{"id":185,"date":"2023-03-15T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-03-15T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pagodared.com\/blog\/2016\/08\/14\/wabi-sabi-real-love-perfect-imperfection\/"},"modified":"2023-03-15T12:56:15","modified_gmt":"2023-03-15T12:56:15","slug":"wabi-sabi-real-love-perfect-imperfection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pagodared.com\/blog\/2023\/03\/15\/wabi-sabi-real-love-perfect-imperfection\/","title":{"rendered":"Wabi Sabi: Real Love & Perfect Imperfection"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Remember the Velveteen Rabbit? In the famous children\u2019s book, a boy takes the stuffed rabbit everywhere: out to picnics on the grass, into the garden, and into bed, where it\u00a0sleeps with the boy every night.\u00a0The more love wears off on the rabbit,\u00a0the shabbier it\u00a0gets, and the closer it\u00a0comes to the\u00a0goal of becoming \u201creal.\u201d<\/p>\n

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18th-century Black Lacquer Tapered Cabinet<\/a> |\u00a0W: 40.0″<\/span>\u00a0D: 21.75″<\/span>\u00a0H: 66.0″<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

The Velveteen Rabbit\u00a0grew faded, torn, and battle-worn didn\u2019t diminish the boy\u2019s love for it. The rabbit\u00a0comforted the boy through sickness. Its flaws became badges of honor.\u00a0And its\u00a0willingness to give itself over to the boy\u2019s love\u00a0earned it\u00a0\u201crealness\u201d in the end.
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Like childhood\u2014and the Velveteen Rabbit\u00a0that got us through it\u2014nothing lasts forever, nothing is finished and nothing is perfect: These three principles define the Japanese concept \u201cWabi-Sabi,\u201d a centuries-old Buddhist view of life, which celebrates rustic simplicity\u2014and which became an apt description for many of the objects, art, and places that became trendy starting in 16th century China.
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Set of Three Provincial Wine Jugs<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

Ironically, the very definition of Wabi-Sabi<\/a> is the opposite of trendy. The \u201cWabi\u201d element describes the quirks and flaws that bring a unique flavor, spirit and comfort to an object or place. It celebrates the perfection in imperfection. Wabi things have an understated elegance and beauty that is accentuated by their flaws. The \u201cSabi\u201d element is the graceful beauty that comes with age; the quiet dignity that is transferred to an object as it stands up over time. Wabi-Sabi objects are possibly a bit rough around the edges, and often a little more than worn\u2014but that\u2019s what makes them so undeniably charming.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Reclaimed Wood Timbers from the PAGODA RED Provincial Collection<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

A peek into the objects that were created with this concept in mind will turn up treasures like an 18th-century libation cup with a bumpy, burled surface that a scholar used not only to drink wine out of, but also to warm his hands on. A centuries-old Ming Limestone Table<\/a> balances a hefty masculine, well-worn, \u201cruined\u201d top\u2014supported by intimately hand-carved and feminine scrolled legs. There is something magical we find about the homely Mythical Beast Coconut Splitter<\/a>, its surface smooth and no doubt full of stories. And the carver of a scholars\u2019 inkstone performed the 19th-century-version of \u201cturning lemons into lemonade\u201d by transforming a naturally-occurring green vein in the raw stone into the perfect bamboo perch for an auspicious phoenix.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Vintage Stone Drum Stools<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

Life. It\u2019s a beautiful mess, isn\u2019t it? Wabi-Sabi and its aesthetic remind us that the things, people, and moments we cherish most are much like our childhood\u2014simple and comfortable, fleeting, and at home in its imperfections.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Shop the Story<\/h2>\n

Wabi Sabi<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\t\t