Most dustpans end up in a cupboard. You use them, you put them away, and they disappear until the next sweep. The Harimi is different. When I bought mine, I found I did not want to put it away — and I realized that was by design.

張り箕, harimi, is a Japanese dustpan made from washi paper layered and lacquered with persimmon tannin. The tannin gives it a deep, warm color — somewhere between amber and dark tobacco — and a surface texture that is pleasant to touch. It is the kind of object that earns a place in a room rather than a cupboard.

What persimmon tannin does

The persimmon tannin coating is not decorative. It hardens the paper, making it durable enough for daily use. It also has natural insect-repellent properties — which is why it has been used to treat tools and textiles in Japan for centuries. And critically for a dustpan: it prevents static electricity from building up on the surface.

Static is the enemy of a good dustpan. Plastic and metal dustpans accumulate static charge that makes fine dust cling to the surface rather than slide off cleanly. The Harimi has no static. Dust collects in it without resistance and falls into the bin without sticking. The bamboo thread reinforcement along the edges adds structural support while keeping the rim flexible enough to press flat against the floor, leaving almost nothing behind.

Seven years in

My Harimi is almost seven years old. It is still in daily use. The color has deepened slightly with time. Nothing has frayed or worn through. This is what well-treated washi paper does — it ages rather than deteriorates.

It is made by Shirokiya Denbei, the same Tokyo workshop behind our Edo brooms — in continuous operation since 1830. The Harimi and the Edo broom were designed to be used together, and they work together exactly as they should.

→ Harimi Dustpan by Shirokiya Denbei