Shimokitazawa secondhand stores & vintage clothes: Tokyo hipster neighborhood, Japanese thrift shopping.
Shimokitazawa is a Tokyo district known for its vintage stores and hipster vibe. In this post, I’ll give you a tour of the best boutiques — including one that sells secondhand Gothic & Lolita clothing.
My lion t-shirt is from the I.T / Izzue store in Hong Kong. The image reminds me of my Scottish Fold kitty, Basil Farrow.
Met up with my Tokyo friends, Yukiro and Michelle. Their purple and blue coordinates happened to match.
Attempting an avant-garde pose underneath the subway tracks. Not sure if we succeeded.
Faux leather skirt: GladNews in Shibuya 109 (more photos from this shop soon)
Leopard print tights: from a random boutique
Silver stud ankle boots: Yosuke, from Shibuya 109
It’s easy to get to Shimokitazawa; the ride takes only 10 minutes by subway, from Shinjuku or Shibuya. “Shimokita” is a favorite hangout for Japanese youths, packed with retro anime stores, music shops, coffeehouses and second hand fashion.
We had lunch with Jake Adelstein, crime journalist and author of Tokyo Vice, a gripping memoir of his yakuza reporting escapades. Jake and I recently worked together on a TV show, but we can’t say much about it yet… lest we lose a finger!
Yukiro was so hungry that he began eating the flowers outside the Thai restaurant. (Tokyo in the spring is beautiful, isn’t it?)
After eating, we browsed the various secondhand stores in Shimokitazawa. This one had crates of old anime, manga and retro character goods. Michelle was tempted to get the Sailor Moon VHS tapes.
Gotta love Japanese programs for kids, which always leave you scratching your head in wonderment.
Not only young people live here… this neighborhood is a nice mix of residential and indie businesses.
Yukiro couldn’t stop laughing at the “Toy n Gay” stamp on the wall.
We all love Sailor Moon, crosses, spikes, and cats.
Upstairs, in the secondhand store Grand Bazaar, there were racks of Sweet Lolita fashion. Brands included Jane Marple and Justine et Juliette, which you can’t always find in Closet Child.
This intriguing boutique had Alice in Wonderland decor on the outside. But it was marked “Members Only,” so we dared not enter.
This thrift store looked like a repurposed bathhouse, and had a large selection of colorful sweaters, long skirts, and clothing from the 1970s and 1980s. Love the style of these two girls.
Marilyn Monroe overlooks a row of 70s-style tops. If you’re a fan of vintage shopping, you could spend all day here.
Haight & Ashbury is much-loved among treasure hunters. Items are pricier, but you’ll be sure to find high-quality, rare or designer pieces.
There’s an outstanding antique / dolly section, with faded lace and Victorian-style purses.
Shimokitazawa’s a fun place to spend the day, shopping and people-watching.
Be sure to bring your camera, stop for coffee or pancakes, and wander aimlessly.
You’ll be sure to stumble upon oddities, like this Doraemon (earless robot cat) store.
Or a skeleton playing a cello.
Have you heard of Shimokitazawa, or been to this Tokyo hipster neighborhood? Which are your favorite vintage stores?
And what do you think of our outfits in this post? Let us know below…
SHARE & COMMENT
LA CARMINA
55 Comments
Cheers Mate. Great Style You Have
Love your hair color, it keeps changing
Lisa
yup!!
awww
have you been to “killers” shimokitazawa..? that’s a rad store selling my brand so well. xoxo
yeah, we wanted to go there! but they were closed sadly =/
must go next time!
^_^
amazing hair!! beautiful!!! *-*
ha thay awesome! !
Awesome
Real helpful girl
glad!
Hi
wow these pictures captures are inner beauty !! XD love this post mohahaha
muahahaha inner and outer evil!
I want to go!!
I miss Shimokitazawa….very fashionable area
That whole post was my idea of paradise!!! I want to go there!!!! :)
Great post!
I enjoyed it
you found stores I never even knew existed there!!
Next time your in Tokyo drop by again!
awesome blog! :)
Why didn’t I know about this?
you do now!
Great hair style and different.
Yay
Does your pink hair color match your pubic hair.
oh this rocks! wtf with the comment before me tho.
Not the full frontal stomach I was expecting. XD
The “members only” sign just makes the place more tempting to walk into.
Does the carpet match the pink drapes?
In other words does your pink hair match the color of your pubic hair. Your style is ridiculous and lame.
I’m a lesbian and I just want to know.
I came here for the promise of midriff, and got Jake Adelstein instead. I would say I came out ahead on this one.
hahaha! :) Jake is great :)
Where is Yukiro’s jacket from? I’m in love with it!
Sweden! <3
I’ve been to Shimokitazawa before and it definitely had a cool atmosphere distinct from other parts of Tokyo. But I had a lot of trouble finding secondhand shops like these>< Maybe I was in the wrong area/walking in the wrong direction? It would be great if in a later post you mark areas on a map that might be worth checking out. Even if you don't mark specific stores, just streets that might be worth checking out or something, it would be really helpful :)
Hmm, the shops seem to be clustered in an area near the Shimokitazawa gate… north and slightly west. For example, Haight & Ashbury is at Japan, Tokyo, Setagaya, Kitazawa, ２−３７−２ パラツィーナ2F
But that’s a great suggestion, will see what I can do in next posts! xo
Omfg! I love Harajuku style! <3
wow oyu´re so cute
you look awesome love your hair!!!
HOT
Love the hair
Thanks!
You look so amazing both of you
<3
love this
Doesn’t really look all that gothic to me . . . but I do like those cross leggings.
I love Yukiro’s outfit!! Although I must say everyone’s were super fun. The Sailor Moon VHS tapes brought me back – my sister went to Japan back in 1997 and brought me back the Sailor Moon Super S movie “Hearts in Ice” VHS. All in japanese, no subtitles and i watched it all the time!!! I still have it :) I can’t wait for the day i can go to Japan and visit these stores!!!
Yeahh love old school Sailor Moon!!!
Pretty ♥ btw do you mind following each other? Let me know babe!
http://www.sasavalencia.blogspot.com
When did the circus come in to town? You girls all look like clowns and a bad joke.
Not cute, not sexy or even clever. All look like a bunch of geeky girls.
This post was exciting however the lack of details, such as location information, as well as price ranges of stores is disappointing!! But still has made me excited to check this area out!