Mar 28, 2011

To Japan with Love


Elvis and baseball, sushi and karaoke—there are so many cultural passions shared between Japan and the Western world. In the days since the tragic earthquake and its even more devastating aftermath, I’ve thought a lot about what this small but powerful nation has contributed to our own aesthetic sense. For vintage lovers, the words “Made in Japan” summon up innumerable images, from the hilarious to the sublime.

In honor of the Japanese people, here are a few of them. (To see more, follow this link.)

Mid-century vase from Nachokitty

1908 book, The Fire Lovers and Other Fairy Tales of Japan, from wonderdiva
Vintage Japanese parasol from judygovintage
Japanese bisque figurines from tippleandsnack
Mod paisley mugs from ReBopShop
Vinyl baby Gofun doll from justbecauseshecan
Vintage Noritake Dredoll soup bowls from thechinagirl

8 comments:

jenscloset said...

Beautiful tribute to Japan-thanks so much for including my bowls!

wonderdiva said...

So many lovely Japan-inspired items. I love that vintage parasol! Thank you for including the book from my shop!

Just Because said...

Love that noritake pattern. They had so many beautiful patterns and the mod cups. Great colors. THank you for featuring our little baby doll as well.

Judy said...

I was lucky enough to have spent nearly 3 years in Japan MANY many years ago. Japan and the wonderful people I met there claimed a bit of my heart so I felt obliged to help even in some small way. I've been donating 10% of my Etsy sales to the American Red Cross and have been able to pay forward my first 25.00! Now I'm working on my next contribution. I'm so happy to be able to work with Etsy and be part of an even larger community than I imagined.

Nachokitty.etsy.com said...

This is a great bunch of Japanese finds. I really love the book (I'm addicted to surfing Wonderdivas shop way too frequently), and the parasol. I love how the Japanese use every color of the spectrum. They're not shy about color at all.

Thank you for including my mid century ceramic piece!

Nora-transient*treasures said...

Great finds...and such a timely and eloquent tribute.

Mary / tippleandsnack said...

An evocative subject. My heart goes out to the Japanese people.

A good friend of mine was a JET teacher for several years. Her town is completely gone. I can't process what that even means. I've donated to a fund to help her old prefecture: Iwate.

Sabine / Kultur* Vintage said...

Those affeteced by this horrendous tragedy are in my thoughts. I cannot even begin to comprehend their losses.