Furin

One of my fave things about Japanese summertime is the array of pretty furin or windchimes that tinkle under the eaves of houses, or are strung up by the window inside the house. As with yukata, fans, stationery and anything else with enough room to squeeze a summer motif on, furin are decorated with dragonflies, frogs, fireflies, goldfish & c. For handsome Mr Hiroki's birthday, Sir S and I gave him a froggy furin, complete with the image of a frog in a mid-leap over a lilypad. I have three furin in my home, the one pictured features glittering dragonflies, the others are a green shrine bell and a Kiki the Witch circle with broomstick and freefalling cat detail.

Unlike the wooden weight of Western windchimes, the weight on the average furin is a simple strip of long paper that flutters in the wind.