为什么好的非遗器物「越用越美」

有一类器物，刚到手时并不惊艳，用上几年反而顺眼了。这不是怀旧滤镜，是材料在时间里发生的变化。理解这层变化，比学会分辨真假更实用：它决定了你买回去的东西，是被放着，还是被用着。

▍一、它不是变新了，是变稳了

器物「越用越美」的头一层原因很物理。手工完成的表面，放大看并不平整：漆膜有刷痕，竹丝有纤维，陶胎有颗粒。刚做完时，这些起伏对光形成散射，看上去偏涩。

使用带来的是均匀的轻微摩擦。凸起处先被磨到，微观的落差一点点收窄，反射从散射转向半定向，光泽就从「亮」变成「润」。人眼对这种光泽的好感，通常高于出厂时的高光。

用了多年的漆碗，碗沿被手磨出柔和的光

这个过程的名字，传统上叫包浆。所谓包浆，指的是器物在长期使用中与手、空气反复接触，表面形成的一层均匀而柔和的光泽变化。它不是脏，也不是神秘，只是时间在表面留下的均匀痕迹。

▍二、颜色是从材料和手里来的

再一层原因在颜色。天然材料会继续与环境交换：竹木吸了手上的微量油脂，颜色从青转黄褐；陶胎吸了茶汤，缝隙里留下深浅不匀的印子；麻、藤一类纤维用久了会柔顺，颜色沉下去。

漆之所以能撑起这个过程，靠的是漆膜本身的耐久。据新华网 2026 年 10 月 30 日《新华走笔》一文，据《平遥县志》记载，晋中漆作滥觞于商周，唐开元年间已形成稳定的髹漆传统，古有「滴漆入土，千年不毁」之说。

这类变化有一个共同前提：材料本身没有被完全封死。表面如果盖了一层化学漆，变化就停在出厂那天；用的是大漆、木蜡、生油这类可以被材料「呼吸」的涂层，时间才进得去。

这也是为什么「天然材料」在手作领域被反复提起。它不是营销词，它决定了这件东西未来五年是往好看里走，还是往旧里走。

▍三、不是所有东西都适合「用旧」

这里必须说清边界。越用越美这件事，只适用于一部分器物。

彩绘类怕磨。描金、彩绘的表面纹样是画上去的，反复摩擦会掉色脱层，这一类要远手、远光。镶嵌类怕温差，螺钿与木头、漆的膨胀系数不同，骤冷骤热容易起壳。薄胎类怕磕，夜光杯那种薄到零点五毫米的胎，一次失手就没有下一次。

适合养的，是那些结构厚实、表面无附加装饰、涂层可透气的日用器物：素漆碗、竹篮、木托盘、未经施釉的陶壶。

竹编提篮的把手处，竹丝被手磨得发亮

▍四、买的时候怎么判断它会不会「长」

三条可以现场用的方法。一看表面：有没有厚重的镜面反光，有则说明被封住了。二看断面或底部：能看到材料本身的纹理，说明没有覆盖层。三问一句：这件东西日常怎么用、怕什么。答得上来的卖家，通常也答得上来它是谁做的。

器物的价值不在买下的那一刻。它在被反复使用、被慢慢磨亮的那些年里，一点点长出来。

▍问答

问｜漆器用久了会变好看吗，会不会越用越花

答｜素漆器物通常会越用越润，前提是正常使用。手工髹涂的漆膜表面有细微刷痕，使用带来的均匀摩擦会让它从「亮」转「润」；但如果表面有彩绘、描金或镶嵌，摩擦与温差反而会造成脱色、起壳，这一类要远手远光。

问｜竹编器物用久了颜色变深，是发霉吗

答｜不一定是。竹材在干燥通风的环境里长期接触手部油脂，颜色会由青转黄褐，这是正常变化。真正的霉变通常伴随灰绿或黑色的斑点、有异味，多发生在潮湿不通风的存放条件下。区分要点是看有无斑点与异味，并先确认存放环境是否干燥。

问｜什么是包浆，和污渍怎么区分

答｜包浆是长期使用形成的均匀表面变化，摸上去干爽不黏，光泽柔和且分布连续；污渍则集中在缝隙与低处，手感发黏，颜色边界突兀。简单判断：用微湿软布轻擦后迅速吸干，包浆不受影响，污渍会变淡。清洁一律不浸泡、不用强洗涤剂。

问｜韵和鸣的器物用旧了、用坏了，还能回来处理吗

答｜接。用旧了、磕碰了都可以先来问一句，器物支持回收。敢把卖出去的东西再收回来，是因为对经手的东西有底，也是因为这类器物本来就该被长久使用。至于怎么摆、怎么擦、什么情况下该停用，随时可以回头问。

📩 非遗项目｜匠人举荐｜跨境出海｜线下联营

欢迎留言或后台联系，我们与匠人同行。

—— 韵和鸣 · 与匠人同行

〖器〗

English

It Does Not Become New; It Becomes Settled

The first reason, a physical one, is this. A hand-finished surface is not flat under magnification: a lacquer film carries brush marks, bamboo carries fibres, a clay body carries grain. When newly finished, these undulations scatter light and the surface reads as raw.

Use brings even, slight friction. The raised parts are worn first, micro-relief narrows, reflection shifts from diffuse to partly directional, and the sheen turns from bright to mellow. The eye generally prefers this sheen to the factory gloss.

A lacquer bowl used for years, the rim worn to a soft sheen by handling

Traditionally this is called patina. Patina refers to the even, mellow change in sheen that forms on a surface through repeated contact with hands and air over long use. It is neither dirt nor mystery, only the even trace time leaves on a surface.

Another reason lies in colour. Natural materials keep exchanging with their surroundings: bamboo and wood take up traces of oil from hands and shift from green to yellow-brown; a clay body takes up tea and holds uneven marks in its pores; hemp and rattan fibres soften with use and their colour deepens.

That lacquer can carry this process rests on the durability of the film itself. According to a Xinhua Net essay of 30 October 2026 citing the Pingyao County Annals, lacquerwork in Jinzhong began in the Shang and Zhou periods and had formed a stable tradition by the Kaiyuan era of the Tang; the old saying runs that lacquer dropped into the earth lasts a thousand years.

Such change shares one precondition: the material has not been sealed off completely. Coat a surface with a synthetic lacquer and change stops the day it leaves the workshop; use raw lacquer, wax or a drying oil that lets the material breathe and time can get in.

This is why natural materials come up so often in the handmade field. It is not a marketing word; it decides whether an object moves towards better or merely towards older over the next five years.

A boundary has to be stated here. Growing better with use applies to some objects only.

Painted surfaces fear friction. Gold tracing and painted decoration sit on top; repeated rubbing fades colour and lifts layers, so keep them away from hands and light. Inlaid work fears temperature swings, since mother-of-pearl, wood and lacquer expand at different rates and thermal shock lifts the shell. Thin-walled pieces fear knocks: a body as thin as half a millimetre does not survive a second chance.

What suits being worn in are everyday objects with solid structure, no surface decoration and a breathable finish: plain lacquer bowls, bamboo baskets, wooden trays, unglazed clay pots.

The handle of a bamboo basket, the strips polished bright by years of hands

Three tests work at the point of purchase. Look at the surface: a heavy mirror gloss means it has been sealed. Look at the cross-section or the base: if the material's own grain is visible, there is no covering layer. Ask one question: how is this used day to day, and what does it fear. A seller who answers that can usually also say who made it.

The worth of an object does not sit in the moment of purchase. It grows, little by little, across the years in which it is used and slowly polished by use.

Does lacquerware improve with use, or does it become worn and mottled?

Plain lacquer usually grows mellower with use, provided it is used normally. A hand-coated film carries fine brush marks, and even friction turns the finish from bright to mellow. If the surface carries painting, gold tracing or inlay, however, friction and temperature swings cause fading and lifting, so keep those away from hands and light.

Bamboo ware darkens with age; is that mould?

Not necessarily. Bamboo that stays dry and ventilated and meets traces of oil from hands shifts from green to yellow-brown, which is normal. Real mould usually comes with grey-green or black spots and a smell, and appears where storage is damp and unventilated. The test is whether there are spots and odour, and whether the storage is dry.

What is patina, and how does it differ from dirt?

Patina is an even surface change built up over long use: dry to the touch, not sticky, with a soft continuous sheen. Dirt collects in crevices and hollows, feels tacky and has abrupt colour edges. A simple test: wipe lightly with a barely damp soft cloth and dry at once; patina is unaffected, dirt lightens. Never soak, never use strong detergents.

If a YUNHEMING piece wears out or breaks, can it be sent back?

It does. Worn or knocked pieces can be asked about first; objects can be taken back. Being willing to take back what was sold means having confidence in what passed through one's hands, and it also follows from the fact that such objects are meant to be used for a long time. As for where to place it, how to wipe it and when to stop using it, those can be asked at any time.

ICH Projects · Artisan Referrals · Global Distribution · Salon Partnerships