There is a tradition in Japan from ancient times to give a mirror stand as part of the trousseau to the
daughter who is leaving home to get married. Mirror stands with three-side mirrors were treated as
a treasure for women and used for a long period of time. This tradition to bring wedding trousseau
has disappeared almost completely now except in few regions of Japan. In the past, a mirror stand
was placed on the tatami floor. Women would sit on the floor in front of the mirror to make up, or
stand up and step back to see their attire through the mirror. Most mirrors had small drawers near
the floor for keeping cosmetics and makeup items. Mirrors have been a holy item from ancient time
in the sense that a mirror was presented as god at shrines. At home, it was etiquette to hang a cloth
over the mirror and lift the cloth up only when using the mirror.
Shizuoka, Tokushima and Hiroshima were some of the areas that flourished as mirror production
regions since manufacturing of mirror stands was the main work in the furniture industry. Although
a mirror is still an essential item for women in Japan, traditional mirror stands for Japanesestyle
rooms are not commonly used in recent years, We produced a desk with three-side mirror
following this tradition of mirror stands in Japan. The desk has drawers and a simple design with
little decoration not to give strong presence as a mirror stand. Mirrors on both sides can be bent to
the front to see one’s face from various angles. With its simple design, it can be placed in a bedroom
and a living room to be used as a desk.