Stella McCartney collaboration with LeSportsac

Stella McCartney's collaboration with LeSportsac is mad delicious. Can I get that out first? I love her "Posh print" detailed in these items: the soft modern florals, the pink, the abstract print. It looks chic and fresh. Perfect for design lovers' (and Harajuku girls') sensibilities. Funny enough, I saw this bag in Nylon Magazine while flying back home. I am already fantasizing jetsetting with this bag in my hand already.

The large bowling bag, above, would be perfect for stowing my goodies for the plane ride-- it has enough zippers and pockets to stash my magazines, clothes, and gadgetry. At 20 x 7 x 16 inches, it has enough room to stow my 15in. Powerbook! The carryon roll-on luggage is super cute. The prices are a bit heady. Meantime, I'll have to keep my eye on this line.

Stella McCartney for LeSportsac large bowling bag, $395
Stella McCartney for LeSportsac 22" carryon, $420

New York Find: Little Apple, Japanese Photographer's Fashionable Kids Snapshots

I found this cute photo book at Kinokuniya in Midtown Manhattan. Little Apple (Barefaced New York Kids) by Satoru Ishikawa is a series of children's photographs taken in New York at various kid friendly locales (Magnolia Bakery, anyone?). The Japanese photographer, who lives in the city, captures the cheeky and stylish toddlers, detailing the venues and the kids--whether they're in a happy, goofy, or badass mood (check out the toddler above). Written in Japanese, the book is worth the price just for the portraiture and list of cool, hip (and kid-friendly) places to check out in the city (the venues are listed in English). Book information is supplied by Google's Japanese translation so pardon if it's a bit off.
Little Apple by Satoru Ishikawa, $23.95 (Click on US Shopping Cart to add to order)
ISBN: 9784812433621/4812433622

Off to New York

Taking a mini-vacay to the Big Apple.
Expect a deluge of shopping and photos and a full report back when I'm back.

Happy Valentine's Day!

A message brought to you by Ubisoft's Raving Rabbids.
An excellent wii game, Rayman's Raving Rabbids, features these funny little guys (in both, the original and the sequel), so go pick it up. Your sweetheart will thank you later.



Honestly, can you turn this guy down?

PacMan Cupcakes: Baker's tribute to video games

Hello Naomi is the brazilliant baker behind these video-game themed cupcakes. Don't you just wanna snarf these down? Her work, seen at Ohdeedoh, caught my eye and I had to catch her Flickr photostream. Seen, above, are her PacMan cupcakes. 

Not just any tribute, her eye for the color and design put into these sweet edibles made the execution spot on. Props to her. Now, can someone give me her number so I can order these for my birthday?

Tell me, you're not drooling already.

Let me whet your appetite some more. Check out more of her work below:

Super Mario Cupcakes 2 

And not game-related, per se, but still geek-chic: ROBOTS!

Robot Cupcakes
Dibs on the goofy orange one. I like him.

Trendy Inspiration: Japanese Fashion Magazines

I love Japanese fashion magazines. Chinese, Korean, actually, I'm not picky (I'll take what I can get!) but I love, love, love poring over the latest styles from overseas like Japan, Hong Kong, etc. The best fashion escapism treat for me is to spend a lazy afternoon pouring over Japanese fashion magazines, like Women's Non-no, Cutie, Can-Can, and JJ. I picked up the habit of buying these issues when I was near a Kinokuniya in San Francisco, New York, Seattle. but sadly, we don't have one in my hometown. So, I binge and buy a bunch to stock me till my next trip. From trendy hairstyles to fashion style sense to street fashion interviews, I devour what I see. So envious! This leads to my new web find -- I was super happy to discover Sushi-Cat Blog, a girl who periodically documents her latest Japanese fashion obsessions with the latest scans from the magazines themselves! Does this replace me buying the actual mags? Nah, but it'll tide over my appetite till I can stock up again! 

FYI: If you must have an issue or subscription, I think you can order from Fujisan.

For your Valentine: Rob Ryan Papercut Artwork

Beautiful and moving, Rob Ryan is a British artist who works in paper-cutting. Meticulous, folksy, and always heart-felt, his pieces are perfect for the upcoming holiday, Valentine's Day. He has his own blog and Etsy shop but I found his book, This is For You, is published and available on Fred Flare (affordable too at $19.95). Not at all mawkish, his book features a collective theme of romantic, dreamy, sometimes melancholic, artworks that act as framable illustrative poems. See his artwork, from his website and book, below:

Tokidoki Wall Art & Visual Displays

Hotel Fox, Rm 204. tokidoki World

I've known about tokidoki for the last few years but didn't pay much mind. Cutesy but the fashionable accessories its spawned was too busy, too much. However, I DO love the graphic appeal of the toy line and tech products (more iPod skins please!).

BUT -- I think the best part about tokidoki is their visual collaborations and merchandising. At large scale, the graphic artwork becomes sheer eye candy for me. It just pops! I could probably stare at the walls happily for hours. It's a great inspiration to see the Japanese kawaii style has had on its designer, Simone Legno. He's created his own distinctive style and has made it into a commercial enterprise, like Takashi Murakami. I wish he did more gallery pieces, though.

tokidoki has a section dedicated to their collaborations here.

visual merchandise store display

Pool Trade Show?! A very stylish choice from a marketing perspective. I love this giant graffiti poster they've affixed to the wall.

Hotel Fox, Rm 212. Japanese Garden

From the Pool Trade Show, here's what the booth girls wore for the tokidoki stall. I want that jacket!