Okadaya

Last time I was in Tokyo I struggled to find Okadaya, despite good directions (this seemed to be a pattern with me). This time I was determined to find it, after reading good things about it.

I took a photo of the well signed store (how could I have missed it) so anyone else trying to locate it knows what to spot. This red sign is what to look for when you come out of the East Exit of Shinjuku station.

Okadaya is in two buildings - each of about 6 levels. One building contains fabric of all descriptions, the other contains all the extra bits you need to sew, knit, bead, and craft your little heart out with.

My favourite floor was the craft book floor (right at the top). I think it had the best craft book selection I'd seen anywhere, with multiple copies of each book. Sadly, there was a "no photos" sign up so I can't show you the proof.

For the knitters there was also a whole yarn floor.

Stylish Dress Book

With the weather turning warmer here in Australia all I can think of is cute summer dresses so I pulled out my favourite Japanese womenswear book purchased recently.....its called Stylish Dress Book (ISBN 978-4-57911185-5).


Its full of cute tunic tops and dresses all photographed beautifully and brought to you by the same people of girly style wardrobe


designs range from simple tunics to wear with jeans or leggings to the fancy tunic dress


pattern sheets are included at the back of the book and come in sizes 7, 9, 11 and 13 with all patterns designed for a height of 160cm which suits my 157cm stature perfectly. The size 13 has a bust measurement of 93cm, waist 74cm, hips 98cm to give you an idea of measurements which I think is about an australian size 10 but please correct me if I'm wrong as I'm just going by what I wear and measure (i.e. currently larger than this but normally a 10). But these aren't figure hugging designs and I'll be adding a few cms here and there and come back to you with the results.

zakka sewing

At last a craft book on Japanese zakka with english instructions!
All 25 projects have been designed and made by well known Japanese zakka crafters living in Japan.

The book was styled by Yuki Matsuo and photographed by Yoko Inoue both Japanese living in New york. They have done a beautiful job, the book is visually stunning!

Each of the charming projects are accompanied by plenty of photos as well as step by step instructions. I particularly love the inclusion of the zakka fact, which offers an insight into Japanese culture and inspiration behind each of the projects.

There is also a great 'how to' in the front of the book which makes this book perfect for the beginner crafter. With tips on transferring patterns, basic sewing techinques and embroidery stitches.

You will also find each of the crafters credited along side their project as well as information on their websites. There you'll find more eye candy and a whole new world of blogs to discover.


Most of the projects use natural fibres like linen, wool and wool felt. If you have difficulty sourcing the supplies you need, you will find an extensive list of online stockists in the back of the book. As well as where to shop zakka in Japan.

I got my copy from the book depository but it's also available over at Amazon. For more photos of the projects and free instructions for the squirrel tea cozy. Check out the books website at zakka home.

Some of the designers

Sayaka Suzuki

Kui Hazuki

Massimo

kabott

More translation assistance

For more translation of Japanese sewing terms you may like to look to Jennifer's Moving Hands blog or to Korallin's posts on the blog Label Free.



Construction methods for garments are fairly universal, so I also find my favourite English patterns give the helpful instruction needed to whip up those favourite Japanese designs with more confidence.

a little translation help.

so. a customer of mine. used to live in japan. and sent me this lovely link. (you may need adobe acrobat to open it.) that will help all of you with translating the sewing terms in your japanese sewing books. amazing. simply amazing. there are some great explanations. and a laldies' sizing chart, too. please go and look at it. it will save you time. it will also save you banging your head against the table one too many times. really. thanks, sara.

really. if you have a japanese craft book. you will want to click on the link. if you want help with the basic sounds of the japanese alphabets. you will want to click on the link. if you want help. you will want to click on the link. it will help you. i promise.

so. we asked for your ideas. and you gave them to us. amazing. all one hundred and forty of you. overwhelming. in a good way. thank you for embracing us. thank you for inspiring us. thank you. 

one of the major themes. was books. you want book reviews. book reviews. and more book reviews. that will happen. slowly. in weeks. and months. to come. along with some of your other ideas. 

now. the lucky gals. who will received the japanese goodness. if you read my blog. you will know that h-kun is the lucky number chooser. so we didn't break tradition here. he chose three lucky numbers. yes, three. 45. 77. 140. 

45.  tina. you stamps and tape.

77.  indy boo. you get the fabric.

140. two little buttons. you get a surprise package of goodness. 

please contact us with your name and address. as soon as you can. 

also. a huge congratulations to one of the japan craft journal contributors. corrie. and her husband. on the arrival of their adorable twins. whoohoo. 

"Craft books" they cried

It's so exciting for us to see all those lovely comments coming in. And it comes as no surprise that so many of you want to see more of the craft books.

I'm sure many of you know of the site: Crafting Japanese, which is dedicated to collecting images and reviews of as many craft books as possible. It's well sorted into crafting categories for easy searching, plus you can use the site's search engine to pinpoint a particular ISBN number.

For those of you who love the craft books but weren't aware of this site, I have a suspicion I might have just made your day!

More on book shopping

When I got to Tokyo the first shopping outing was to follow Corrie's directions (which she had previously posted on her own blog) and head straight to Kinokuniya in Shinjuku. More than fabric or trims, it was the inspiring craft books I wanted to stock up on.

It is an amazing store and I came away with a lovely collection (I only wish I'd had more time to explore the children's book section too).

What I did find also, was that the craft books seemed to be available in smaller bookstores as well.



I fell across this store in the very smart shopping complex, Tokyo Midtown, on the way back to our hotel. I ended up buying as many craft books from this tiny store as I had from Kinokuniya. And then I purchased a few more from Okadaya - ones that I hadn't seen at Kinokuniya.

Kinokuniya is the biggest and arguably the best, but you might just find in other stores a few books you haven't seen before or that have sold out elsewhere.