Main: Tokyu Plaza Omotesando Harajuku; bottom left: Yuse's sandwich tags; bottom right: fun fish pencil cases
 
With so many cool and unique design shops all over Tokyo, it is almost impossible to give a comprehensive list, so here is an overview of just some of them:
Omotesando
Tokyo's Tokyo ( 4-30-3 Jingumae) - Located on [...]

Top left: Scai the bathhouse; top right: a temples in Yanaka; main: the nostalgic Yanaka
 
There are so many cool and interesting neighbourhoods in Tokyo, but my favourite is the area known as Yanesen ( including three neighbourhoods: Yanaka, Nezu and Sendagi). In a metropolis where everything changes faster than the blink of [...]

My last Kyoto blog entry is on shopping...
Since I spent much of the time in the rural area exploring temples and gardens, there was barely time for shopping. The day before I left for Tokyo, I went into the city centre during the late afternoon and spent a few hours exploring the [...]

Delicious, functional or junk? It's time to review the items I bought from Thailand, starting from the edibles:
Lemongrass tea - I love lemongrass tea, not only does it smell good, it also tastes very refreshing. It is natural and full of antioxidants: it is detoxifying, good for digestion and can lower high [...]

As a huge fan of Japanese design and stationery, I was quite oblivious to Korean stationery until my first visit to Seoul two years ago. What I did not expect was to see so many independent stationery shops, occupying prime locations and in big shopping malls. This is quite rare to see [...]

One of the perks of my job involves sourcing unusual and interesting products from different designers or companies. But sometimes, it is not easy placing orders without seeing the actual products, esp. if they require self-assembly. I love origami and so I requested some Japanese origami product samples from Tokyo Shiki, a [...]

Some people like to collect silverware or vintage cars or even Louis Vuitton handbags, I, on the otherhand, have been collecting stationery (esp. Snoopy ones) since I was a child. I started collecting mini erasers given to me at the doctor's clinic ( I wonder if doctors still do that now?), followed [...]

Although I didn't buy very much in Hong Kong, I did make a few interesting purchases...
 
Greeting card
I think the illustration of this greeting card shows the Hong Kong that I am familiar with: chaotic, colourful, cramped but full of character. Sadly, in recent years the city's unique buildings and street scenes are [...]

In the past, I couldn't resist shopping endlessly whenever I went to Tokyo; nowadays, I shop a lot less but I still can't resist the wonderful Japanese stationery. My favourite stationery shop in the world is Ito-ya in Ginza, where my friend and I could spend more than 3 hours wandering up [...]

While I was in Tokyo, I was glad to be invited to our Tokyo designer, Yuruliku's studio in Ochanomizu, an area which I have never visited before. There are many university campuses and musical instruments stores here (which I later discovered when my friend and I got very lost).
Foolishly, I left the [...]