How Do You Say Love in Japanese?
I was over in San Francisco's Japantown over the weekend to see a movie, and while we were waiting, I naturally had to stop at my favorite Japantown spot, The Kinokuniya Bookstore. I love this place, and love the aesthetic of Japanese design books. They're so simple and clean and full of great photos. I'm hugely fond of their 'mooks' (magazine/books) and picked up one I can't even tell you the name of (but I will list the ISBN number below and this is the link to see the mook online).
It's a beautiful mook of a very soothing Japanese home with lots of natural woods, lots of fresh white and simple, well designed (and space saving) rooms. You can find mooks in most Japanese books stores like Kinokuniya, who has book shops in San Francisco, San Jose, Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles, Costa Mesa, and New York, as well as many overseas locations in Asia and Australia. You can also order these mooks online, and Kinokuniya has recently introduced a new English interface for order-checkout. Here's a look a few snaps I took of this mook's pretty and inspiring pages. Of course, I couldn't just grab one, so more on mooks later this week.
*You can locate this mook online via the ISBN# 978−4-594-60571-1.
19 comments:
I like this blog so much, I must tell you this.
Gina from Germany
"love" in Japanese is "ai", pronounced "a-ee".
Love all of this! Thanks for sharing.
Lori
We have a family cottage in Ireland that is screaming out for a makeover. It's currently where all my in-laws old chairs and furniture go to live ever after. The problem is that it's 12x20 feet total, so this soothing minimal look is perfect. I'll save this one for when we save up our pennies and can gussy it up!
To me love in Japanese = 'Kawaii desu ne!!!'
i was at seattle's kinokuniya bookstore last week. i collected a couple style mags that make me so happy. thanks for finding all of this online!
Great post. I guess I have naively assumed that Japanese decor is sleek and rich looking.
Love your blog!!
we have this store in ny, and i think i have to run down there tomorrow!!!
What gorgeous interiors! It's striking how many similarities there are between japanese and scandinavian design---they're both so simple and spare, yet warm and welcoming at the same time. I'll have to check this bookstore out next time I'm in Japantown. Thanks!
If you're interested in this kind of style (who isnt?), you should check out Muji.
http://www.mujionline.co.uk/index.asp?
They're also Japanese and I believe have a store in NYC but is mostly based in Asia. (I love going there in HK)
MUJI MUJI MUJI! I loveeee!
just found your blog and LOVE your posts! we live in santa barbara but love coming up to our favorite city as often as possible.
Thanks so much - I'm so glad you like the blog, and this post! I love Japantown (and Muji!) so I am happy to share!
That looks like a lovely book! FYI, the title is "sukkiri kuraseru shuunou to interia," which translates into something like "Storage and interior for neat living."
Having lived in Japan for over 10 years, I love their design! (although I must say that neither my mother nor my grandmother's homes in tokyo look like this!) I'm inspired to clean and tidy up.
thank you so much for your inspirational photos and blog victoria! I love how every time I visit your site I feel refreshed and ready to tackle my next creative project. arigatou!
I love this book!
Kono hon dai suki!
WOW, this is fantastic. Going to Seattle at the end of the month--will have to stop here...I love the floors. And of course, all the simplicity in general...
Check out Yvonne's Jeu de Paume books at Yvestown too
i heart all of this. now i want to move. or paint. or both.
This blog is really amazing. I want to visit here regularly. so I added it my bookmarks.
Post a Comment