your message goes straight to your guide, not a booking platform’s queue — so questions get personal answers, and your visit can flex around your schedule. We’re not yet set up for instant confirmation like some larger platforms offer, which is why every request gets a quick reply from a real person rather than an automatic booking.

The workshop is entirely indoors in a tatami room, so heat, cold, or rain won’t affect your visit — one less thing to plan your day around.

Imprint Japan is run by its founder — no team, no franchise, just one person who’s spent years researching kanji, Japanese manhole covers and built these workshops around what genuinely matters to him. It’s a young business, but every detail in it comes from real, personal work, not a template.

The use of fabric, stencil, white or black ink, ink rollers, gloves and removable tape.

The use of an acrylic relief plate design (3 choices) white or black ink, ink rollers, pressing rollers, gloves and removable tape.

Kids under 10 will likely find it difficult; teens are welcome.

Yes — but it takes a bit more coordination and time than running one workshop for everyone, since two activities are managed in parallel.

You can sit on the floor (there are cushons available) or on a chair — the workshop takes place at a normal table, or at a low tatami table upon request.

There are toilets on the same floor as the workshop room and you may take a break mid-session.

Anything is fine but long dresses, neckties, baggy clothes are not recommended.

Kanji is personal and reflective — you choose a character and take home a meaningful object. A manhole cover is discovery and novelty — you print something exclusive and visually striking.

Yes, and we have French too!

Fully hands-on, with one-on-one guidance throughout.

Anybody can do this. Do not worry. The wabi-sabi framing means imperfection is part of the philosophy, not a failure state — it’s built into how the piece is meant to be appreciated with one-on-one guidance throughout.

Photos and video are welcome.

You choose from a curated card list provided before printing. There are a total of 20 to choose from.

Our card has a wide variety of concepts from everyday life to philosophy to nature, we believe you will find one to your liking. However, if you send us an email at jakstoursjapan@gmail.com, we will gladly send you our card. Then, if you let us know your kanji choice not on the card at least 10 days or more prior to the desired workshop date, we will do our best to have it ready in time for the workshop day. Take note that you will be charged an add-on fee for this.

A traditional Japanese square wrapping cloth used to elegantly pack, carry, and transform everyday items and gifts. The ones we print on are about 50 sq. cm. – 2.7 sq. ft.

Yes — a few upgrades are available (colored ink, larger cloth, etc.). We’ll go over the options in the confirmation email after you check availability.

Yes, it’s washable, and the ink is top quality and won’t fade.

After the standard usage of wrapping your lunch box with a 50 sq. cm. size furoshiki, you can wrap a gift for someone special and reuse it, you can protect your books while in your backpack, you can use it as a central table cloth, or an art piece on the wall, a handkerchief, a jacket pocketchief, and if you feel creative you can even have it repurposed into an oversize t-shirt front pocket!

You choose from a curated card list provided before printing. There are a total of 20 to choose from.

Our card has a wide variety of concepts from everyday life to philosophy to nature, we believe you will find one to your liking. However, if you send us an email at jakstoursjapan@gmail.com, we will gladly send you our card. Then, if you let us know your kanji choice not on the card at least 10 days or more prior to the desired workshop date, we will do our best to have it ready in time for the workshop day. Take note that you will be charged an add-on fee for this.

As far as we know, no one else offers stencil/artisan-style kanji character ink printing on fabric, moreover, manhole cover print for foreign visitors is most likely a Japan first — genuine exclusivity, not marketing exaggeration.

T-shirt add-on isn’t available yet — still being worked out. A second furoshiki item is possible for an extra ¥3,000.

Yes! We offer custom color upgrades (Red, Green, and Yellow) as an optional in-studio add-on for ¥1,000 per color. You can select your color preference during your studio setup!

Technically, no but if you choose to try black ink on a dark colored furoshiki please make a request it in the appropriate field when filling in the form for booking.

Logographic characters (letters) adopted from Chinese into Japanese, where each symbol conveys a specific concept or word rather than just a sound.

Highly detailed, colorful works of public art uniquely designed to celebrate each city’s local history, landmarks, and regional mascots.

A traditional aesthetic philosophy centered on finding quiet beauty in impermanence, imperfection, and natural simplicity.

After the standard usage of wrapping your lunch box with a 50 sq. cm. size furoshiki, you can wrap a gift for someone special and reuse it, you can protect your books while in your backpack, you can use it as a central table cloth, or an art piece on the wall, a handkerchief, a jacket pocketchief, and if you feel creative you can even have it repurposed into an oversize t-shirt front pocket!

No. This is built for people with zero background.

As far as we know, no one else offers stencil/artisan-style kanji character ink printing on fabric, moreover, manhole cover print for foreign visitors is most likely a Japan first — genuine exclusivity, not marketing exaggeration.