Archive for the ‘Tokyo’ Category

Well how do you like that? Hard to believe that another year has flown by and here I am sitting by the fire (ok, radiator) listening to Wham!’s “Last Christmas”. It seems like just yesterday when I was going to the beach with friends and having a rooftop BBQ. Now it’s freezing out…who woulda thunk?? I want to send a sincere “THANK YOU” out to all Stylesightings readers – especially those of you who took the time to leave comments this year. I love shooting street fashion photos and posting them here…and I enjoy looking at other street fashion sites and magazines…so to read your comments and feedback and see that many of you share my enthusiasm and interests…that’s just the best. I’m taking a little blogging break now but will return on January 5th. I’ve begun making plans for 2009 – some cool stuff coming up that I think you will like. For now, I wish you all Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year! I’m leaving you with a load of new street fashion photos from my recent Tokyo trip. Also, here’s my Tokyo “best of” list below…xxxooo eddie

Best areas for cute street fashion sightings: Harajuku (Omotesando and Takeshita-dori) and Daikanyama
Best Japanese street style magazine: Street magazine (The current issue features photos of attendees and off-duty models during the last New York collections – a bit strange to flip through a magazine in Japan and come across full-page photos of friends!)
Best record stores: Bonjour Records (Daikanyama), Reco-fan and HMV (both in Shibuya)
Best urban maze masquerading as a train station: Shinjuku Station
Best inexpensive hotel: Sunroute Plaza Shinjuku (don’t even think about staying anywhere else)
Cutest employees in the world: Kinji Used Clothing (Harajuku)
Best museum-quality vintage clothing shop: Banana Boat (Harajuku)…all dead stock Western wear – Levi’s, Western shirts, canvas sneakers, and cowboy boots…as if a general store from Texas circa-1978 had been time warped to present-day Tokyo, fixtures and all.
Best don’t-miss tourist experience: out on the roof of the Sky Deck at Tokyo City View (Roppongi Hills)
Best department store: Isetan (Shinjuku)…this is the store Tyler Brulee called “maybe the best all-in-one shopping experience in the world”…the basement food hall has to be seen to be believed.
Most prevalent street fashion trends: chunky knits of all sorts including shawls, sweaters, and knit hats…fur…wide-legged but not baggy pants and shorts…suspenders…shearling pieces and accents…doll and Lolita looks…French-inspired looks including berets and Breton striped shirts and scarves…hip-hop looks.
Best food experience: the stalls in Piss Alley…don’t let the name scare you off…the mixture of neon and steam and people darting in and out in this small area was reportedly Ridley Scott’s main inspiration for the set design and look of Blade Runner. Due to be torn down in 2009, so hurry.
Best nightlife experience: La Jetee…good luck finding this one…I’d be happy to draw you a map but I’m not sure it would even help.
Best and coolest fashion influence that doesn’t fit into any of my categories here: Brigitte Bardot…specifically the young Bardot…her teen years during the mid/late 1950’s when she was doing little b&w comedies and slapstick films in France. I’m a massive Bardot fan and have seen most of her movies and this “French Lolita” look – this highly specific early Bardot look – was immediately apparent as I was walking around and shooting photos. Check out my favorite early Bardot film, That Naughty Girl if you want to explore this look and influence. (It’s recently been released on DVD for the first time in the US and Netflix has it.) Bardot is one of the main style icons for Tokyo’s hime gyaru or “doll gals”.

One of the unexpected things about Tokyo is that some of it is surprisingly bucolic. A short distance from the neon-lit madness and packed train stations of Shinjuku and central Shibuya are neighborhoods with a more laid-back vibe. Even the teen futureworld of Harajuku is bordered by shrines and parks and there are loads of trees and some pedestrian-only streets. Daikanyama – Tokyo’s home of low-key chic – has been one of my favorite neighborhoods so far this week. Often given minimal coverage (if not left out entirely) in Tokyo guide books, I consider this area a must if you’re planning a fashion-focused trip to the city. The standard line on Daikanyama is that it has a European feel with sidewalk cafes and the occasional patisserie or Italian restaurant. In actuality though it feels more like a woodsy and slightly hilly ski town. Take the very chic yet very low-key atmosphere of neighborhoods like Nolita in New York or London’s Westbourne Grove and move them to the foot of a mountain somewhere and they would probably feel a lot like Daikanyama. It’s hard to believe that you are only one short metro stop from center town Shibuya’s Blade Runner-esque insanity. The mountain village vibe is carried through in both the architecture (lots of unfinished wood planks and rocks and moss) and the style of dress of the people who frequent the area. Even though it wasn’t very cold everyone was rocking lots of chunky knitwear, ski jackets and vests, shearling-lined boots, and bits of fur were everywhere. They were checking out shh-chic shops like A.P.C. Homme, United Bamboo, Sonia Rykiel, and La Labo. Speaking of cool shops in the area, the carefully curated selection of CDs at Bonjour Records seemed hand-picked for runway soundtracks. Here are my favorite streetstyle photos from Daikanyama…xx eddie

The Stylesightings Mobile Blogging Unit has relocated to Tokyo for the final Stylesightings Field Trip of 2008 – how do you like that?? I’ve only just arrived but have so much I want to tell you already…I mean, this place is mind-blowing. Sunday is the main gathering day for Tokyo’s street tribes with several areas around town serving as semi-official meeting places for the various crews. Having been born an actual “American Southerner”, I was quickly made an honorary member of the Tokyo Rockabilly Club when I arrived at their Sunday meet-up in Yoyogi Park. (Actually none of them spoke English but they were all either friendly or at least tolerant of me and my camera nonetheless.) Yoyogi Park is big but I followed a guy with a cowboy hat and found their area quickly. I can’t really describe the feeling I had when I walked up on a group of 20 or so Japanese guys – with no girls – all dancing together in a big circle to Chubby Checker’s “Let’s Twist Again”. I live for things like this. (Important note – they were having a few beers but this wasn’t drunken dancing – that’s not what this was about.) It’s so exciting for me to see people who are this excited about pop culture and music and about making a specific fashion statement. Most people make no statement with their lives whatsoever – whether they live in Japan or the U.S. or England or wherever. Everywhere I go, I look for the people who have decided to make some statement with their choice of fashion or music or lifestyle. Japanese society is generally defined by obligation and conformity, but Tokyo is the home of the statement kids. xx eddie