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Archive for October, 2009

It’s time to look for a new journal for 2010.

author Posted by: kirin on date Oct 29th, 2009 | filed Filed under: Daily Life, Rambling
Fueki HandCream Browsing around LOFT once in a while is so much fun to me. If you have been to Japan, you may know what it is. It’s a department building of kawaii stationery, cosmetics, general goods, tools for kitchen or anything, nice interior items or small furniture, especially targeted for young single or DINKS, and so many more. I cannot explain it well, and I’d strongly recommend you should go see it by yourself when you are in Japan. It’s not only in Tokyo, it’s available at many major cities! I’m sure you enjoy it, as much as Tokyu Hands! I’d go to Shibuya LOFT because of its scale and convenience.(Shibuya is easy access from my house.)

The other day I went to Shibuya LOFT to look for a new diary for 2010. I know what I exactly want, because I keep using the same one for the past few years and I still like using it, but it’s just fun to look around other things, too. :D I bought some cute cards and cheap cosmetics, as well as a cute calendar, but my diary was not ready then. I have to come back mid November.

Who was it that I exchanged messages on the shoutmix some time ago? I found Fueki glue that was so familiar at kindergarten…No, this time it’s revived as a hand cream! Fueki-kun (It was he! which I learned from the Fueki Blog. As it says “boku”=僕, it means male.) I think I’ve seen Fueki hand cream somewhere last winter, but I didn’t know that he has become such a famous character! (Japanese people LOVE characters, you know that!) It was in Shibuya LOFT the other day, and there were many more interesting goods and cosmetics that kept me stay there for a long time.

I dropped at Shibuya HMV that is just across the street from Shibuya LOFT, and I happened to find a Cher diary for 1200 yen! (Cher is an apparel brand but it’s more famous for its eco-bag as in this episode.) This was cute, but the style was not my taste. I’ll go for the same one as this year or the last year.

There was a Hello Kitty Fan book and this looked cute with full of introduction of rare Hello Kitty goods inside. As is always these days, freebie for this magazine is a small reversible original Kitty-chan bag. :)

Cherjournal 265x300 Its time to look for a new journal for 2010.
HelloKittyFan 300x224 Its time to look for a new journal for 2010.

Oops, sorry for such a rambling…but I was so excited with kawaii all over, which is something very unique in Tokyo and that was what I was definitely missing from my trip to other countries. Speaking of kawaii, I think I love Tokyo most no matter how stupid and stressful our working situations are. I found many foreign visiters at tutuanna where I like to shop leggings and socks as well as Mity Soxer. They are cheap but cute! You should go there too (when you are here), if you like kawaii! ;)


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Kawaii competition -Paris project: accessory-

author Posted by: kirin on date Oct 27th, 2009 | filed Filed under: Fashion, Tokyo Kawaii TV

★Kawaii competition -Paris project: accessory-★
13/JUN/2009 on air
***When there are more than 2 x Tokyo Kawaii TV videos in the “home” page of this blog, you can see only latest one’s screen. But that doesn’t mean you cannot watch the previous one(s). To watch previous one(s), just click the title of the post and you’ll see the screen will appear. ***

The player will show in this paragraph

What are they saying? I can tell you…

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Fast fashion special

author Posted by: kirin on date Oct 24th, 2009 | filed Filed under: Fashion, Tokyo Kawaii TV

★Fast fashion special★
23/MAY/2009 on air

The player will show in this paragraph

What are they saying? I can tell you…

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Name stamp for foreign name

author Posted by: kirin on date Oct 22nd, 2009 | filed Filed under: Something Interesting
 Name stamp for foreign name On my way to Europe last month, I found something interesting at Narita airport before I left Japan. There were many kinds of foreign men’s and women’s names (I guess English names) available with Kanji stamps! I took 2 pictures with my mobile phone, which were Eric and Donna.

When you choose Kanji for your name, you can just pick up any Kanji that has a similar sound of the pronunciation of your name, which is as I explained before in my video. However, you have to know that it doen’t always mean that every sound has its Kanji. For example, there’s no exact sound applicable for the name such as “Sean” (ショーン) because there is no Kanji that sounds “-” or “ン” and instead, I would write it as 勝運(ショウウン=means victory and luck)for example, to make it sound similar to “Sean”.

“Eric” in this photo is very similar to Amanda’s case. 栄 is usually called “ei (エイ)” but here in the name it’s called “e (エ)”. 里久 can be called “riku” and so, the whole name sounds like “eriku (エリク)” without a small “ッ” which is because we don’t have a proper Kanji that has a sound of “ッ”. Therefore, not all of the foreign names are as easily translated into Kanji as Donna, the other picture I added down to Eric.

Yet, I found it very interesting they sell these stamps at Narita airport. Those who enjoyed travelling in Japan finally spend extra yen for such cute souvenires. It was 1000 yen or so, as far as I remember.

Eric Front
 Name stamp for foreign name
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Shibuya 109 English Guidebook

author Posted by: kirin on date Oct 19th, 2009 | filed Filed under: Book Review, Fashion
shibuya109 guidebook The other day, Lisa, one of my blog readers who also has lived and worked in Japan kindly introduced me an interesting blog that is written by a foreign Gyaru who lives in Tokyo now. This is it: Universal Doll

I think that some of my blog readers who are very much interested in fashion can enjoy her blog. In her blog, she mentions about a new magazine, “Shibuya 109 English Guidebook“. I also found another post about the magazine but is written in more objective way than hers.

If you are planning to visit Shibuya, which is the very center of Japanese Gyaru fashion and where 109 department building with full of Gyaru taste of fashion stores is located, it’s not a bad idea to give it a try. It’s also well-known that Hollywood celebrities and musicians love to drop at 109 when they visit Tokyo. I see how much they can get excited about kawaii fashion at cheap prices!

Shibuya 109 is a fashion department building especially targeted teens and young men and women. (It was not that much Gyaru-targeting atmosphere when I was a highschool student. That’s because I used to shop there often but I was not Gyaru at all then. Maybe Gyaru was not even popular then. ^ ^; ) The taste of fashion is Gyaru-kei for women, Onii-kei for men. (Gyaru-kei fashion for men) As is always, 109 is not exceptional. They open at 10 am and close at 9 pm. (Restaurants open 11 am to 10:30 pm.) They open everyday only except for 1st of Jan.

In case you are not familiar with Gyaru, here‘s wiki for your reference. Also, let me put a video link here again, which you can also find at Universal Doll but is not played smoothly due to lack of memory or because she doesn’t use a self-hosting blog? I don’t know but anyhow it’s a Japanese TV show introducing foreign Gyaru in Shibuya, Tokyo.

Yamanba” or “Manba” type of Gyaru is not so popular in Japan any longer. I rarely see them in Shibuya any more there days, but it’s a surprise to me this trend can be seen somewhere overseas…((-_-;))

As for myself, I have never been a Gyaru-type of girl and I have no interests in Onii-kei young guys but I don’t dislike them. I just feel awkward and out-of-place when I shop at 109 now, with my natural and casual way of looking among most of other shoppers who are totally “Gyaru” from top to the bottom. Pesonally I find Gyaru items are reasonable and cute. I think it’s good to enjoy fashion as much as we like while we are young. When we get old, we have so many other things to do and we cannot spare much time for it any longer…just like me now!

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