Getting ready for Hyper Japan

We have been busy making a few adjustments to our website which we hope to finalise over the next few days. Shortly we will be adding some new yukata and obi as well as launching a new range of handmade jewellery.  We will also be turning our attention to planning our stall for Hyper Japan next month.  

"Bringing Ryokan style into your home" Good Things Magazine

In the recent issue of Good Things, a magazine that explores premium multicultural cuisine,  Kavel Favelle shares the secrets of staying in Japanese ryokan.  Two of our yukata were featured in the piece:
 

Recent Feedback for Japanya

As mentioned on a previous blog article we don't operate a feedback system on our own website.  However, here is the most recent feedback received on our Amazon Marketplace shop :

• 
  
• • 5/5:
  • "Absolutely beautiful almost too precious to use."
  •  14 April 2014
• • 5/5:
  • "great kimono thanks"
  •  6 April 2014
• • 5/5:
  • "great very happy with it thanks"
  •  26 March 2014
• • 5/5:
  • "Arrived very quickly, very well packaged and exactly as expected. Perfect. "
  •  13 March 2014
• • 5/5:
  • "Fast and product as discribed"
  •  11 March 2014
• • 5/5:
  • "Good product and service"
  •  28 February 2014
• • 5/5:
  • "Lovely paper and service great!"
  •  26 February 2014
• • 5/5:
  • "Beautiful patterns and quality"
  •  26 February 2014

Kanji Pendants

We have posted ready made kanji pendants on our amazon marketplace shop this week 

Fuurin kazan (風林火山) "Wind, Forest, Fire, Mountain"

The full battle emblem used by daimyo, Takeda Shingen is from a quote from Sun Tzu's The Art of War and can be translated as follows:

疾如風 as swift as wind
徐如林 as orderly as forest,
侵掠如火 as fierce as fire
不動如山 as unshakeable as mountain

You may like to try designing your own pendants on our sister website:  www.kanjizone.com

Kimono Design Accessories

Japanese Pendants

Our new colourful Kimono range of ceramic accessories include kanzashi hairsticks and doughnut shaped pendants.  

Japanese Hairpins

 The kanzashi come with a wavy stick to ensure a more secure hold in your hair.

Japanese Pin Badges

Check out our new range of Japanese Pin Badges!

Lost in Translation

Hissho doesn't mean must win... 3 Jan 2014

By SSN95

Hissho means certain/sure win/victory but not must win. It's made out of the characters 'hitsu' which means certain/sure and 'sho' meaning victory. So certain victory and not must win. :)

We had the above comment posted on our Hissho (Must Win) hachimaki listing on Amazon the other day. Personally, I think "must win" means something very similar to "certain victory" so I am not sure why the commenter thinks our translation is not acceptable. 

"Certain Victory" is a very literal translation of the characters 必(hitsu) and 勝(sho). In the context of someone wearing it on a hachimaki, however, the word hissho is describing the wearer’s determination to succeed or win and hence our translation to "must win". "I must win" would be another way to put it. 

Many words cannot be translated into another language in an easy way (see this article). Perhaps Hissho could be regarded as one of these!