Hobonichi Hon A5 2025 Unsodo: Bijutsukai (Rainbow)

Bijutsukai and Shin Bijutsukai are collections of craft designs published in the Meiji era (1868–1912), both books containing beautiful designs by various designers and Japanese painters. Hobonichi selected three craft designs from these collections published by Unsodo, a Kyoto-based art publishing company and the only publisher of hand-printed woodblock books in Japan, to create pencil boards.

Hobonichi created an A5 HON with the craft design selected from Bijutsukai. Red, blue, white, yellow, green, and purple. The bright stripes catch your eye. The combination of contrasting colors and shapes of the vivid, straight rainbows and the pure white, softly curved mountains is pleasing to the eye and something you can always enjoy. Looking closely, you will find the irregular widths and fluctuating borders heartwarming. The depth of the design makes it seem like a fairy tale scene.

The year 2025 is foil-pressed in subdued gold. It is a fascinating design created more than 100 years ago. Keep it at your side and enjoy the tale it tells.

The contents are the same as the Hobonichi Techo Cousin book. The HON A5 size includes weekly pages which track a week in each two-page spread for easy planning and contain a handy time schedule. The bookbinding on the HON has thread-stitch binding similar to the Hobonichi Techo Cousin, so it opens 180 degrees onto the table. It stays flat even if you don’t hold it down.

The book uses thin and light yet durable Tomoe River paper. This paper that underwent an overhaul with the 2024 edition techo is more resistant to bleed through, lighter despite being the same thickness, and has a smoother surface by adjusting the fibers of the paper. The back of the book has bonus pages, including Sample Symbols and Icons, How to Have Fun Keeping a Diary, and Oodles of Noodles.

As a special exclusive only for the HON, this techo comes with a pencil board. The board is A6 size and clear, with 5mm grid lines printed across it. There are measurements printed along one side in 1mm increments, which allow for use as a ruler. It also has a pen holder attached to it where users can store pens by their clips.

The Hobonichi Techo HON comes in either English or Japanese. If you love this cover, then you can pick out which language you’d like in that book.