Shopofkorea guides
Korean Traditional Stationery with English Inscriptions as Group Thank-You Gifts for Foreign Visitors
Official product names are shown in Korean. Product pages are in Korean; prices are in South Korean won (KRW).
I work at a community welfare center in the provinces. This past spring, a group of young people from abroad came to the center for a singing gathering and we sang together. They were university students or peers who had just entered the workforce. At first everyone was a little shy, but after one song and then another, people were clapping and singing along, and by the end it had become so lively that you couldn't tell who were the guests and who were the hosts.
It was only after the singing ended that the thought occurred to me. I wanted to leave these friends with something tangible to express my gratitude. The problem was time. There were barely two days left before the date I needed to hand everything over.
Started Looking for a USB, Ended Up with Pens
The first thing I typed into the search bar was "usb." Then "memory." I figured a USB with engraved text would be practical and something young people would actually use. But as I browsed, something nagged at me. A USB is just a USB no matter which country you receive it in. I wanted something that, just by looking at it, would bring back the memory of Korea, of our center, of that day we sang together — and a USB didn't seem like it could do that.
So I changed my search to "business card holder set" and from there found my way into Korean traditional stationery. Pens, business card holders, pencil cases. These are things people carry every day, and with Korean imagery on them, I thought they would bring Korea to mind every time they were used.
I had two concerns. One was that the inscription had to be in English, and the other was the date. After placing the order I immediately posted on the message board asking, "Since the inscription needs to be in English, would it be all right if I sent it in the evening, and would it arrive in time?" The reply came that if I sent the text within that day they would accommodate it, so that evening I put together three lines and sent them off. I included the name of the singing group, two English sentences conveying "thank you so much, I will always cherish that joyful moment," and on the last line, the name of the center. I only relaxed after receiving confirmation that this text could be printed. Whether printing is possible varies by product and by inscription, so the fastest approach is to ask directly when you place the order.
What I Chose
There were just over ten people, so I went with pen sets for most of them and mixed the varieties. Giving everyone the exact same thing takes the fun out of handing them out.
One choice was the 훈민정음펜-4p세트 (Hunminjeongeum Pen 4-piece set; Hunminjeongeum, the original name of the Korean alphabet). It features hangeul lettering in its design, so even friends who don't know Korean find themselves peering at it and asking, "Is this hangeul?"
I also included the 전통민화펜-4p세트 (Traditional Minhwa Pen 4-piece set; minhwa are Korean folk paintings). The pens feature classic paintings such as a tiger, Sin Yun-bok's village school and ssireum wrestling scenes, Goguryeo tomb murals, and a mandarin duck and flower painting, so each time someone took one out I could tell them about the image on it.
I also mixed in the 서울명소펜-4p세트 (Seoul Landmarks Pen 4-piece set), which features Seoul landmarks and the city skyline. I added one with an urban feel so it wouldn't all lean too heavily toward the traditional.
There were also two people I especially wanted to give something different to. For the friend who had led the group and been in contact with me, I chose the 명함집-매화나비3종(지칼) (Business Card Holder — Plum Blossom & Butterfly, 3-piece set, mother-of-pearl lacquerware). It has a mother-of-pearl sheen with plum blossom and butterfly motifs; plum blossom is said to represent a new beginning, and the butterfly joy and harmony. It felt like just the right meaning for a friend who had just stepped out into the world, so I didn't hesitate.
For one of the young women, I gave the 꽃무늬 누비띠필통-분홍 (Floral Nubi Strap Pencil Case — Pink; nubi is a traditional Korean quilting technique of layering and stitching fabric). Because it is a nubi pencil case made by layering and stitching fabric, it feels soft and light in the hand.
The Day I Handed Them Over
The items arrived at the center on the promised day. I opened the box and rewrapped each one individually. Having decided in advance who would receive what meant there was no fumbling when the moment came.
The friend who received the pink pencil case held it in her palm and smiled. The friend who received the business card holder studied the plum blossom and butterfly pattern for a long while, then quietly slipped it into her pocket. The friends who received the pen sets took out one pen at a time, held it in their hands, and then read the English sentences printed on it aloud. Those sentences referred to the singing that had already ended, yet in the moment of reading them it felt as though everyone had returned to that day.
If you need to give thank-you gifts to a foreign group and time is tight, I found it convenient to use pen sets as the base and then choose a different item for just one or two people you want to put extra thought into. When printing is difficult or time is truly short, there is also the option of writing a line yourself on a card and including it with the gift. A card like the 전통 한복카드-연인(여) (Traditional Hanbok Card — Couple, Female Version) has a hanbok illustration on it, so even a short message written in English reads as a greeting from Korea.
The shorter the inscription, the better. A word of thanks, a word saying you will remember, and who we are. Those three lines were enough.
This account is based on an actual purchase; individuals and the institution have been anonymized and some scenes have been reconstructed.