Why I Still Miss Japan

Germany's nice, and all, and there are some things I love about living here. But oh, Japan! Watch this lovely little video and be enchanted.

Eatrip

Some beautiful musings on good food:



I'd love to see the entire movie sometime.

Yakimo

You must see this creative, delightful video put together by Isabelle and shared on one of my favorite blogs, Hello Sandwich. In a very short amount of time, it somehow manages to say something quite meaningful about the people, food, and culture of Japan. The "yakimo" soundtrack is a recording of a yaki-imo man--that's the guy who goes street by street selling the most fantastic roasted Japanese sweet potatoes. These guys and their little trucks (I suppose there may be some who still go around on foot with a cart) can be found rolling through neighborhoods all across Japan, mostly during the colder months of the year. The sound of the yaki-imo truck is a happy memory for my family.

By the way, I'm sorry I haven't blogged lately; I just have been a bit lacking in inspiration. I do plan to be back next week with a couple of book and magazine posts (even possibly a Magpie), and then my family be on spring holiday for a week. After that, I should have some beautiful photos of the French Riviera to share with you! Can't wait!

Kodomo no Kuni

The Fireplace, 1932, by Takei Takeo

Isn't this lovely? It's from a great archive of illustrations from a forward-thinking Japanese children's magazine called Kodomo no Kuni, which was published from the 1920s through the 1940s. Takei Takeo was one of the magazine's illustrators. 

Here are a couple more by Takei:

Millet Straw Crafts, 1925

Origami, 1927

The magazine was full of pictures, stories, children's songs, dances, plays, and handicraft ideas for children. Editorial advisor Kurahashi Sozo, leading authority on children's education, believed strongly in the role of art in the pursuit of the ideal way of life. How can you not love that?

Thanks to Le Divan Fumoir Bohémien for the link to the Kodomo no Kuni site (I can't wait to check out more of her fascinating links!).

Through the Keyhole

I'm joining Holistic Mama's Through the Keyhole ("real people, real homes") for the first time this week. This time the theme is a real-life view of our coffee tables and how we use them. This is ours, which is actually a Japanese kotatsu, or heater table. Japanese homes can be quite chilly and drafty in winter. Our Japanese house had large, single-paned windows and no insulation, so during the cold months (which thankfully weren't that many or all that cold in our part of Japan), we would sit on pillows on the floor under this table, which has a quilt that sandwiches between the top and the base (we remove it during warmer months). You sit under the quilt and turn on the heating element under the table. It's quite cozy. 

Now that we're in Germany and have a woodstove right by the table, we don't really need the heater part, but it's still nice to sit under the quilt. We often eat dinner, Japanese-style, here, which is why there are place mats. It's also often a study center for my kids and the place where I have breakfast and get on my laptop every morning next to my trusty hund, Yoshi. Oh, and there's usually a stack of books atop; right now the titles are Gypset, Garden Anywhere, MaryJane's Outpost, and The Idle Parent. Our coffee table is a happenin' place, indeed.

Haus Vignettes

I realized recently that I haven't posted very many photos from my haus. Here's a handful I took awhile back. They are somewhat Asia-centric, but that's because--well, much of what we own and love came from Asia, especially Japan.

Okay, enough for now. Have a lovely day!

New Mori Girl Mag

This is a great new Japanese mook called Valon, which is all about the Mori Girl lifestyle. I was excited to find it on ebay. If you know and like Spoon, you'll like this. Click on the pics below for more detail.

You know how Mori Girls like baskets and clogs, right?

Kawaii!

Such adorable succulent mini-gardens--and check it: there are Mori Boys, too!

I love Japanese bikes. Crocheted mushrooms? Yes, please!

Lovely, fresh style...

Mori Girls are often musicians, like Yuki Hanai. And Mori Girl picnics are always fun...

Incidentally, if you know of any cute Mori Girl blogs, I'd love to hear about them!

Fairytale Style: Mori Girls

Even though I haven't been called a "girl" in years, I'm pretty sure I'm a Mori Girl.  Mori Girls are girls (and women) who look like they live in the forest--or something like that (mori is the Japanese word for forest).  The style of the Mori Girl--the term originated in Japan, where the trend is prevalent and understandably long-lasting--really goes much further, as you can see, and no one is wearing moss or making leaf vests.

Hello Sandwich led me to this description of what it means to be a Mori Girl.  This excerpt says a lot:

Fashion wise, there is an affinity for floaty a-line dresses, an admiration of lace, puff sleeves, and retro prints, a fussiness over natural materials, and a preference for warm, earthy hues and deep traditional colors like navy, wine red, and forest green. Oft-spotted accessories include leather satchels, fur stoles, tights, round-toed shoes, pocket watches, and handmade jewelry. 

More than meeting a fashion requirement, however, Mori Girls exude a certain aura of a dreamy slow life. Picture them strolling one of Tokyo’s few remaining bohemian neighborhoods, like Shimokitazawa or Koenji, analog SLR camera in hand. Or scribbling in a leather-bound journal from the corner of a café where none of the teacups match (but are served as a matter of course on saucers). It is likely that a number of them can make macaroons from scratch. 

A "dreamy slow life": I love that! Since I've decided to share more about my fascination with (and life in) Japan, I thought I'd share some photos of Mori Girl style, from the June 2009 issue of Spoon, a mook that is highly regarded by many a choosy Mori Girl (click for more detail).

It's funny, because I didn't even know the term "Mori Girl" until after we left Japan!  I have quite a few magazines and mooks showcasing a style I loved for six years before knowing what to call it. Sigh.

So what makes me a Mori Girl?  Here are a few things:

• I like tea, a lot, and I love hanging out in cafés.
• Deer, matryoshka, dala, gnomes, mushrooms, rabbits, ladybugs, lotus flowers: these motifs make me happy.
• I prefer vintage things and natural fibers.
• I enjoy my own company, maybe a bit too much.
• I am smitten by the scenery and fresh air of the forest and country, though I usually prefer the amenities of city life: bookstores, museums, trains, quaint shops, food markets...
• I love clogs, lockets, and wool felt.
• I sew and embroider, and I love taking photos of just about anything.

It's nice to see that Mori Girl style knows no bounds, age-wise.  Another excerpt from the Fashion Snoops article:

While hardly aggressively counter-culture (appearing instead almost limply indifferent), Mori Girls do posses a certain against-the-grain quality. They make their style choices based on the “atmosphere” of an item, as opposed to its trendiness or brand name value. Consequently they shun conventional fashion magazines and mass-produced items in favor of handmade, original pieces. Quirkiness is important. Age is not. There is nothing in the creed that singles out youth or a particular generational experience. And unlike teenage fashion cults like the Shibuya gyaru (who see many members “graduate”), there is nothing about being a Mori Girl that rebels against growing up.

Lovely! Now, for all things Mori, check out the very cool Mori Girl blog.  There are also some other great, recent posts about Mori Girl style at Oh, Hello There and Daydream Lily. And if you hurry, you can buy a copy of a Mori Girl magazine from Jollygoo's Uguisu shop! You know I had to buy one...

Honesty Check

In the interest of (nearly) full disclosure:

On Saturday, while The Girl was having a sleepover and The Boy was off on a miserably-rainy Boy Scout camping  trip, The Husband and I went to Koblenz to obtain some needed items from IKEA.  We also visited two flea markets and came away with--nothing.  Absolutely zero (knew I should have picked up that Avon Cottage Wedgwood plate for one euro!).  Seriously, it was really disappointing.  We've had almost no flea market luck at all, in fact, though admittedly we've been to only a handful here so far because of icky weather and work on our haus.

Our lack of luck makes sense in light of the fact that few things have gone right for us since we moved here. It's been quite the comedy of errors, really, but we haven't always felt like laughing. I know I haven't talked very much yet on this blog about life in Germany, which must seem odd. I've been keeping busy with things like photos of my Japanese match boxes and Cath Kidston purchases as a form of distraction, I suppose.

Recently I had a request for more posts about the allure of Japan and what it was like for us to live there.  I'll be happy to oblige, especially because as much as I do like Europe, I love Japan.

Don't get me wrong--I am thankful to have a nice home and to live in a community where things are simple, slow, and safe.  I'm just still homesick for a place that shouldn't have felt so much like home, but did.  Here are a few reasons I miss this place--photos taken mostly by The Girl, in our little neighborhood:

our street (our house is behind that wall and hedge)

the cho (neighborhood)

vending machines--buying sports drinks, green tea, and the occasional Coke 

oh, sushi--cheap and good, just down the hill!

our home's inner courtyard, after a light (fairly rare) dusting of snow

our street, again--coming back from having sushi, I think

again, with the food--I just can't help it--delicious ramen and gyoza here, served with complimentary pickled mountain vegetables (my mouth is watering just thinking about them)

bamboo forests--the sound of the leaves rustling

Okay, my mini-venting session/photo tour is over for now. If you're interested in reading more about Japan, you can always hop on over to my Japan blog (where you'll also see some of the above pics).  And I'll be back here soon with some good stuff about Germany!

Kawaii Chiaki

In my constant search for all things kawaii during my time in Japan (still missing it so much!), I came upon this mook.

Since I read almost no Japanese, I know next to nothing about Chiaki, except that she's a Japanese pop singer who has a daughter.  Mostly I know is that her aesthetic is pretty adorable.  

I found this mook in a department store several years ago but didn't buy it at the time.  I happened upon it serendipitously last year on Amazon.jp and knew I should get it, especially since I found a cheap used copy (I don't just miss Japan, I miss Amazon Japan!).

I'll share a different Chiaki mook another time.  I hope her world is as sweet as it looks.

Fairytale Style: Sally Scott

Leave it to a Japanese label to dream up this kind of simple but cozy but cool clothing.  Yes, Sally Scott "lives" in Japan and the site is in Japanese--and no, I can't read it, either.  But just have a look:

Thanks to Eddy and Edwina for the introduction...

Watch a few of the tiny videos from the 2009-2010 Autumn and Winter Collection to get an idea of what Sally Scott is about.  The model reminds me a lot of my daughter.

I'll be watching for the Spring and Summer Collection videos...

Japanese Matchboxes

Randomly unearthed today while rummaging through a drawer for some crafting supplies:

my Japanese vintage-style matchboxes

I saved them, just because--and I'm glad I did.