Sanrio Strawberry Chocolate

Quite a while ago I placed a fun order at Blippo. I originally came for something else, but -having really enjoyed Japanese strawberry chocolate before- I also ended up adding two little boxes of Sanrio chocolates to my cart.

The packaging was already adorable, but the real magic happened inside… All the chocolates were shaped like Sanrio characters (even my favorite: Pom Pom Purin!) or the Milky girl! And luckily they hadn't melted on the way over here.

From what I recall from eating Meiji's famous strawberry chocolates a few years prior, I think they compare pretty well. A tiny bit less tasty maybe. Or maybe it was just bittersweet munching on those adorable little faces, haha!

Lovely Movies: An / Sweat Bean

I've always wanted to see a Naomi Kawase film, and when I heard about her new film "An" I was determined to not let this opportunity pass me by. So with a likeminded friend I went and saw it very soon after it came out.

"An" tells the story of a Japanese pancake stand and three people that work and/or eat there. It's not a highly original plot (and could have done with less symbolism), but it's a beautiful movie that left me quite warm and fuzzy, as well as hungry.

I tend to really enjoy these films about ordinary people that really see the beauty in everyday life. Not every film needs to be incredibly eventful to be interesting. And the pacing of "An" was actually perfect. Slow enough to prove its point, yet not so much as to leave its viewers bored. And it definitely made me want to catch up on the director's other films!

P.S. If you've already seen this movie and crave something similar, definitely check out "Megane";)

Lovely Movies: Only Yesterday

Possibly the most realistic, calm and introspective Studio Ghibli movie out there, Only Yesterday tells the story of a twenty-something and her childhood. It's not exactly action-packed, but it's still fascinating to see this life unfold.

Taeko realizes she has been clinging to her childhood. As she's on vacation she finds herself flooded with memories of the optimistic innocence she used to have, as well as some more negative things that left their marks on her too.

Anyway, it's a lovely slice of life-ish coming of age story that shows you don't have to carry everything from your childhood into your adult life, that it's okay to let go of certain things and move on. And it shows it in a beautiful way!

Lovely Movies: From up on Poppy Hill

Whenever I find a Studio Ghibli dvd I know I need to jump at the opportunity quickly. (I unfortunately learned this the hard way.) Recently I got lucky and found From Up On Poppy Hill, which I'd been wanting to see for quite some time.

It was adorable. Though not at all magical, which is quite unusual for Studio Ghibli. However, it is unmistakingly Studio Ghibli. The music, the drawing style, the overall atmosphere… even the personalities of the characters.

Anyway, I was so stoked to cross another one of these movies of my list! I still have quite a bunch to go, but I've seen the majority of the feature films now, and though it's getting harder, I won't give up on tracking down the last ones!

Review: Kawaii Box

I love happy mail! So subscription boxes always got me excited, but few actually made it to my part of the world. Until Kawaii Box showed up! They are definitely the cutest subscription service and they kindly sent me a box to review.

My expectations were pretty high, but I was still blown away when my very own Kawaii Box actually showed up! I can honestly say that there wasn't a single thing in there that isn't adorable. So lets have a closer look, shall we?

When I opened the box I saw exactly what you see in the picture above and I instantly knew it would all be great! The thank you-card was very sweet with its handwritten note, and the bunny post card was the first actual product I saw.

After that it was a huge splash of color -mostly pink, of course- that contained one cute thing after the other! This make-up bag/coin purse for instance. I love the design and the fact that it has two zippers. So cute, yet so practical as well!

I also got some candy-shaped hair ties and a sheet of pink pearl stickers that might actually make it onto my phone.

An adorable Rilakkuma raspberry macaroon squishy. It looks quite edible actually, made my mouth water a little…

So it's a good thing they sent some actual candy along too. Here is some grapefruit flavored Puccho!



This towel made me super excited! I love those little Japanese towels, but they are hard to find outside of Asia. This one is actually quite big too. And it even has a little name tag in the upper corner. A very clever touch, I think!



This cute cat below is a pencil sharpener. It actually has holes for both regular shaped pencils, and for bigger ones.

I find these lovely bunny stickers quite hilarious. Some of their positions and facial expressions are so funny!

The Hello Kitty pen is one of my favorite items in the whole box! The fineliner pen itself is really cute and writes wonderfully, but the main feature, of course, are the charms on the top. One Hello Kitty and one chocolate bar!

And last, but definitely not least (in fact, another one of my absolute favorites from this box!), is this amazing cat plushy. It's so soft and so cute, I just adore it! It also reminds me of my actual cat. I'll need to find a good place to hang this one!

That's it for products, however, there was also a coupon for 10% off at Blippo so I can get even more Kawaii stuff!

Final Verdict:

I'm a fan! It's a very affordable way of surprising yourself with a whole bunch of kawaii items, in fact, thanks to the low price I didn't even have to worry about paying any extra custom fees.
Anyway, the anticipation of receiving this made me excited already, and the actual box made my day! I really enjoyed the things they picked and would definitely recommend this to anyone who likes adorable Japanese stuff!

In case you're interested in subscribing…

Kawaii Box is only $18,90 a month and worldwide shipping is included. You can subscribe or unsubscribe at any time. So even if you're looking for something to just brighten your dark cold winter months, this is perfect!
Please note that the boxes go out at the beginning of each month. So if you subscribe now you'll get another box of 10-12 original/licensed Japanese and Korean kawaii items in the mail in November. It's still a surprise what's in there!

P.S. Alhough I did receive a one-month subscription for free, all opinions are honestly mine. It genuinely made me super excited!

Lovely Movies: The Tale of Princess Kaguya

You're probably not surprised to hear that I will go and watch any Studio Ghibli movie, when given the chance. So when the latest one hit a cinema near me, I made sure to go see it while it was still playing on the big screen.

It wasn't directed by Miyazaki and definitely has a different feel from all the other movies. Not just story-wise, but it was also very visible in the style of the animation. This one was all watercolor, and visually breathtaking, really.

Like many of the others, the ending makes very little sense. But it was still a wonderful movie. Sad at times, as it shows the unhappiness tradition can cause, but it also had moments of great everyday joy. And beautiful music!

Mixed Shelf #14

Every once in a while I have a huge Japanese reading kick. Now is definitely one of those times! I'm currently engrossed in an amazing book and it is making me very excited about reading a lot more Japanese fiction again.

Wanting: 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami

It has been a while since I read any Murakami. I mentioned I got stuck in one of his books and it has put me off trying any others. Which makes hardly any sense, since he was always one of my favorite authors. Of course there is his brand new release, but I have to admit I'm way more curious about 1Q84. Despite its gigantic page count...

goodreads // available here

Reading: A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki

One of my birthday gifts this year! I planned to start this a lot sooner, but I am very glad I kept it until now. It's the perfect book for this time of the year, or maybe even this time of my life. Anyway, I'm enjoying it tremendously! It's a novel, but half of it often confuses me (in a good, and very enchanting, way!) because of it's many autobiographical elements.

goodreads // available here

Waiting: Hardboiled & Hard Luck by Banana Yoshimoto

Banana Yoshimoto is one of my absolute favorite authors, if not my nr. 1… so it's quite surprising that I have never read the first book of hers I ever bought. In fact I only read half of the books on my Banana-shelf. I just like to spread them out so I can pick one up whenever I feel like it. And thankfully she's still writing and releasing books too.

goodreads // available here

Are you into Japanese fiction? And if so, can you recommend any nice novels? I'd love to hear about some new ones.

Lovely Movies: The Wind Rises

Being a huge Studio Ghibli fan I felt very disappointed and slightly embarrassed when I thought I would miss the Wind Rises while it was on the big screen. But thankfully I managed to get myself to a cinema in time to catch it.

It was wonderful. Of course it was. I mean, it's Miyazaki, it is bound to be wonderful. Unfortunately this is also his last film, because he is retiring. He actually wanted to make a sequel to Ponyo, but was persuaded into making this.

It was originally a manga by Miyazaki himself, which was in turn based on a short story by Tatsuo Hori. Anyway, the final product is amazing. Not as magical as most Studio Ghibli films, but still with a hint of magic and lots of dreams.

I always advise people to watch the original version, but I have to admit that the cast for the US version sounds pretty amazing. I can't promise it will be perfect, but if you can't watch the Japanese I'm sure this will be wonderful too!

Have you seen many Studio Ghibli movies? Which one is your favorite? I have seen a lot, but have yet to catch up on a few. I won't rush into finishing them all though, because I love having some left to look forward to as well.

Sweet Paul Headphone DIY

Every once in a while I find a DIY that is simply jaw dropping. And these embroidered cherry blossom headphones that were featured on Sweet Paul definitely did drop my jaw. And made me want to make my own pair pronto!

I'm a bit hesitant to try this, as I don't want to mess up any of my headphones, but I think I might take the risk if I have an eligible pair. I know I have one with wood print somewhere and I bet that would look really cute!

The DIY doesn't really come with step-by-step instructions, but it seems pretty logical. Let me know if you decide to give it a go too, ok? I'd love to see it!

Wishlist

Whenever I go grocery shopping I always make sure to bring my own reusable bag to help save plastic. I have a couple: some basic ones, some with a cute print. But nothing quite as adorable as this Japanese mouse.

It is beautiful when zipped up, but also unfolds into a really cute green tote with a lovely print. And even then you can still see the mouse, because it sticks to the side of the bag. Which also means you will never lose the pouch.

It is a bit pricey, but I imagine it would last a very long time too. Anyway, you can get one at Japanistic.

Lovely Movies: Summer Days with Coo

Good news! I discovered another lovely Japanese animation film. Summer Days with Coo is a bit odd, very sad at times -especially the beginning-, but overall just wonderful to watch. And some of the animated backgrounds look so real!

I've always wished that I'd find a fantasy creature somewhere, so movies like this are the next best thing. I had never heard of Kappas before, but apparently they were already a big myth in Japan. And this one's very cute.



And I love how the Japanese often urge people to cherish nature through their amazing animations. Even though these creatures don't exist, their habitats still harbor lots of other animals that need protection.
Who says movies are a bad influence on kids? They can teach great things as well, right?

Amazing Art: Hong Yi

Have you seen what the artist Hong Yi has been doing to her meals lately? It is amazing! I've seen some pretty things made with vegetables and fruit before, but these definitely take the cake. Enjoy!

Owl Things Considered

Incense and animals don't often mix. Sure you see the occasional elephant-shaped incense burners, but on the packaging they usually stick with Buddhas or flowers. Nippon Kodo doesn't. They use owls!

Each beautiful box contains an incense burner and two delicious scents that are meant to make you feel like you're in your favorite café, hence the name Café Time. There are sets with Sakura and Green Tea, Cassis and Mocha, Apple and Jasmine Tea; and so on...

And each set of scents comes in a different color cilinder with two beautiful animal friends. I would not mind collecting them all, but if I had to pick favorites, I'd say the owls and these stunning foxes:

They're available Omoi, Amazon, Incense Warehouse and of course Nippon Kodo. Enjoy!