Tea Scoop Names (Mei) for December

December, or Shiwasu, brings both year-end busyness and winter stillness. With Taisetsu and Toji, this month suits chashaku mei of snow, ice, cold moonlight, year-end reflection, and the quiet hope of returning light.

Solar Terms for December

Taisetsu (大雪 / Great Snow)

• The season when snow deepens in the mountains and towns
• It connects with quiet white winter mei such as Yukizora, Yuki no Hana, and Hyoka

Toji (冬至 / Winter Solstice)

• The shortest day and longest night of the year
• It suits mei that wait for returning light within the depth of cold

December Seasonal Motifs

Shiwasu (師走 / Year-End Month)

• A month where year-end busyness and closure overlap
• Mei such as Toshiwasure, Joya, and Senshuraku can mark the year's close

Winter Stillness

• Snow, ice, frost, winter lamps, and banked fire make cold and warmth visible together
• Mei such as Fuyugomori, Kangetsu, and Tsurara bring quiet winter scenery into the tea room

Mei for Early December

Kaomise (顔見世 / Face Showing)

• A year-end Kabuki event introducing the actors' lineup
• It brings the lively atmosphere of Shiwasu and winter theater culture

Suisen (水仙 / Narcissus)

• A mei for narcissus, a flower that blooms clearly in winter
• It adds a pure white beauty and quiet fragrance within the cold

Fuyugomori (冬篭 / Winter Seclusion)

• Staying indoors or in a nest to avoid the cold
• It emphasizes the contrast between outside cold and indoor warmth

Uzumibi (埋火 / Banked Fire)

• Charcoal kept alive under ash to preserve fire
• A hearth-season mei that suggests warmth remaining through a cold night

Kogarashi (木枯し / Withering Wind)

• A cold, strong wind at the beginning of winter
• It scatters dry leaves and signals winter's arrival

Kazabana (風花 / Wind-Blown Snow)

• Light snow drifting in the wind from a clear sky
• A delicate early-winter mei with a fleeting, pure feeling

Fuyu Kodachi (冬木立 / Winter Grove)

• Trees standing bare after shedding their leaves
• It expresses stillness and dignified winter austerity

Mei for Mid to Late December

Hyoka (氷花 / Ice Flowers)

• Moisture frozen into white, flower-like forms
• A mei for delicate natural beauty created by winter cold

Yuki no Hana (雪の花 / Snow Flowers)

• Snow falling softly like petals
• It expresses a gentle and pure winter scene

Kanto (寒燈 / Cold Lantern)

• A small light glowing on a cold night
• It suggests a faint warmth within loneliness

Yukizora (雪空 / Snowy Sky)

• A heavy, quiet sky just before snow begins to fall
• A mei for the tense stillness before winter weather changes

Shimobashira (霜柱 / Frost Pillars)

• Columns of ice formed as underground moisture freezes and rises through the soil
• It gives visible form to the cold of a winter morning

Kangetsu (寒月 / Cold Moon)

• A sharp, clear moon shining in the winter night sky
• A refined mei for still air and austere winter light

Tsurara (氷柱 / Icicles)

• Icicles hanging from eaves or branches
• It suggests transparent beauty within severe cold

Seiya (聖夜 / Holy Night)

• Christmas Eve, the night before Christmas
• A mei for winter stillness and the warmth of light in the dark

Mochitsuki (餅つき / Rice Cake Pounding)

• A year-end custom of pounding rice cakes for the New Year
• It suggests closing the year while preparing to welcome the next

Buji (無事 / Peaceful Completion)

• A mei of gratitude for finishing the year without mishap
• It adds relief and quiet prayer to a year-end tea gathering

Toshiwasure (年忘れ / Year-End Forgetting)

• A word for thanking the year and letting go of its hardships
• It brings gratitude and relief to a year-end tea gathering

Joya (除夜 / New Year's Eve Night)

• The final night of the year
• A mei for quietly looking back on the passing year and awaiting the next