When I left for Tokyo, I felt silly checking an empty bag at MSP just for souvenirs and shopping. But, by the time I returned, that bag was stuffed with all kinds of gifts for friends and family (and me). This trip was a shopping spree if I’ve ever had one, and I want to show you my haul.
Don Quijote Fever Dream
It was the first full day in Tokyo and I was dragging my feet. We had gone from the Meiji-jingu Shrine to Tokyo Tower and everywhere in-between. Don Quijote was the last stop of our day and I really didn’t know if I had it in me. The neon lights boasted 7 floors of everything. Snacks, stationary, skin care, if you could think of it, it was there. There were even entire floors dedicated to character souvenirs like Sanrio and Studio Ghibli.
To say I was overwhelmed would be an understatement. But once we started to find items that were on our lists it became like a scavenger hunt to find the right serum or set of chopsticks in the sea of goods. Probably the best snack I got from Don Quijote was hojicha flavored Kit-Kats (not pictured because I ate them all too fast).
Cat Lady shopping
Cats were a huge theme on this trip. From cat cafes to entire cat themed giftshops, to our mission to find the cutest Mofusand trinkets, almost every day had some kind of cat side- quest. I picked up an adorable vintage cat scarf in a thrift store in the Takeshita Street shopping area, multiple gacha balls with Mofusand keychains, stationary and more.
When we got to Seoul, the Cat Frame Shop (고양이가 있는 액자가게) took the cat shopping to the extreme. There was a cat soundtrack of just meowing to set the ambiance. I found a cute cat tote for my mom and these amazing posters by @engisstuff. I am happy I finally swapped out my generic placeholder posters with these treasures from Seoul. They bring so much more color and good memories to my apartment.
Baggy Jeans
Baggy Jeans are huge in Korea right now. So baggy that they almost fall off of you. Shopping opportunities were plentiful but a random clothing boutique in the Yeonnam-Dong neighborhood drew us in with racks of discount clothes. Particularly a pair of jeans with a pink doodle across the seat piqued my interest. I ended up leaving the store with two pairs of jeans that helped me blend in with the street fashion of Seoul for the next couple days.
When I got home, I tried my hand at tailoring one pair myself. Despite my successful product, I’ll be taking the pink squiggle pair to the tailor. They ended up being a great find retailing for over $100 while I got them for around $15.
I have a mini sewing vlog on my art Instagram if you want to see how the tailoring process went.
Craft Nite
One of my favorite activities, Mimi and I did, was customizing keychains at an iron-on patch workshop. These shops were everywhere, and it was such a wholesome, low-budget activity that resulted in a one-of-a-kind souvenir.
You might see on my keychain the heart with the Korean phrase 심쿵 (Shimkoong). This is a cute way of saying “my heart skipped a beat” in an onomatopoeia sort of way. 심 is part of the word 심장 (simjang) which means heart. 쿵 (koong) is the sound your heart makes when fluttering or when you are lovestruck.
K-Beauty/Skin-Care
Of course, I had to get a skin care haul of sorts. I didn’t want to take on a 15-step skin care routine just because I stepped into Olive Young (the Sephora/Ulta of Seoul), but I did want to try a few new products since they are so high-quality in Korea.
77+ toner has been a nice addition to my nightly routine (and mine came with a snoopy charm of course). You can also see a few of the makeup products I picked up like the blurry pudding pot and lip gloss charm from Fwee (more on charms momentarily). And of course, I picked up facemasks galore. The Dokdo cleanser was honestly too moisturizing. It was like cleansing with lotion on my skin, but my boyfriend had good results with his skin type.
Charm. It. Up.
Another big trend in Korea is charms. Bag charms, shoe charms, and anything that can be decorated has charms. I found these ballet-core Rockfish lace up sneakers which some models came with charms right out of the box. Mine did not, but many stands sold them separately. My last task is to get some ribbons that can lace through them to dress them up for the holidays and beyond.
Conclusion
This trip made me understand the true meaning of shop until you drop. I have new decor in my apartment, new clothes to wear, and shared a little piece of my trip with all my friends and family. If you’re planning a trip to Tokyo/Seoul I would say plan for some shopping but there are so many places to shop it’s not really something you need to plan! Read about the rest of my adventures in Tokyo and Seoul here.
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