Nov – Dec 2023
I came across so many interesting, eye-boggling art and craft shops in Japan that I thought it would only be right to share it with all my crafty pals. It turned out to be a mega list covering yarn, fabric and art supplies, I hope it’s not too broad and that someone might find this useful so here goes!
FUKUOKA
We began our trip in Fukuoka and were strolling along the Kawabatadori shopping street when I happened to come across this sewing shop. As I stepped in I was surprised to find that the shop opens up into multi-levels stocked with bales of fabric and even sewing books and patterns!
10-261 Kamikawabatamachi, Hakata Ward, Fukuoka, 812-0026, Japan
If you’re in Fukuoka, there is also a small craft shop called Hobbyra Hobbyre in AMU Plaza Hakata City on the 8th floor alongside a Maruzen.
Hobirahobire JR Hakata City Ten // ホビーラホビーレJR博多シティ店
Japan, 〒812-0012 Fukuoka, Hakata Ward, Hakataekichuogai, 1−1 8F
HIROSHIMA
In Hiroshima I came across a shop selling a sewing machine with my name on it! If it was pink I might not have been able to resist.
3-18 Horikawacho, Naka Ward, Hiroshima, 730-0033, Japan
OSAKA
I was so excited when I visited ABC Craft in Osaka. Housed inside a mall, it was a huge sprawling craft store with everything crafty imaginable! There were also many tables with people huddled around making all sorts of interesting things. I think you can tell how gaga I went by the number of pictures I took.
ABC Craft // ABCクラフト
Japan, 〒545-0052 Osaka, Abeno Ward, Abenosuji, 1 Chome−6−1 あべのキューズモール3F
Later on, strolling along the streets we stumbled upon this smaller, charming shop with beautiful yarn and interesting finished objects.
13-11 Nanbasennichimae, Chuo Ward, Osaka, 542-0075, Japan
I was lucky enough to get to visit ATELIER to nani IRO, the legendary studio greatly admired for their beautiful designer fabrics. Sadly, this shop once full of history and character is now closed, the last day of operation was on 23 Nov 2023. Nani Iro will still be designing new fabric which can be found online and at their partner stores. On the day we visited there was an exhibition showcasing Naomi Ito’s original artwork for textiles. Many of the better pictures below were shot by Winnie Lim. If you are a fan, can you spot any of your fabrics’ artwork here?
Japan, 〒550-0003 Osaka, Nishi Ward, Kyomachibori, 1 Chome−12−28 壽会館ビル2F
Not too far from Nani Iro was Dua Osaka, a really tiny shop found by my partner, packed full of intricate trims and buttons.
Japan, 〒550-0015 Osaka, Nishi Ward, Minamihorie, 1 Chome−14−26 中澤唐木 1A ビル
Another unexpected find, popped into the Marimekko shop for a look and they had a fabric section! Rather pricey though.
4 Chome-4-2 Bakuromachi, Chuo Ward, Osaka, 541-0059, Japan
Yuzawaya is a chain craft store with many locations, the one I visited was in Osaka and was yet another huge craft store! It looked slightly chaotic maybe there was a sale going on, we didn’t have much time to browse though.
Yuzawaya Umeda Hankyu-Sambangai // ユザワヤ 梅田阪急三番街店
1 Chome-1-3 Shibata, Kita Ward, Osaka, 530-0012, Japan
TOKYO
We were visiting Allpress Espresso for some good coffee and I saw they were selling these gunny sacks at an affordable price. It would have been really cool to be able to buy one to upcycle but they were too bulky for me to bring home. I guess I can look out for something similar locally. Later on I saw these beautifully made bags at another cafe.
First picture: Allpress Espresso Tokyo Roastery & Cafe
3 Chome-7-2 Hirano, Koto City, Tokyo 135-0023, Japan
Second picture: Espresso Factory // エスプレッソファクトリー
2 Chome-26-6 Sendagi, Bunkyo City, Tokyo 113-0022, Japan
In Tokyo there is this AWESOME art supplies shop called Sekaido with an amazing range across multiple levels, many of the items are sold at more affordable prices. I got some Japanese brand fabric dyes, fabric markers and other art supplies. As you might expect the Japanese products are cheaper here than when exported.
Sekaido Shinjuku // 世界堂 新宿本店
Japan, 〒160-0022 Tokyo, Shinjuku City, Shinjuku, 3 Chome−1−1 1F～5F 世界堂ビル
There are Muji shops everywhere but we came across one with a really interesting section where they take in old muji clothing and process them through repair work and dyeing, then resell them at a low price. Ok this might not exactly be crafty related, and it might be in part an attempt at greenwashing (or bluewashing in this case) but I was still really impressed, plus I think many crafty people love upcycling and using up waste materials. According to google translate, the first poster below reads:
ReMUJI: Clothes are made from cloth.
In 2010, MUJI began an initiative to collect clothing that customers have loved for many years and turn it into energy as a resource. When looked at the clothes collected during this effort, I realized that there were still clothes that could be worn. Since ancient
times, Japanese people have treated cloth with care until the end, by re-dying, combining cloth, and reinforcing it with sashiko. We would like to draw on the wisdom of our predecessors, re-dye our clothes in Japan, add new life to them, and think together with everyone about how to wear clothes with care.
Second poster:
Indigo
In Japan, there have been dye shops specializing in indigo dyeing called “Koya” since the Edo period. Indigo clothing was a color that was widely loved by everyone from feudal lords to commoners. Because the color of indigo changes depending on the number of times it is dyed, the condition of the vat land the climate, various color names were given to it so that it would be accurate to order it from a navy blue shop. People from all over the world who came to Japan at that time were amazed at the indigo world. It is said that it was named “Japan Blue.” This time, among the various color expressions of indigo, I chose three colors: Shime”, “Indigo”, and “Rukon blue”. The marking color is a bright pale blue, and the indigo color is the original indigo color mixed with a little yellow. A dark blue with a green taste, tome-kon blue is a deep navy blue that cannot be dyed any further. For dyeing, we use a dyeing method that utilizes modern dyeing techniques to prevent color fading. Although it is different from the original indigo dyeing using plants, please enjoy encountering various indigo colors with recycled clothing.
Muji Shinjuku // 無印良品 新宿靖国通り
Japan, 〒160-0022 Tokyo, Shinjuku City, Shinjuku, 3 Chome−15−15 ピカデリー Ｂ１ ２Ｆ
Omigosh it’s time to talk about Okadaya. Here I felt like I was literally hyperventilating! What an incredible range of EVERYTHING crafty they have! Crafty madness! There is a main building with several floors each organised by different crafty supplies, and then a separate building opposite with two levels of mind-blowing fabric selections on the 4th and 5th floors (insert a gazillion exclamation marks here!). I first went to the fabric building so those photos are being shared first. Here they have every kind of fabric imaginable, plus there was also a section with Nani Iro fabric. On display around the shop were really cute and creative fabric panels which you are supposed to cut out along the shapes and sew them into 3D items such as bread bags and cake cushions, super adorable!
Okadaya fabric building // オカダヤ 新宿アルタ生地館（okadaya)
Japan, 〒160-0022 Tokyo, Shinjuku City, Shinjuku, 3 Chome−24−3 4・5F 新宿 ダイビル
Next I headed to the main Okadaya building where every floor opened up a new treasure box full of surprises, with everything from fabric dyes and markers, ribbons, iron-ons, trims, yarn galore, hooks, buttons, books, sewing supplies and more.
Okadaya Shinjuku // オカダヤ新宿本店 服飾館（okadaya)
3 Chome-23-17 Shinjuku, Shinjuku City, Tokyo 160-0022, Japan
Traveler’s Factory is a really cool brand with a cult following, for people who enjoy journaling, scrapbooking, sketchbooking, traveling, stamping and more.
Traveler’s Factory Nakameguro flagship store // トラベラーズファクトリー
3 Chome-13-10 Kamimeguro, Meguro City, Tokyo 153-0051, Japan
There is another crazy mega art and stationery store called Itoya with an entire building of beautifully displayed art and craft supplies. We only had enough time for a walk-through and it was breathtaking!
Itoya // 銀座・伊東屋
2 Chome-7-15 Ginza, Chuo City, Tokyo 104-0061, Japan
On the last full day of our trip, NIPPORI FABRIC TOWN happened. An entire street lined with sewing and fabric related shops. Unreal! I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.
NIPPORI FABRIC TOWN // 日暮里繊維街
Japan, 〒116-0014 Tokyo, Arakawa City, Higashinippori, 4 Chome−33−3 株式会社齊藤商店内
I spent most of my time at the Tomato main store building. 5 storeys filled with the wonders of the world:
Tomato Fabrics // 株式会社トマト (they have 5 stores on this street, refer to the store map below to find a specific building)
6 Chome-44-6 Higashinippori, Arakawa City, Tokyo 116-0014, Japan
Along this street, I noticed there seemed to be a pattern of craft related textures being printed onto fabric, and found that very interesting.
ACROSS CITIES
Is anyone here into Blythe dolls? I used to be a big fan but now that I am more interested in sewing and crochet I thought it was a great chance to combine my old and new interests by making clothes for these dolls. I was inspired with this idea when I visited Junie Moon and came across such books.
Junie Moon（ジュニームーン）
4-3 Sarugakucho, Shibuya City, Tokyo 150-0033, Japan
Daiso the mega chain 100 yen shop has everything crafty related! Yarn, a sewing section, stickers and more. (110 yen including tax). For me the items in Daiso Japan were less than half the price of the Daisos in Singapore. One of the bigger Daisos in Tokyo is at Ikebukuro:
Daiso Tobu Ikebukuro // ダイソー 池袋東武店
Japan, 〒171-8512 Tokyo, Toshima City, Nishiikebukuro, 1 Chome−1−25 東武百貨店池袋本店 ６階
Japanese crafty books—crochet, sewing, embroidery and more can also be found at big chain bookshops like Maruzen, Kinokuniya, Junkudo and Tsutaya. Here are pictures taken from the various bookshops we visited. In case anyone was wondering I don’t read Japanese, but still find it worth the effort to translate those pages or projects from books I am interested in.
The especially large branches we visited were at:
Kinokuniya Shinjuku Main Store // 紀伊國屋書店 新宿本店
3 Chome-17-7 Shinjuku, Shinjuku City, Tokyo 160-0022, Japan
MARUZEN Marunouchi // 丸善 丸の内本店
Japan, 〒100-8203 Tokyo, Chiyoda City, Marunouchi, 1 Chome−6−4 1階～4階 丸の内オアゾ
JUNKUDO Ikebukuro // ジュンク堂書店 池袋本店 (I didn’t get to visit this but it’s supposed to have a big art books section)
2 Chome-15-5 Minamiikebukuro, Toshima City, Tokyo 171-0022, Japan
Hands, previously known as Tokyu Hands, has a nice selection for art and craft supplies too, even iron-ons!
Hands // ハンズ渋谷店 (flagship store)
12-18 Udagawacho, Shibuya City, Tokyo 150-0042, Japan
And lastly, a couple of random beautiful sights for crafters.
These are what I picked up during the trip, we didn’t get to do much research beforehand but still managed to have a good time. I wanted to share what I came across with fellow crafters 🙂
This post is dedicated to my partner for inspiring me to explore the world and all its possibilities, to mimi.k_makes for sharing her joy, curiosity and magic through her love of all crafts, charlottedeavilleart_ for making the community a warm, wonderful and colourful space, and to alessiafiberart for sharing her love of life, travel and of humanity.