Japanese style comes to U.S. living rooms.

EARL Hirahara and his brothers, Robert and Calvin, are the owners of L.A. Shoji and Decorative Products, a design studio specializing in the creation of Japanese-style doors, mats and cabinetry. Originally from Hawaii, the three came to California with their parents, who wanted a better life for their children. In the early '60s, the senior Hiraharas opened Oriental Shoji, a trading store for specialty items. The venture eventually flourished into a design studio that created traditional Japanese objects for the homes of customers with an appetite for the Orient. When their parents sold the business, the brothers continued the family tradition by opening their own store, as Earl explained.

"Our parents started the business, so we inherited the skill. We're from Hawaii, and my father owned a lumberyard there. However, he wanted us to have a better education and moved the family to California. He was looking for something to do, so they began importing gift items to sell. I guess people were requesting the doors and they started a shoji company. So that's all we do now.

"Shoji is a Japanese sliding door. It's a traditional thing. Shojis have been around a long time. Instead of vertical blinds or curtains, people use shojis. The doors are priced according to square footage, which starts around $20 to $29 installed for the rectangular design. The Shibuki design, which is more elegant, costs $38 to $45 per square foot.

"The process for making the shoji begins by fast milling it for the stile. The stiles are the rails on the doors. We cut it to length for size, and then assemble it. We then make the pattern of the grid, whatever the design pattern the customer wants. The insert is supposed to be rice paper, but we use Synskin white, a fiberglass-plastic. After you've done this for so many years, it becomes easy.

"We go to the customer's home and measure the job. We then come back to the studio and build the doors. Upon completion, we install the doors for the customers. Or if one wants to convert a room to a Japanese style, we put down the mats, design the shoji and build the tokonoma. A tokonoma is a cabinet used especially for display items. People use it for flower arrangements sometimes. It's very simple because there aren't any shelves. The Japanese like to display art or flowers.

"The style of doors we make are the Kabuki, rectangular, which is the traditional Japanese door, and the Takeshige. We also make tatami mats. These are straw mats. Years ago in Japan they used tatami mats instead of carpeting. It comes in certain sizes. The idea is that one builds their home around the mats.

"I have worked with directors and movie producers, and it makes us feel good to know that we get a lot of good exposure. We have been on HGTV. I can't even name all of the publications we have been featured in.

"We've been in this business for 35 years, if you include our parents. I'm the president, my brother Calvin is the vice president and Robert is the secretary. Two nephews work in the store now, and two non-family members, for a total of seven employees.

"We're growing because I believe this type of decor is very unique and it blends with a lot of contemporary furniture. Maybe that's why we're so busy these days. The doors have a very Japanese look, but they are very soft and contemporary."