How We Select Every Item at Itoma

In a world already full of things, we believe in choosing carefully.

At Itoma, our goal is not to offer more — but to offer better.

Objects that are thoughtfully made, chosen with intention, and meant to stay in your life for a long time.
Things you come back to not because you have to, but because you like them — and because they quietly make everyday life feel better.

This belief shapes how we select every item at Itoma.

Rather than following trends or filling shelves, we look for materials and tools that carry care, craftsmanship, and a sense of joy — many of which are still little known in Canada.

Below are the three values that guide our selection.

1. A Sense of Play

Choosing items that bring quiet joy

Craft is not only about quality — it’s also about how something makes you feel when you see it, touch it, or use it.

That’s why we are drawn to yarns and threads with personality:
colors that feel slightly unexpected, textures that invite curiosity, and materials that become small accents in daily life.

In Canada, it can be difficult to find yarns with this kind of character — playful yet refined, cheerful without being loud, calm without being dull.

We look for items that:

• add a gentle pop of colour to everyday making
• lift your mood before you even begin
• make the time spent crafting feel lighter and more enjoyable

This is why you’ll find materials like LOOP, Floret, Wool Mohair for yarns for example, and some unique items like Pokeori Kit and Kokeshi Doll Pincusion. They balance usability with visual charm and bring a quiet sense of fun into your hands.

Craft should feel like an invitation, not an obligation.

2. Materials Made with Care and Intention

Respect for what goes into the fiber

We are especially drawn to materials that show deep respect for how they are made.

A good example is the yarns we carry from Daruma.

Daruma produces yarns in their own factory, with careful attention not only to fiber quality, but also to how the yarn will actually be used.
Their materials are designed with the final project in mind — from knitting experience to durability and care.

Setting the materials with care and intention as our focus, we chose items like:

• Superwash Merino, which remains soft yet washable, is perfect for knitting socks. The socks made with this yarn are easy to wear, difficult to pill, washable in a machine, and hard to shrink.
• Airy Wool Alpaca, light but warm due to the characteristic spinning method that makes the yarn's surface pile-like. Made of high-whiteness merino wool and rare and highly valuable fine fiber alpaca.
• COSMO Size 25 Floss, beautifully coloured embroidery floss, made exclusively out of Extra-long staple cotton of top quality, which is only 1.8% of gross global cotton production.

The same care extends to Sashiko threads and tools, including SASHIKO Thick, SASHIKO Thin, and their basic sashiko kits and needles — materials created not just to exist, but to be used thoughtfully and repeatedly.

These are items that reflect our belief: when something is made with care, it naturally encourages you to use it with care.

3. Japanese Craft Tradition

Carrying stories into everyday life

The third value that guides us is respect for tradition — especially the long history of Japanese craftsmanship.

We are deeply inspired by brands like Cohana, which collaborates with artisans across Japan to bring traditional crafts into modern daily use.

From glasswork and ceramics to metalwork and lacquer, each Cohana item carries the skill of a region, shaped by generations of hands.

At Itoma, we carry pieces such as:

• Tombo-dama Sewing pins: featuringKinari Glass
• Shell-button flower push pins: 
• Hasami porcelain magnetic spool holders
• Awaji tile needle sharpeners
• Kokeshi needle cases
• Lacquered scissors with gold maki-e
• Small scissors from Seki
• Shouzaburo thread-cutting scissors
• Sashiko kits made with linen cloth

The story of each item is in their product page. Please read them and see the collaboration of each craftsman with the world of crafting.

These are not objects meant to be replaced quickly.
They are tools designed to age gently — and to stay with you.

By using them in everyday life, tradition doesn’t stay in a museum.
It becomes something you touch, rely on, and appreciate again and again.

Choosing Less, Choosing Better

Everything at Itoma is selected through this lens:

• Does it bring quiet joy?
• Is it made with care and intention?
• Does it respect craft — past and present?

If the answer is yes, and if it feels like something you would want to keep close for a long time, then it belongs here.

We hope the items you find at Itoma become part of your everyday rhythm —
used often, cared for gently, and appreciated not only for what they are, but for how they make time feel.