Style File: giving into the cute

This is style, and I’m Elsa Klench. Reporting on the design worlds of fashion, beauty and decorating.

(At 12 yrs old, I felt like the only one who cultishly watched and video-taped Style with Elsa Klench every weekend on CNN.) Anywho! I’m trying to develop my aesthetic here, and I want to start taking notes about style, and development of my own aesthetic. I’m trying to figure out what belongs in there, and what doesn’t. I’ll post pics of products I buy, or pics from books/magazines, etc.

Today’s Style File: Giving into the cute.

Before coming to Japan I would not have purchased a mushroom lamp. I would not have planned to decorate my kitchen ‘a la Decole’. And I would not have bought Peko-chan candy just for beauty of the containers. (Em.. there’s *only* five in all).

But I find myself these days, giving into the cute. There is something perfectly attractive about it. It is built for the consumerist culture here in Japan, where leisure time is spent shopping offering acres of new trends and models and types of everything you want.

When I first arrived, Ronan gave me Chip and Dale slippers: I said they were looking up at me and mocking me, I dramatically refused to wear them. I was only going to shop at the solid-coloured grey and beige MUJI (where even the stuffed animals have no faces).

But now, I find myself unable to resist the cute. I think I had gone in to look at this mushroom lamp about 5-6 times before I bought it. I sent Himself a text message: “Do you think you could live with a mushroom lamp?” He suspiciously texted back “I guess so…” By that time I was already on my way home with the lamp.

So I’m going to try and keep it contained in my dream Decole kitchen. I promised I would not do anything ‘cute’ in the bedroom. But then I found this little Decole ring-toss game. Which quite handily holds my hair bobbins.

Ancient Japanese Cuteness

In essay on Cute Culture in Eye Magazine a few years ago, the writer deftly made the relationship between the ubiquitously cute mascots and ancient Japanese culture. If you can get your hands on the magazine:

From Eye Magazine: Issue 44 | Cute culture
In an essay full of cute things to look at, Miki Kato explains how the Japanese mania for cute mascots is rooted in traditional aesthetics associated with Japanese art and nature

Kawaii, the Japanese term roughly translated as ‘cute’ has an etymological history tracing it back to helpless, and pitiful. If you think of the pigeon-toed walk you see many Japanese women affect… I heard they walk this way because it looks ‘kawaii’ and attractive. It also makes it incredibly awkward to walk (helpless). This affectation is a remainder from when women minced about in kimonos; shuffling with small steps, and toes pointed in (to keep the kimono from opening.)

So there are roots in ancient culture of the cuteness.

As well, everything seems to have a spirit or character. I laughed when I saw Ronan had bought a futon beater with the face of a panda bear. Why does everything seem to have a face or a character? Just about every shop and service which seems to have it’s own cartoon character. The firestation has a cartoon monkey mascot painted on the doors. For a westerner, it might make one doubt their seriousness. But not so here. Everything needs a mascot. (I’ll get some pics of this asap!)

You’ll notice everyone has a selection of identity-bearing cute mascots on their keitai (mobile phones). These mascots and characters apparently have roots in Shinto (I need to read up more about this).

So I’m fascinated by the Japanese cuteness too, and sort of swept away in it. I’m not about to go mincing and shuffling about, but I think after all, it is an important part of the culture, and I should try and understand it better.

I must go shopping soon to do some cultural research.