Tokyo Day #2 – Flea markets & Friends

Before I arrived in Tokyo, two friends here had baby boys within a week or two of one another. So I got my little production line going and made them some slippers.

The main material is from an old kimono and the other fabric is flannel (some of which is recycled). The flannel is meant to be lining, but I’ve made the slippers reversible instead. Pretty cute, if I do say so myself!

Here’s one of the new mums, Asuka, holding her son, Antonio, whose feet turned out to be so tiny that the slippers fell off him! She’s with her Mexican husband Louis and their daughter Nami. They had a “welcome back” party for me today but it was also Louis’ birthday (he was turning “thirty-ten”… I’ll have to keep that little euphemism in mind for my own use in a few years!).

Before the party, I managed to get to the Chuo-koen flea market in Shinjuku. Pretty impressive backdrop, isn’t it! (How many flea markets do you know with waterfalls in the background!?)

Of course you want to see my spoils… here they are sitting on the tatami mat which I get to sleep on (if you ever get a chance to sleep on tatami I highly recommend it, the smell is divine, just like subtly sweet hay). Basically a whole lot of accessories and some buttons – all for about $2 each. Because as you know, I don’t have enough accessories already!

今日は新宿中央公園のフリマに行って、アクセサリーをたくさん買っちゃいました。日本のフリマは安いですね！これで全部¥1200ぐらいでした。そしてそのあとは友達がパーティを開いてくれて、みんなで食べたり、喋ったり、笑ったりしました。二人の友達も先月男の子を生んだので、東京に来る直前に赤ちゃん用スリッパーを古い着物とリサイクル生地で作りました。なかなかかわいくできてうれしかったです。しかも、作った時、小さすぎに見えたのに、実際赤ちゃんにはかせたら逆に大きかったです。赤ちゃんって本当にちいさいですね！