Five popular characters from the popular horror fantasy series GeGeGe no Kitaro have been transformed into Daruma dolls! Two Daruma Land locations in Fukushima Prefecture have begun selling these curious items, with sales going live on August 26, 2022. Fans can choose from Kitaro, Neko Musume, Nezumi Otoko, Sunakake Babaa, or Konaki Jijii, and each Daruma doll features an entirely new image of each character’s face drawn by popular illustrator and creator Tsumupapa. 

The company producing the dolls, Shirakawa Daruma, has been creating Daruma for over 300 years, and each authentic Japanese piece is produced by a craftsman adhering to traditional techniques. The palm-sized Daruma is around 45mm, perfect for displaying on a desk or shelf. Each comes with a cushion made of Aizu cotton, a well-known craft in Fukushima. These cushions were made to resemble Kitaro’s sleeveless kimono jacket from the series!

Mimaru Suites Kyoto Shijo is a unique hotel combined with a shop selling traditional Japanese tools and kitchen items. Kura Daily Store and Kawataki Kyoto Kitchen Shop, both in business for over 100 years, sell their wares at this cozy lodging space.

Fuya Ryu-Ryoku Japanese Tea Workshop

Hachidaime Gihei Rice x Mimaru Tool Shop Earthenware Pot Lunch

Following the six months since the shop’s opening, the hotel has collaborated with Fuya Ryu-Ryoku, a Japanese tea salon promoting the tea found in Miniamiyamashiro Village in Uji. They are also working with Hachidaime Gihei, one of Kyoto’s oldest rice shops with a line of restaurants in Gion and Ginza. Guests can now take a workshop led by knowledgeable instructors to make a delicious meal of rice and local tea! The workshop is open to non-guests as well.

Mimaru Suites Kyoto Shijo features spacious guest rooms with two or more bedrooms and separate living and dining areas. The Mimaru Tool Shop in the lobby sells a wide variety of goods from vases and cutlery to cooking utensils and more. Guests can actually choose their favorite items and enjoy them in their room’s kitchen.

Shirakawa Daruma Souhonpo in Fukushima Prefecture, which has been in business since the end of the Edo period, is now selling seven Tokyo Revengers-themed daruma. These good luck items are available both at Daruma Land on the second floor of S-PAL Koriyama in Shirakawa City and at the Shirakawa Daruma online store. 

Some characters available in Daruma form are Takemichi, Mikey, and Draken. Shirakawa Daruma Souhonpo, which has been in business for 300 years, makes use of Japanese traditional techniques to form each doll by hand. These palm-sized dolls are only 45mm long and are perfect for decorating any room. 

Let these Tokyo Revengers-themed good luck charms make this the best year ever!

Leather brand OJAGA DESIGN will release a line of Daruma keychains inspired by the popular series Chibi Maruko-chan! Maruko and Cojicoji keychains are now available for preorder at the brand’s online store.

OJAGA DESIGN features goods made in Japan, with each piece dyed, cut, and hand-sewn at a workshop in Tachikawa City, Tokyo.

These new keychains show the popular characters as Daruma, symbols of good luck in Japan. 

These lucky items come in six colors total, with Maruko available in red, white, or yellow, and Cojicoji available in red, white, or black. They can be used not only as a normal keychain, but as a bag charm or luggage tag!

©さくらプロダクション／日本アニメーション
© さくらももこ

From October 13 to October 27, artists are flocking to BONUS TRACK Gallery in Shimokitazawa to display some incredible works based on daruma, a type of lucky Japanese traditional doll. These works will also be up for sale in an online auction happening during the event period!

October 2020 Exhibition

October 2020 Exhibition

The motif of BONUS TRACK is the daruma, which are seen as symbols of perseverance and good luck in Japanese culture. This marks the third time that artists have been invited to create and sell their daruma-inspired works.

20% of the final bid price for each piece will be donated to various organizations. 30% will be given to the venue, while 50% will be given to the artists themselves. 

During the first event, donations went towards the Nippon Foundation’s Emergency Relief Fund for Coronavirus. Other organizations supported include the Kitazawa Osekkai Club, a group involved in PTA and youth committee activities in the area, and Peace Wanko Japan, a dog protection organization in Hiroshima. 

Tsutaya Ginza, located inside Ginza Six, will hold an exhibition of new works from artist Yasunari Ikenaga starting September 25, 2021. Titled ‘Shonen, Shou,’ the pieces in the collection were all inspired by up-and-coming actor and model Shou. 

Physical Education, Shou – Yasunari Ikenaga. 2021. 

Glaring, Honami – Yasunari Ikenaga. 2015

Yasunari Ikenaga is a leading figure in the world of contemporary beauty painting. In 2012, he won Honorable Mention at the 8th Tatehiko Suga Grand Prize Exhibition, which attracted a great deal of attention in the art world and established the genre of contemporary beauty painting. Ikenaga’s paintings are characterized by their unique coloring, which is created by using mineral-based pigments. This style, as individual as the models he paints, has a uniqueness and presence that has redefined the art of painting human beings in the Japanese art world. 

‘Shonen, Shou’ is an exhibition focusing on new model and actor Shou, born in 2006. This is the first time Ikenaga has used a boy as his muse, and various prints of past works will also be on display during the event. 

In conjunction with the 65th Anniversary Miffy Exhibition currently being held at the PLAY! MUSEUM in Tachikawa, a special silkscreen workshop is coming only to PLAY! KICHIJOJI! The event, called A Little Kindness in Kichijoji, is currently open for reservations, and will be open each Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday until September 5, 2021. 

Dick Bruna, the creator of Miffy, often created posters using silk-screening. At the workshop, guests can choose from three different patterns and print their choice on either their own cloth and paper products, or on PLAY! goods. Each Sunday, illustrations from the book Miffy in the Snow can be printed on craft paper multiple times, eventually creating a colored Miffy! During the workshop, guests are asked to try making their own original goods using this time-honored silk-screen technique. No cheating!

At the venue, visitors can take their time reading stories from reporter Shunji Morimoto, who interviewed Bruma countless times. Each tale from his book A Little Kindness: 66 Stories will be available to browse and buy, along with a slide show of Miffy photographs taken by photographer Kotori Kawashima. Various original goods will also be on sale, so keep an eye out!

Won’t you come celebrate our favorite bunny’s birthday?

Illustrations Dick Bruna © copyright Mercis bv,1953-2021  www.miffy.com

Benzaiten opened its first store in 2019 and since then has opened over 50 branches up and down Japan. The confectionery brand, which specialises in fruit-filled daifuki, has now opened a new store inside Tokyo’s luxury shopping centre GINZA SIX.

Yellow Papaya | ¥950 (Tax Included)

Tayo no Tamago Red Mango | ¥1,500 (Tax Included)

Fig | ¥1,000 (Tax Included)

Kiwi | ¥650 (Tax Included)

Benzaiten has over 10 types of fresh seasonal fruits ordered in from the market every day to make their daifuku with, most of which use the entire fruit. They are very particular about the mochi used to make the daifuku to ensure the original delicious flavour of the fruit is maintained and maximises. They use two layers of high quality white bean paste and habutai to hand-prepare the daifuku every day.

THE GRAND GINZA in Tokyo is getting ready for Valentine’s Day and White Day with the revealing of its new afternoon tea menu which will be served from February 1 to March 31.

The “Pink Afternoon Tea” is a combination of succulent strawberries and fruity ruby chocolate, which is the fourth type of chocolate alongside milk, dark, and white. It includes a ruby hot chocolate for staying warm during these cold winter months, strawberry macarons, strawberries to dip in ruby chocolate, strawberry quiche curry, and other unique items for a mix of sweet and savoury. There’s also a strawberry mille-fuille made with a recipe by Ginza’s famous French restaurant Maxim’s de Paris.

There are also 18 drinks to choose from including 13 types of teas from TWG. It’s a must-visit for Valentine’s Day.

A daruma doll inspired by Amabie has been released by Hanjiro, a company that has been making Shirakawa daruma dolls for 300 years. The dolls were released exclusively online in Japan on April 27 and shipping will begin rolling out from May 6.

Amabie is a three-legged mermaid or merman in Japanese folklore that is set to emerge from the sea to warn of and bring good luck during epidemics. The creature has trended on Japanese social media recently in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Amabie Daruma – ¥1,500 (Before Tax)

Each Amabie daruma doll is handcrafted individually using traditional Japanese methods. It comes in a pastel pink colour and is a great way to brighten up the mood during this dark time. The dolls were created with the prayer in mind for the pandemic to come to an end.

GINZA SIXーthe largest shopping complex in Ginzaーhas unveiled some of the incredible desserts arriving for this spring only.

Ginza is famous for its host of restaurants which serve up gorgeously gourmet food throughout the four seasons, and so you can expect GINZA SIX’s line-up to be something special. Let’s take a look.

Strawberry Sweet Afternoon Tea – ¥4,200 (Before Tax) @ THE GRAND GINZA

“Shun’un” pecial Make Maruto Parfait – ¥2,300 (Before Tax) @ Nakamura Tokichi Honten Ginza

Strawberry Mix Candy – ¥593 (Before Tax) @ Candy Art Museum by PAPABUBBLE

The line-up of delectable treats at GINZA SIX won’t just satisfy your sweet tooth, but your eyes too due to their delightful appearanceーlike the strawberry and roses littered afternoon tea, or the strawberry candy which is made using only the best available strawberries. The shops and restaurants at GINZA SIX have ensured to prepare sweets that will bring spring to mind Japanese springtime and the pink cherry blossoms.

Matcha Ganache – ¥1,800 (Before Tax) @ Tsujiri

Matcha & Tamba Azuki Bean Cake – ¥2,600 (Before Tax) @ Marlowe

Kurozu Vinegar Raw Chocolate – ¥1,500 (Before Tax) @ Shoubunsu Vinegar Brewery

Other tantalising treats include more Japanese-tasting selections, like cookies injected with a rich matcha ganache, raw chocolate doused with kurozu vinegar, gluten-free pound cake made with freshly-made Uji matcha, and more.

Of course, since this is a spring line-up, there are flowery fusions to find too, like candy topped with edible flowers and rose flavoured frozen fruit bars.

Rose & Raspberry – ¥520 (Before Tax) @ PALETAS

Spring Edible Flower Lollipops – ¥555 (Before Tax) @ Candy Art Museum by PAPABUBBLE

Aya Farm Saku Mango Selection – ¥3,800 (Before Tax) @ Aya Farm

If you’re in Tokyo for spring, the cherry blossoms and hanami, then be sure to stop by GINZA SIX to indulge yourself this season.

A new piece of installation art is coming to GINZA SIX, the largest shopping centre in Tokyo’s Ginza fistrict, next month. From February 27, Japanese artist Tokujin Yoshioka’s “Prismatic Cloud” will adorn the stairwell until the end of October.

Tokujin Yoshioka is a Japanese artist whose grand and poetic nature-themed work has received international praise. His skills include art, design, and architecture, which are being put to use to give GINZA SIX a new face for 2020, the year of the Tokyo Olympics and therefore year in which many people from around the world are sure to flock to Tokyo’s upmarket and luxurious district.

Prismatic Cloud is an enormous light sculpture inspired by clouds and the fundamentals of nature. It was originally showcased at the Allen Center in Houston, US, and has been arranged once more for it’s Japan debut. It stretches an incredible 10 meters long and is made from 10,000 prism rods which are layered together, making light penetrate through them to look infinite. Its appearance changes depending where you view it from, both your position and your line of sight in relation to it.

GINZA SIX’s stairwell is a symbol of the shopping centre, and it has become an art program filled with creativity and energy, with many international artists having displayed their works there, including Yayoi Kusama, Daniel Buren, Nicolas Buffe, Chiharu Shiota, and Klaus Haapaniemi. Prismatic Cloud is being overseen by Mori Art Museum, who also supervised Kusama, Buren, and Shiota’s work. While these installations are set up for a limited time, GINZA SIX also houses some permanent artwork around the complex by artists from around the world.