This is the kind commonly used in Chinese homes. They are usually cheap but are easily bent and they blacken after usage. Subsequently, they must be replaced often.
Compared with bamboo chopsticks, wooden ones are higher priced and can also serve as good gifts for close friends and relatives during holidays and festival time.
Rosewood chopsticks look elegant and feature primitive simplicity. They are appropriate to match with high qu
ality blue and white porcelain bowls and dishes. They should not be washed in alkali water since that would turn them grey and ugly.
Chopsticks made of dark, heavy wood enjoy the highest position among wooden chopsticks. They are of hard quality and heavy weight wood, and will not deform with use. They have a smooth, lustrous and elegant look.
Chopsticks made of Chinese ilex are plain and elegant. The material is hard, but smooth, sweet, and chilly with a delicate fragrance. It is said that it has the functions of reducing internal heat and of brightening the eye.
Chopsticks made of nanmu are of close texture and light green color. Durable and with a light fragrance, they sell well in southern China.
Chopsticks made
of the jujube tree are of a heavy and tenacious quality, with a smooth feel, dark red color and luster, and are popular in northern China.
Chopsticks made of tieningmu are produced in Jiuhua Mountain in Anhui Province. The product sinks in water so is known as "iron chopsticks." The main strong point is the fact the utensil is not water absorbing.
The lacquer painted chopsticks has either bamboo or wooden bodies. Brightly painted with beautiful patterns, it takes 43 processes to make a pair of such chopsticks. After being steamed at high temperature, they can stand boiling water or soup but they become tender if scrubbed since the lacquer is easy to scrub down, and therefore can present a possible health hazard.
