I hope it provides you with enjoyable diversions
in lieu of wandering around Japan,
cheerfully hurling money at shopkeepers in exchange
for charmingly illustrated paper.
The term “Stationery” includes
letter paper & envelopes (letter sets),
stickers, stamps, washi tape,
memo pads, writing pads, sticky notes,
postcards, greeting cards, wrapping paper,
journals, planners and other magnificent items.
Akira Kusaka Memo Pad
"Moderato"
"Stationery" also includes pens, pencils, erasers,
markers, inks, fountain pens,
dirt specks that beautify your stationery containers,
organizers, rulers and clips,
but I won’t be featuring those equally superb items
since it is my goal in life to fawn over illustration and graphic design
rather than get any work done.
I hope you enjoy perusing!
I enjoyed their chat with Shinsuke Tanabe of Classiky,
since I love this brand (impeccable curation and design),
which features products by Ten to Sen, Yoko Inoue, kata kata, and Mihoko Seki.
Classiky x Ten to Sen Letterpress Note Cards
"Little Garden"
Classiky x Ten To Sen Washi Tape
Ten to Sen's creator, Rieko Oka, is a textile designer based in Hokkaido.
Ten To Sen
"Pattern Book From the North"
Yoko Inoue creates books, posters, and various works
featuring her intelligent collage style.
Classiky x Yoko Inoue
“Old Book Washi Tapes”
I own these washi tapes and am fond of them.
I love the book fonts and her poetic approach to design.
The Cute Things site features brands like Hitotoki
(they produce Kitta - lovely translucent planner stickers that can be repositioned like washi tape),
Eric (a fun rubber stamp artist),
and Akira Kusaka, a profound narrative painter.
Did Ayako and Junko (or Kitta) sticker these dishes for this photo?
If so . . . impressive!
The Cute Things shop is located in Japan,
but they offer affordable shipping to the U.S.,
and their stationery selection is great.
I'm not sure why I haven't already purchased their entire store.
Oh yes. Purchases cost money.
check out Masao Takahata's woodwork with bears.
For U.S. buyers,
orders $100+ ship free.
Orders under $40 ship for $5.
Here is Yoseka Stationery's Instagram.
NICONECO ZAKKAYA
Niconeco Zakkaya is an online shop
and brick and mortar in the East Village, NYC.
I'm a fan of any shop that focuses on the Japanese term "zakka"
- things that improve your daily life and space,
particularly in the visual/design realm.
Niconeco's founder, Siming, lived in Japan for ten years
and is naturally gifted at creating a Zakka atmosphere.
Yohaku glassine sticky note
"Anohi no Sora"
(That Day's Sky)
I also enjoy Furukawa Paper,
a brand that produces products using Mino washi paper,
which is admired for its thinness, strength, and beauty.
Furukawa Paper Tegami Letter Set
"White Flowers"
I don't think I could deface this beautiful green paper
with my grubby handwriting.
Furukawa Paper Tegami Letter Set
"Rosemary"
Where are the spiderwebs?
My rosemary bushes are patterned with them.
Furukawa Paper Tegami Letter Set
"Forest"
Mino washi is created from the paper mulberry plant,
from forests in the Gion prefecture.
Ancient records indicate that washi papermaking
began during the Nara period (710 - 784).
I was attending high school at this time.
Why was I unaware of washi?
Sadly, this egg letter set is no longer available.
You can fry yourself some eggs, though,
and dump them on top of paper.
It will save on dishwashing time.
Think of how overjoyed your pen pals will be.
U.S. orders $65+ ship free.
Shipping rates for orders under $65
are dependent upon the package weight.
If purchasing anvils, try to buy more than $65 worth.
Here is Niconeco Zakkaya's Instagram.
Nuku by NB Co Japan
"Michikusa Memo Pads"
I like the idealized life depicted in stationery illustrations.
These animals do not have to pay the IRS.
Sure, they get eaten every now and then.
But they frolic amongst tulips beforehand.
ETSY SHOPS
(Japan)
Furukawashiko Letter Set
"Many Many Vegetables"
Furukawashiko is a fantastic brand
that depicts the gamut of everyday subjects
(same company . . . Furukawa Paper Works / Furukawa Shikō).
Here's another Ten To Sen design:
Classiky x Ten to Sen Mini Notes
"Message Bird"
Chiharu, the proprietor of SomedaySomeplace, has opened a new site called Fantastic Japan.
FANTASTIC JAPAN
You're probably familiar with the Japanese books mecca that is Kinokuniya.
I think I have drooled when thinking about this store before.
They stock fantastic design reference books
(sometimes by PIE, a favorite publisher),
Taro Gomi books (a joyful and prolific illustrator)
and stellar lifestyle books and mooks (magazine-books).
Here are some of their stationery offerings.
They have brick and mortars in
NYC, LA, San Francisco, Chicago,
Seattle, San Jose, Portland, Austin,
Edgewater, Carrollton, Katy, Plano, and Beaverton.
I didn't know that three of those cities existed.
Orders $50+ ship free.
Orders under $50 ship for $8.
(Malaysia)
Furukawashiko
"Retro Diary Match Box Memorandum Cafe Cat"
KATA KATA
(Japan)
Takeshi Matsunaga and Chie Takai,
the talented duo called kata kata,
produce their designs using intricate fabric dyeing processes
called katazome and chusen.
and depend on the weight of your order.
ESLITE
(Taiwan)
Eslite, a chain of lifestyle stores/bookstores,
is a beloved Taiwanese institution.
Please disregard the impression that their crazy website may give you
(Dearest Eslite, please un-crazy your website).
The founder, Robert Wu, cared deeply about creating a space
that would inspire and feed the public's cultural, creative and intellectual interests.
Their location in Taipei's Xinyi district is open 24 hours.
A 24-hour-bookstore!!
This would have been my dream in my 20’s, since I was often looking for something to do at 3 a.m.
Think of how much smarter I could pretend to be.
Eslite provides an example of an inspiring shop environment.
If you happen to visit Taiwan and you like books/stores/stuff, please visit.
Their online shop is in Mandarin.
My English-speaking heathen self can't make sense of it,
but I look forward to using my no foreign transaction fee credit card
at their shops the next time I'm in Taiwan.
I typed "Stationery" in their search field, and here are the results.
Please pardon my inclusion of a site
that I can't figure out how to order from.
I just love Eslite.
Thank you for thinking about stationery with me!
I hope you enjoyed the magical work of these talented creators.