Asian Aisle
I’ve got a thing for Japanese ceramics like these bowls.
And these ones. I admire them, covet them, love them.
Yet the only Japanese ceramics I own is a set of four small bowls I bought at a garage sale, from a lady who said she got them at a store in San Francisco’s Japantown. Why don’t I give into my fixation with them? Because I’d rather spend my money on food.
Take these plates, for example. Each costs $150. Do you know how many packs of Dried Mangoes I can buy with $150? About 75. Or 300 packs of Ginger Candy. So I love ‘em and leave ‘em, and ogle other things around my local Japanese supermarket’s gift section.
This is a container of some sort; I’m not sure what it’s used for.
Have you ever seen such a happy cat? It’s actually called a Maneki Neko, or Lucky Cat.
That’s some flair you’ve got going on, Maneki Neko.
A wall hanging sure to brighten any room.
And the last items I admired during my recent trip down the Asian aisles were kimono-style little girl outfits. Here’s a short-sleeved shirt and shorts set.
I bought this black one for Olivia, the Candy Sniffer Extraordinaire.
You can’t make out the outfit too well, but you can see the vibrant flowers on it.
* This post doesn’t include any food photos because I’d heard stories of people getting scolded for snapping photos in this particular Japanese supermarket. I wasn’t into getting a possible tongue-lashing in the open produce and snack sections, and so wandered instead up and down the aisles of the more private gift department.
I love browsing my local Asian shops. In Orlando there’s a Vietnamese part of town with some amazing shops.
I love the ceramics as well. It kills me that these same dishes will be sold at “American” stores for 5 times the price.
Someday I’ll have enough storage to buy all these things I covet.
Juju: I’ve never been to a uh, Vietnamtown, but I would like to visit one. I’ve snagged some lovely plates that were made in Vietnam from a local Chinese market.
Dandy: Agree and agree.
I like the green plate, but $150?! I mean, if you know how to make ceramics yourself, it would be so much cheaper. I only say this because I’m an art student. (Though not majoring in ceramics, but I’ve taken a class.)
I also like that wall hanging, though red is not my favorite color. But it looks very vibrant and eye-catching.
Also, that black kimono, I bet it looks awesome when worn. But yeah, it is a bit hard to see where the cloth lines separate.
Lucky Cats always cheer me up.
I love the ceramics too! AND, I don’t really own any either. Hubs and I used hand-me-downs when we lived in the US and were lucky that both my parents and his had a complete set of plate-ware they weren’t using. We’re not really “everything-must-match” people. Even so, when we lived in San Francisco, we spent a bit of time drooling over the pretty ceramics in Japantown and all 3 Chinatowns. We did buy some of the cheap white bowls with the blue catfish on them. I loved the shape of them for some reason. When we landed in Australia, we bought a cheap set of dishes from Wal-Mart but then I saw the same catfish bowls at the Asian grocery and bought 2. I know they aren’t proper Chinese ceramic but I still love those bowls. I don’t know why.
Pademelon: Your collection of plateware sounds very similar to mine. I also have hand-me-downs and nonmatching plates and bowls (the latter group has only grown since I started this site).
When I was at an Asian market today (I should just start every sentence like that, eh?), I purposefully looked for the white bowls with blue catfish, and what do you know—I saw them! It’s funny how the same sets of plates and bowls show up at Asian markets across the world.
Love those Maneki Neko!