You can see how it's done in the video above. The process of slowly grinding the ink against the stone and pushing the finished ink into the well is quite relaxing.

Japanese production of ink sticks dates back to the eighth century. The video above (Japanese only, sorry!) gives a very good overview of the production process, from burning wood and collecting the ashes to adding glue, forming the sticks, drying and adding illustrated embellishments at the very end.

Established in 1947, Shinseido is one of five remaining makers of Japanese ink in Suzuka, a city famous for both its F1 racing circuit and its traditional ink sticks.

Shinseido has been recognized as a traditional producer of ink craft by the Japanese government, offering traditional inks for general use as well as special inks for writing kanji and hiragana or for drawing.

One recent Shinseido innovation has been a series of ink sticks that include color pigments that create natural accents when used.

These colored inks allow calligraphers to add colorful accents to their works. The light, watery colors combine harmoniously with the black ink base of each stick. Eight different shades are available.

This luxury ink stick is made for calligraphy masterpieces. Embellished with rich illustrations, when using this ink stick, the gold pigments dissolve into the ink and leave golden sprinkles in the calligraphy.

Shinseido also offers blueish ink sticks and, of course, several grades of black ink for various purposes. Check out the entire set below!

And if you'd like some calligraphy brushes to go with your ink, take a look here!