ZenPop Stationery Review

There are so many things to love about Japan. Today I’d like to introduce you to ZenPop, a Japanese company that sends the coolest products from the heart of Osaka to anywhere in the world. While it sounds like a subscription-style service, it isn’t. You can purchase individual packs each month without knowing exactly what’s included (because it’s a surprise!) but ZenPop do showcase a few products on social media and hint about the contents on their website.

There are 6 packs to choose from and all prices are in US Dollars and include shipping:

• Japanese Ramen + Sweets Mix ($24.50)
• Japanese Sweets Pack ($19.50 – $29.50)
• Japanese Ramen Pack ($29.50)
• Japanese Stationery Pack ($29.50)
• Japanese Beauty Pack ($29.50)

I bought the Japanese Stationery Pack for the month of April with a “Kawaii” or cute theme, which promised 12 or more items.

The box in which the products arrived was so cute and featured the ZenPop bunny mascot jumping for joy! Inside the box the first thing seen was a little note which said “You got a lucky box with a pair of lucky socks” and of course a smile instantly came to my face.

What a sweet gesture!

Now let’s explore the actual products inside the Stationery Pack. The April kit included:

• 1x Decorese Pen (1 of 10 pastel colours)
• 1x Kuretake – Mangaka Pen (1 of 4 colours)
• 1x Uni Jetstream Pen – Black ink
• 1x Kuratake Brush Tip Highlighter (1 of 5 fluorescent colours)
• Washi Tape (1 of 5 designs)
• Sanrio Memo Pad (1 of 6 designs)
• Rilakkuma Folder (1 of 4 designs)
• Schedule Stickers (1 of 3 designs)
• Nico Sticky Notes (1 of 4 designs)
• Bento Flake Stickers
• Tombow MONO 2 Way (1 of 5 colours)
• Flip Out Message Cards

The items included were all so cute and useful too. I’ll certainly be using the pages of the Sanrio notepad to write letters to penpals and the sushi stickers to decorate the envelopes! All the pens were great and wrote ever-so-beautifully on paper. The washi tape was certainly a highlight as was the gorgeous Rilakkuma folder. Can’t wait to also use the MONO correction tape on one side and eraser on the other!

Overall, I loved the ZenPop Stationery Pack. All the products were of very high quality and with a large variety of inclusions from stickers to sticky notes, paper, washi tape and pens. No two boxes are the same as there are endless colour and design combinations ZenPop sends you. It took just under 4 weeks to arrive to Australia from Japan but it was so worth the wait. For all the info on ZenPop’s other packs please visit their website here and try something new from Japan for yourself.

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Disclaimer: All opinions expressed in this review are 100% honest. This box was purchased by me and I genuinely loved all the products and wanted to publish a review here.

My Japanese Adventure

It has long been a dream of mine to visit the “Land of the Rising Sun”. I remember always being fascinated about Japanese minimalism in relation to architecture whilst studying interior design at university. I always found Japan to be a great source of inspiration and have always been interested in their way of life and their unique culture. I have always wanted to enter a Japanese shop where everything is cute and character-driven.

A couple of months ago, right at the beginning of their cherry blossom season, I finally made it to this intriguing and fascinating island known as Japan. It was an eye-opening experience from start to finish and was the first time I ever holidayed in Asia. My sister and I spent 12 days travelling in Japan, starting in Tokyo and visiting Osaka and Kyoto.

For this post I simply want to showcase my photos to you because there are so many websites and books in the marketplace where you can gain information, make itineraries, and map out your day from morning till night (admittedly as a person who loves to plan everything out, I used a very helpful little app called Tripomatic to help me bring all my research together into one helpful daily organiser!). Of course I recommend that you do your research, by all means, but I also learned that it’s alright to simply have no plan for the day and see where life takes you. I wish we had more time to explore these three beautiful cities without time limits and without maps and itineraries as this would allow us to relax more and truly feel what it’s like to be in Japan. On my next trip there that’s what I plan to do for sure but understandably for the first trip somewhere I always seem to want to pack in as much to see and do as I possibly can!

Japan is a country which leaves visitors with their own distinct impressions, as long as you’re open to the possibility of discovering, learning and experiencing life from outside your comfort zone. Yes, there were lots of people everywhere and at times we did find ourselves on packed train carriages, feeling a little bit out of place, but even then I was eager to turn unfamiliar corners and see what’s out there. Japan really pushed my sense of adventure to the max and even though I couldn’t speak the language, its beautiful people always made me feel at ease. This trip was one of those “pinch me, am I really here?” moments and I cannot recommend Japan enough for anyone who is interested in history, architecture and religion. If you’re fortunate enough not to have any time constraints in Japan, then you’re probably the luckiest person in the world because there’s so much to see and so many places with the wow factor that will definitely leave you feeling speechless.

 

Okami Japanese Restaurant

I love all things Japanese! Whether it’s their simplicity in design and architecture, their products and cute packaging or their historic traditions. Japanese food is one of my favourite cuisines and their food usually looks just as good as it tastes! Japan is a destination on the top of my list of places to visit.

There is a wonderful restaurant in Melbourne’s exclusive suburb of Hampton and it’s a really nice place to dine at. They have a buffet menu where you can eat all you can for a set price and even though the portions are small, you can order as many times as you like until you’re satisfied! The décor in the establishment needs updating but they had good service and a lot of great dishes. Lovely place to catch up with friends or celebrate a special occasion.

Japanese Restaurant: Shizuku

Delicious food, a lovely atmosphere, great service and beautiful interior decorations made Shizuku an excellent choice for Japanese food over this weekend. With its location on the predominantly Asian grocery/restaurant street of Victoria, Abbotsford, Shizuku is a wonderful place to experience Japanese food at its best, with a small yet tantalising menu to choose from. We tried the popcorn chicken and pork gyoza dishes and absolutely loved them.

You can visit their website here: http://shizuku.com.au/

Our Handmade Flowers!

We put many hours of work into our latest creation – our handmade flowers. They are beautiful, gentle and graceful, 3 words which epitomise our approach to design and our brand. Come in and buy one today or write to us with your request if you’re located outside of the UK. Our flowers are very affordable, don’t need water, soil or sun like real flowers, and won’t dry out in a week! We think everyone should have them in their homes to brighten up their days.