June is the start of the raining season, when the steady, gentle rain makes it hard to feel cheerful. Even when the sun peeks through, the air still feels heavy with humidity and it's hard to feel refreshed. But maybe it's because this season tends to be so damp and dreary that it's the perfect time to welcome others with something light and refreshing—a way to turn the rainy season into a moment of quiet charm.

Otoshibumi（落とし文）
Its name means "dropped letter," referring both to secret old love notes and to a type of beetle that rolls leaves to lay its eggs—like a tiny message. Otoshibumi mimics this image: it’s usually made from Nerikiri Dough with sweet bean paste as a filling.

Hydrangea（紫陽花）and Green Plum（青梅） Motif Wagashi
A popular Motifs during this season for Nerikiri and Uiro, Sold in Wagashi Shops.

We have festivals all year round in Japan and one of the well known festivals in June is the  Nagoshi no Harae（夏越の祓え）／Summer Purification Ceremony

Nagoshi no Harae is a traditional Shinto purification ritual held at the end of June in Japan. The ceremony is meant to cleanse people of sins, impurities, and misfortunes accumulated in the first half of the year and to pray for good health and safety during the remainder of the year.

One of the most symbolic aspects of this ritual is the Chinowa Kuguri, where participants walk through a large ring made of miscanthus reeds (called a chinowa) as a symbolic act of purification. This act is believed to remove spiritual impurities and bring about renewed vitality.
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The ritual is usually conducted at Shinto shrines across Japan, and it's often accompanied by prayers, offerings, and sometimes the burning or releasing in a river of symbolic objects such as paper dolls (Hitogata/人形), which are believed to absorb a person’s sins and misfortunes.

Minazuki – A Traditional Japanese Sweet for Summer Purification
Minazuki is a traditional Japanese sweet (wagashi) commonly eaten around the time of the Nagoshi no Harae.

This confection consists of a base of white firm rice cake), topped with sweet azuki (red beans). It is typically cut into triangular shapes, which are said to represent blocks of ice. In the past, ice was a luxury item used to cool off in the summer, so the shape symbolizes a wish for protection against the summer heat and good health during the hottest months of the year.
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The red beans are also believed to have protective qualities, warding off evil spirits. Eating Minazuki during this time is a seasonal tradition meant to bring purification and blessings for the second half of the year.

If you would like to visit a shrine that has the Chinowa, please visit this website (In Japanese Only)

Tokyo:東京都 茅の輪くぐり神社リスト121社（MAP付き）｜夏越の大祓
Kyoto:：無病息災を願う、6月の風物詩「夏越の祓」を体験しよう！

​Simply Oishii Wagashi School will be making Early Spring Motifs starting from June. To book a nerikiri wagashi class, please go to this page this pages or contact us.

Last week I was in Jakarta or the second time to visit Elm's corner which is a certified school of Wagashi Promotion Association(WPA) Japan in Indonesia.

Wagashi Promotion Association is an organization I run which is dedicated to sharing the beauty and traditions of wagashi.

We are excited to have them onboard to promote wagashi in Indonesia together. In my last trip they have taken our Nerikiri Basic Course, which is a certificate course to learn the basic techniques in wagashi making.  For those residing in Indonesia, this course can be now taken at Elm's corner and be certified as an instructor by WPA. 

Last month we hosted a corporate team building event at our studio for a foreign company based in Yokohama.

We started off with a short presentation on wagashi (Japanese sweets), then moved on to actually making them. First we made two seasonal motifs, the sakura and the sakura leaf. 

Then each table had to undergo the task of making original designs based on the given theme.

This table's theme was "spring". Very original and creative, with spring colors!
Both teams did a brilliant job and it was a tough call, but as this is a team building event, we chose the spring team as all team members worked together to create one artwork, 

A big hand to the autumn team. although, they didn't win the team award, one of the members received the best nerikiri award.  

After the award ceremony, they all ate one of their creations with a bowl of matcha they learn how to whisk themselves as well as learning the etiquette on how to drink matcha.

A big thank you for giving us the opportunity to host this fun event. All of our instructors also enjoyed this event too.  I personally realized again how wagashi making can be such a fun team building event with a bit of competition. 

For inquiries on corporate events please visit This page or contact us  for a quotation.