Tokyo!

Last week I went to Japan with Anna from Momoko to buy fabric for our labels.  Oh my, it was amazing.  After a 9 hour flight we arrived at Narita Airport and we made our way into the city via a shuttle (photo below) to the subway, then I think another three trains.

We landed at 8.30pm so by the time we got to where we were staying, Ryokan Sawanoyar, it was quite late.  Our room looked so beautiful and cozy.  Comfortable futon beds with soft and fluffy feather doonas were ready for us on traditional Japanese tatami mats.

On our pillows was a beautiful origami crane.  So sweet, welcoming, and typically thoughtful.

The next morning at the Ryokan I was treated to a traditional Japanese breakfast of salmon, white fish (not sure what type exactly!), green tea, a very tasty strawberry, crunchy pickles, miso soup and hot rice. It was so elegantly presented.

It was then time to do what we came to do - go to Fabric Town which is an entire street devoted to fabric!  We shopped till we dropped.   We spent two days going through each shop and selecting what we wanted.   So many beautiful fabrics at great prices. 

There was a lot of cotton to choose from...

Here's some of my fabric being cut up.  The man behind the counter had either an allergy, due to lots of flowers blooming in Tokyo at the moment, or a cold.  At first it was a bit weird seeing the masks on so many people but in the end I got used to it and didn't bat an eyelid.

I also bought some chirimen...which I'm going to start making flowers into asap as this fabric is just so a.m.a.z.i.n.g.

And of course vintage kimono.  I was like a kid in a candy store.  I kept giving the store owner kimono to put aside for me so I could cull.  At the end I took everything I initially chose as it was just too hard to leave any behind.

Here's a sneak peak of one of the kimono I bought.  I love it, it takes my breath away. 

That's a summary of our first two days in Tokyo.  Please keep checking back over the next few days to read more about the rest of our trip.