Great name, great socks! We spotted this display of kawaii socks in Harajuku’s Takeshita Street and soon discovered Mighty Soxer has the most awesome collection of socks you will ever see. From kawaii animal designs to thick winter warmers via odd inventions suited to any type of shoe you can imagine, you’ll really be spoiled for choice. You’re sure to be tempted by the ’3 pairs for ¥1500′ offer, so I especially recommend the foot socks, like the bear design I snapped up (2nd row right, above) with little ears that poke up above your trainers – so cute!

They also sell a range of tights, legwarmers, gloves and more, but it’s the socks you’ll come back for, and you will come back – it’s addictive, and your feet become an instant talking point. I bought two relatively normal pairs of socks in a waffle texture, one with apples and pears and one with mushrooms and toadstools, and I get so many comments on them. Can’t wait til the weather’s nice enough to break out my bears!

Mighty Soxer is a definite must-see – these socks are the perfect souvenir or gift since they’re inexpensive, very Japanese and totally useful! Plus your friends and family will no doubt get hours of amusement just out of the name Mighty Soxer. I hope this brand spreads to Europe one day soon.

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I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to share one of my favourite purchases from Japan, The Bunny Sushi Guide!. I bought it from the artist at Design Festa – I was drawn to her stall by bunnies and she proffered the book at me and after a quick look I knew I had to get it.

It’s all in Japanese so I may be missing some of the subtext but it appears to be about some bunnies who like dressing up as sushi. They often seem to be sneaking up on sushi, eating the rice and then dressing up in the fixings and look quite proud of themselves once they’re done.

Anyway, there are tons of drawings and comic strips featuring various bunnies dressing up as sushi. Some of them are extremely elaborate and the bunnies snuggled up in the conical makizushi are hilarious. I also really like the fashion line-up with bunnies showing off the latest trends in seaweed wear – as a scarf, cape or tie!

My absolute favourite pages though is the double spread of ideas for bunny sushi products, which includes a bento box, a mobile phone and an amazing pen-roll makizushi that unrolls to reveal a set of pens that are made to look like vegetables! I would buy pretty much everything here. From what I can make out on her blog, it seems she has now licensed the characters so hopefully we will see some kind of products one day soon.

I wish there was a way everyone could buy this little book. If anyone reading knows Japanese well enough to help me get in touch with her and see if I can buy some copies to sell in my zine distro, then please email me as that would be amazing.

Flyer and inner page spread images by hapy corone.

This weekend is the Tokyo Design Festa #33 and having attended #32, I really wish I could be there. Design Festa is billed as an international art event but it’s so much more exciting than that sounds. With 700 stalls from everyone from the amateur to the professional, it’s a riot of artistic chaos and awesome.

It takes place bi-annually (usually May and October/November) on Odaiba in a massive convention space with rooms loosely designated for art, illustration, crafts, fashion, lighting and more over two floors. There’s also a stage area for bands to play, and maybe you’ll be as lucky as me and meet a giant pink dancing bunny!

If you’ve ever been to a trade show then you’ll have an idea of how enormous and inspirational Design Festa is – you’ll definitely need to make a day of it to see everything and you’ll be exhausted by the end of it. But unlike a trade show, anyone can apply for a stall and prices are cheap so it’s much more ramshackle and exciting – a cross between a trade show, a craft fair and an impromptu art event. In one aisle you can have someone selling professionally printed books, an illustrator selling postcards and while-you-wait original sketches, a display for a new product prototype, someone sitting on a blanket on the floor selling their handmade accessories and a couple of people who are just painting on the walls. And someone dressed up as a crocodile.

It’s that mix that makes Design Festa unmissable – there’s really nothing like it in the UK and nowhere else will you get the chance to see such a range of independent art and crafts in one place. Plus, it’s all so kawaii! Most stalls have things for sale and it’s definitely a case of buy when you see as you might never find your way back again. If you’re on a budget, I recommend collecting postcards – there will be lots of free ones and artists selling them for ¥100 apiece. I’m sure you’ll be tempted into something bigger though – I came home with an amazing illustrated book of bunny sushi and a felted snowman! Most of the stallholders will only speak Japanese but everyone was really friendly and excited to sell their work.

I would definitely try and plan your trip to Tokyo to coincide with Design Festa, but if you can’t manage that, there’s also a Design Festa gallery in Harajuku which is open all year round where artists can book a space to display and sell their work.

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The first time we looked around Tokyo Station in 2008 (to find something to eat), it was a building site. On our next trip, it was transformed and the downstairs shopping area now hosts a whole street of shops devoted to Japan’s favourite characters So, of course, it’s called Character Street.

If you’re a fan of Hello Kitty, Rilakkuma, Totoro, Miffy, Domokun, Doraemon etc. then you’ll love Character Street, which has shops filled with everything you can imagine. While much of their stock is available in general toy stores, there’s something exciting about a whole shop filled entirely with products featuring your favourite characters. The shop fittings are also super-cute and you’ll get special carrier bags and character gashapon.

Best of all are the exclusive items you won’t find anywhere else. Since the Shinkansen leaves from Tokyo to take people all over Japan, there’s a big emphasis on souvenirs – you’ll find special character cakes and biscuits, and even character branded KitKats!

Our favourite was the Rilakkuma Store (not technically part of Character Street but around the corner) – it had loads of things we never saw anywhere else, as well as a whole range of products with the shop logo so you can show off that you’ve been.

You’re bound to be passing through Tokyo Station at some point, so it’s definitely worth popping over to Character Street to pick up some fun souvenirs.

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It seems a little unfair to class Hello Kitty’s Kawaii Paradise as a shop as I don’t think I even visited the shop part and I had a great time. It’s more like a mini indoor theme park  - a pink place of madness presided over by a Hello Kitty as Venus statue (it’s in Venus Fort mall, do you see?). As well as a Hello Kitty shop, it contains a cinema, arcade and….a Pancake Party!

Yes, like most of us, Hello Kitty’s idea of paradise is as many pancakes as you can eat, preferably with your own face stamped on them, and a side order of Melon Fanta (best drink ever). She even lets her friends in on this one – I got the plain Hello Kitty pancakes with maple syrup, but my sister got a crazy whipped cream, chocolate sauce and sprinkles affair, supposedly dreamt up by Purin. Kids will love this place, and so will you.

The rest of the place is less exciting, unless you’re a huge Hello Kitty fan – the small shop sells (obviously) Hello Kitty cuteness and there’s an arcade at the back with Taiko drum and Pokemon games, air hockey and even a mini JR train you can sit in. It’s worth having a wander though, as the decorations are crazy – as well as the enormous Kitty Venus, there are fountains and flying angel bunnies and pink bows ahoy.

We didn’t check out the cinema, as I imagine it’s in Japanese and there’s also a kids play area if you need a break from yours. And make sure you have a peek at the rest of Venus Fort too – it has painted ceilings that change throughout the day and in the winter there were lights to make it look like falling snow. Plus, there’s a small branch of Kiddyland for more kawaii.

Definitely one for the Hello Kitty fans, and anyone else should swing by if you’re in Odaiba (and like pancakes). I wouldn’t say it’s worth the trip in itself though.

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Thanks everyone who bought my Kawaii Japan PDF book this week. I’m pleased to say we raised £50 for the Red Cross Japan Tsunami Appeal.

I’d like to raise even more money though so I’ve decided to extend the donation period to 28 days, exactly how many days I have spent in Japan. So from now until April 9th, I’m donating £4 of every sale. I wish I could keep it at £5 but I have fees to pay out of that to PayPal, Shopify, Fetch, Etsy etc.

There are now thousands of different ways to help raise money so there really is no excuse not to donate in some way. I bought a lovely hand towel (the one on the right) from PataPri, who is donating $5 from each sale. And even though Yuko is in Japan herself, I received my parcel in just 4 days! Amazing.