Kyoto-based fashion brand Wazigen Shizukuya’s creative philosophy is all about taking traditional samurai-era clothing designs and giving them modern updates. That fascination with the flow of time extends to the frequency with which it updates its catalog, as the company released new lines earlier this year in both the summer and fall.
We received a lot of interest and inquiries into these products and we were able to get our hands on a few and sent them to some very lucky customers as far as New York and South Africa!
With cold weather now setting in, stylish contemporary samurai need a way to keep warm. Following up on its line of high-class samurai hoodies form last year, Wazigen Shizukuya has just unveiled more than a dozen new fashion options for winter.
Starting with the fundamentals of samurai fashion, Wazigen Shizukuya has three new paired sets of kimono and hakama pants.
▼ Wool/silk hakama and wool/polyester kimono with silk lining (left), wool/polyester hakama and silk kimono (right); hakama priced at 40,000 yen (US$350), kimono at 45,000 yen
▼ Polyester hakama and wool kimono with silk lining (45,000 yen each)
For when it’s time to bundle up, Wazigen Shizukuya can set you up with a vest-like leather Battle Formation Parka for 195,000 yen…
…a polyester hanesode wrap with flared, wing-like drapings (70,000 yen)…
…a hooded robe, made of a polyester/cotton/acrylic blend, with warm cupra rayon lining (185,000 yen)…
…or one of four different Iverness coats, made with material ranging from nylon to alpaca wool, and prices starting at 80,000 yen and topping out at 130,000.
And finally, if you want to go really old-school, Wazigen Shizukuya also has straight-up capes. Wool, acrlic, and polyester shells are available, all with cupra linings, and prices run from 80,000 to 110,000 yen.
Quantities on select pieces are extremely limited, so if you’re looking to add these to your wardrobe, you’ll want to contact Wazigen Shizukuya right away or of course let us contact them and or visit them, before samurai from some rival clan snatch them all up for themselves.
It’s been a long time coming, we have the Miss universe, Miss world, Miss bla bla elections, but what we (collectors, game, anime/manga lovers, otaku’s) have been missing is the Miss figure election. Of course the human Misses are beautiful in their own eh human way, but they wouldn’t stand a chance against the beauty and amazing body proportions of their plastic counterparts in a stand off. I don’t want to sound sexist, so let me assure you that for me, figures are by no means a substitute for real life women..come on they are so tiny, they wouldn’t be able to fetch me my beer from the fridge!
Now way she’d be able to open the fridge!
Whack! (that was the sound of my life partner smacking me on the back of my bald head)
Figures come in all sizes and shapes, and the price is often decided on the quality, details and popularity of the figure…but I’m going to forgo these points and judge them purely on their looks and uh character.
Without further ado, let me present you the 10 candidates:
1-Fighter Sasara from the psp game “ToHeart2 Dungeon Travelers”
Sasara is a feisty blond, who loves nothing more than to take long walks on sandy beaches, drink Cola Bacardi’s and slice off some heads with her huge ax. she’s 25 centimeters tall and her favorite pet is a snapping turtle.
2-Iris Dina Bernhardt from Muv Luv alternative.
Lovely Iris is originally an East German army captain, with a weak spot for bunnies and panzerfaust hand grenades. She’s a true amazon at a length of 36 cm.
3-Saito Miohi from Love Torre
Blessed with a dynamite figure and strong love for anything bubbly, this Champagne sipping, bubble bath taking love is really into good causes, it doesn’t say what causes on her resume, but who gives a hoot, for all we care is that her presence in this world is cause for living.
4-Sakurai Aoi from RAIL WARS
Aoi chan (chan is a term of endearment, often used for younger women and girls) is not your typical miss contestant, being a bit of a tomboy, she doesn’t really like to flaunt her feminine side. More “human like” proportioned she’s likely to get a lot of votes from the ladies.
5-Lunchi DRAGONBALLGALS
A voluptuous body and the skills to kick some serious butt, makes this brunette a very strong contender for the crown of “Miss figure” . It is said that she’s an amazing twerker and that she taught pro-twerker Jessica Vanessa all the moves.
6-Anzu Futaba from Idolmaster, Cinderella girls.
With her puppy eyes and young looks, Anzu is certain to attract the votes of “rorikon” lovers, “rorikon” stands for “Lolita complex” and is the preference some men have for under aged looking girls (please don’t call this sick, as we’re talking figures here..in real life however…)
7-Purayama of World Conquest Zvezda plot
Feisty Purayama loves to use the trick of attraction through concealing , she might be the complete opposite of Miley Cyrus! Purayama lost the use of her right eye at young age, but this has never stopped her in fulfilling her dreams and goals..instead she uses it to look more mysterious by wearing a slightly disturbing eye patch AND a mask!
8-Queen Sukasaha (Fate Grand Order)
This blue blooded royalty is all about style and class, giving “human” royalty a run for its money. If this was the queen of some country, I’d be emigrating there in jiffy.No flower printed Laura Ashley dresses for Sukasaha..the last person who suggested this, ended up on the sharp end of her spear!
9-Super Sonico (Beach Queens)
What would a Miss figure election be without presence of one of the Beach Queens? This year’s representative is Super Sonico, a cute fun loving girl who likes to sunbath on the sandy beaches of Cancun while listening to the latest vocaloid tracks. If she wins, she wants to use the money to go to Nice in France, and get rid of those tan lines.
10-Marie Rose (Dead or Alive)
If there had been earlier Miss Figure elections, than the ladies of action game Dead or Alive, would have been regular participants, with their beauty, skills and other bouncy attributes. It comes as a big surprise than that their entree lacks the two points which made this franchise so famous.
No bikini clad lady, Marie Rose like to wear Goth styled Lolita maid clothes and is therefore no participant in the famous Dead or Alive volleyball games. This stunning blonde brings character and style to this Miss election.
Choosing between these ladies might be hardest thing ever, therefore we let you decide who will be our Miss Figure 2016. One person will receive the winning figure on courtesy of JWS.
Just fill out the form below and send us your vote, only the winner will be contacted and other votes will be erased as part of our strict privacy policy. So we guarantee you that you won’t receive any spam or other mail.
Some “contestants” are only up for pre-order, in which case we will order and once it’s “ready”, ship it to you.
Voting will end on the first of October and the results will be announced on the fifth of October.
Yes I know, yet another Ultraman article…..sorry, I don’t wanna be a freak, but I can’t help myself. We at a JWS love Ultraman, some of our staff like the stories, others, like me, love the fashion and its total atmosphere..one member even has a full human sized Ultraman suit at home, and a 1.8 meter life like doll at home….so now you know who’s the only single member in our group too.
Thank god we are not alone in our obsession with this giant, yet delicate super hero, we bought and shipped quite a lot of products from the “A MAN OF ULTRA” shop worldwide.
Premium Bandai will release this month this amazing Bluetooth SSSP clip-on mic and receiver, where SSSP stands for Science Special Search-Party which are the brave folks who search and find bad-ass monsters and aliens.
The original team
More than just a replica fashion statement though, this product actually improves over the original. The original communicator pin was merely a radio transmitter, where the new one works as a wireless mic, call notifier, speaker or headphone transmitter with its earphone jack and it’s a fashion statement!
Check the video and you see what I mean.
An incoming call is answered by pulling out the antenna and the ringing sound is the tone of the original communicator, how much more authentic can it get? A little less authentic but very much welcomed are the volume buttons and buttons to change music tracks.
Indistinguishable from the original..the intense look on your face is optional.The mic is on top which makes for easier talking, except if you like your groin to do all the talking, then you’re out of luck.
This limited product is priced at 21,600 yen with delivery in February, pricey? Yes a bit but everything worth buying ain’t cheap, the rest is just “gamman” (Japanese for patience, in this context it means buying something cheaper while you long for the original item)shipping will not be expensive due to its light weight.
It’s almost that time of the year again, the cicadas sing their songs, the mosquitoes sharpen their claws and people practice their Bon dance moves. When summer knocks on Japan’s door, the country turns into one happy party of amazing fire works displays, cold beer, and summer festivals. The time has come to dust off the Yukata (casual cotton kimono) or get a whole new outfit all together.
The great thing about yukata is that they are easy to put on, making them accessible for everyone. The knot in the obi might be the only hard part, but a quick search on google will solve that problem, and if you use your yukata as room gown you don’t even have to worry about that.
They teamed up with designer Nishioka Pencil (?) and created this Okinawa’s traditional Bingata dyeing technique inspired yukata line. Clear and vivid colors mark this line and the TeleTubbies hairstyle of the model show how thin the line has become between traditional and “mode”.
57,240 yen
Cayhane has come up with a Kimono for novice users and advance users who are willing to try something “new”.
The two part yukata is a true versatile piece of clothing, you can use the bottom as a skirt and the top part as an one piece….combine them together and you have a yukata!
The prices are also more than reasonable, averaging 7,000 yen .
Tsukikageya releases new line with adorable kitty and bear prints
For those who want to forgo bright colors and instead opt for something calmer but not less interesting, these kitty and bear printed yukata may be the way to go.
And bears, because nothing says summer like some cute bears..
These ribbons covered yukata is probably one of the cutest yukata you can find.
These come at a price though..each yukata costs 55,529 yen (about US$500).
If you like the more orthodox way, than AEON department has a lovely line-up for you which according to AEON’s policy won’t cost you an arm and a leg.
14,800 yen for yukata9,800 yen
Shipping on these yukata won’t be high due to the fact that they are rather light, so mail us for info and let us know how we can help you.
When you say “Meiji”, most folks immediately think of Japan’s number one confectionery maker Meiji from Japan’s best selling Meiji Chocolate.
When you ask a Japanese person though (well one younger than 20..) they’ll tell you that Meiji is an era in Japanese history which ran from 1868 till 1912, which was the time that emperor Meiji (real name:Mutsuhito), took over from the Shogun(Tokugawa) and announced the beginning of a new era. The name Meiji means “Enlightened Rule”…now that’s a election slogan!
But being much more than just a political slogan, Meiji really brought some immediate changes to the Japanese, first of all the city of Kyoto lost its title of capital city , which went to Tokyo, hissy fit throwing Geisha were common sight on the Kyoto streets.
Modernization finally reached Japan when they started to put keen interest into foreign industry, medicine, trade, army, science and engineering leading to Japan becoming Asia’s first industrialized country. Cool beans yeah, but what made the common “always thinking about food” Japanese most happy was the arrival of curry introduced by the British (thank god they didn’t introduce Black pudding). The Japanese loved it so much that they named it one of their national dishes… We at JWS love curry, we love it so much that we dedicated a page on our website to it check.
Fashion house IKIJI has used the Meiji era as their inspiration for their Fall line, an interesting concept as the Meiji era is often seen as the time that traditional Japan transitioned to modern Japan with its western look. This becomes very obvious when you see their line-up and the way they portrait their models. The round glasses and hair do’s are reminiscent to the Meiji era.
We are also very impressed by their summer line-up:
Their quality and eye to detail is astonishing , really don’t take our word for it, check out this T-shirt with a longer front or as they call it an Apron-shirt with a modern written version of the Kanji “Nanten”or Southern Sky.
You can find their clothes here and pictures of their collections here
Fashion is all about combining, IKIJI’s clothes combine with almost everything due to their simplicity and introvert uniqueness…My favorite Autumn look has been decided, I wear the shirt above, with a black jacket, Lee HI-STANDARD SKINNY and my newly recent acquired Rick Owens/ Adidas spring blade high.
40,000 yen at Mercari online shopping
Or when I want to go casual, with these Adidas ignites…you can see a pattern here right….well these Springblades are soooo comfy that’s why.
$85,- on ebay
I love Autumn because you’re not restricted by the weather what you want to wear, let us know about your favorite Autumn outfit!
If you’ve been waiting, now is the perfect time to take up the traditional children’s game!
As the game grows in popularity overseas, kendama is also getting a bit of extra attention in Japan, it looks like the game might be developing some real mainstream appeal. And with Sanrio now releasing some ultra-cute kendama sets, we’re pretty sure it’s popularity will only grow more!
Check out these vids from the duo Zoomadanke with zoomastyle!
▼ Because who wouldn’t want to play with this in public?
Kendama has been around for generations, so there’s no questioning its staying power, but we also think it’s fair to say the game isn’t quite as popular as, say, Candy Crush these days. But a Hello Kitty version of kendama seems like the perfect way to get some new people to play the game. And the toys, produced by Sanrio and available on their online store for 2,268 yen (about US$20), even bear the Japan Kendama Association’s specially recommended product mark, so if you’re looking to get started, this is, officially, one of the best you can buy!
There are six to choose from, all featuring some of Sanrio’s most popular characters. Of course, the first, and our favorite, is Hello Kitty!
▼ Though we’d feel kind of bad swinging her around like that…
There are also two versions of everyone’s favorite lazy egg, Gudetama! First is the normal version, which has the character sitting in half an egg shell, looking as if it just settled into a nice hot bath.
And then we have a golden version of Gudetama.
▼ Though he looks no less lazy…
And for a old-school, child-friendly version, we also have one of the cutest frogs in Japan, Kero Kero Keroppi!
There’s also a Pom Pom Purin kendama toy in case your favorite animal is the adorably illustrated dog.
And, finally, there’s a My Melody version. Interestingly enough, it’s not listed on Sanrio’s website — but you can find it on Amazon Japan.
If you want to take a notch higher than it’s a good idea to check out the following kendama tokohoku
This site is set up by Beams and Yahoo Japan Corporation Reconstruction Assistance, primarily for kendama enthusiasts, and for the build up of Tohoku where the awful earthquake and tsunami struck. Part of the sales will be donated to organizations engaged in reconstruction in Tohoku. So you get the best of the best, because each product is created in collaboration with professional kendama players, and you get to do a good deed!
BEAMS:
430(フォーサーティ) / NOB
BMX and kendama!
STREAMER COFFEE
Hiroshi Sawada was the first Asian to winthe Latte Art World Championship in Seattle in 2008. The first Streamer Coffee Company” in Shibuya, Tokyo opened in 2010, and quickly expanded to four more shops. Somebody who had the talent to balance four succesful shops and still making perfect lattes in his mainshop surely has a knack for kendama..and yes he’s a passionate kendama player, even releasing his own kendama line.
kendam tote bag
kendama holder
For more information don’t hesitate to contact us.
Anti-drug posters and commercials usually have a way of getting us down. Dark images of despair, death and homelessness rely on realism to get the message across, leaving us with tiny mental scars as a warning to stay away from the dark side and walk on the right side of life.
Here in Japan, though, anti-drug tactics are very different. Instead of scaring citizens, animated images are used to inform and empower people. And when the Tokyo Metropolitan Government enlists the help of the Survey Corps and Colossal Titan to fight the war on drugs, you’ve got a campaign that catches everyone’s interest.
The Tokyo Bureau of Social Welfare and Public Health is the brains behind the collaboration, created to build awareness ahead of the upcoming International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on June 26.
The highlight of the campaign is a one-minute video starring our favourite characters from “Attack on Titan” caught up in the action and excitement of a battle scene.
Eren, who knows all about the dangers of mind and body transformations, gives a brief overview of dangerous drugs and their negative effects. Dangerous drugs can cause hallucinations and delusions, loss of consciousness, respiratory arrest, and even death.
So take heed when the Colossal Titan appears steaming over the city, displaying a gigantic, cross-armed “batsu” pose, commonly used in Japan to represent “X”, meaning “no” or “not good”.
Source: IT Media
We can get you anything from Japan to anywhere..the cheapest way!