[Okinawa Kira Star Company! ](123) Representative Hanae Shimoji

Irabu Ohashi Bridge is the longest free bridge in Japan that connects remote islands. Across the bridge is Irabu Island’s only accessory shop, “ORSA”. In Latin, it means “the beginning of all things.”

Representative Hanae Shimoji manufactures and sells accessories made with Miyako beef horn, natural stones, silver, etc., as well as earrings made from choma, a member of the nettle family that is the raw material for Miyako Jofu.

All of the products are one-of-a-kind items and are expensive, ranging from 5,000 to 50,000 yen, but there are many core fans who are captivated by their designs. He has over 9,000 followers on Instagram. They are mainly purchased by female customers from within and outside the prefecture.

Soon, a new product will be made into a necklace with the pattern of the “hajichi” tattoo, which is an old custom in Okinawa and has different patterns in various places such as Miyako Island, Ishigaki Island, Taiwan and Thailand. It has meanings such as protection from evil spirits, prosperity of descendants, proof of marriage, and pass to the afterlife.

Representative Shimoji hopes to highlight the history of hajichi while connecting the cultures of Irabu and Okinawa, and to make the necklace a special product, “a talisman that can be worn casually.”

Why not wear this necklace and think about the vast nature of Irabu’s sea and sugar cane fields, the island’s scenery, and the interactions with people? (Miyakojima City Irabu Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Yukinori Inami, Management Instructor)

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ORSA 107 Irabu, Miyakojima City, Tel: 070 (9047) 0817