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Shimokitazawa secondhand stores & vintage clothes: Tokyo hipster neighborhood, Japanese thrift shopping.

cat ears hat, cat-eared hat, kitty jacket, purple rose jacket

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.

pink hairstyle, pink dyed hair, 1980s hairstyle, off the shoulder shirt, lion tshirt

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.

tokyo fashion blog, shimokitazawa hipsters, tokyo hipster style

Met up with my Tokyo friends, Yukiro and Michelle. Their purple and blue coordinates happened to match.

lace sleeves jacket, leopard print tights, leather skirt, leather stud boots

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

shimokitazawa sign, subway gate, train tracks

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.

jake adelstein, tokyo vice, japan subcultures project, yakuza journalist, crime reporter

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!

thai restaurant shimokitazawa, tokyo flowers, tokyo street snaps

Yukiro was so hungry that he began eating the flowers outside the Thai restaurant. (Tokyo in the spring is beautiful, isn’t it?)

spiky headband, purple hair, leather jacket, sailor moon videos

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.

weird japanese kid's show, children game shows, strange japanese album

Gotta love Japanese programs for kids, which always leave you scratching your head in wonderment.

old japanese ladies, elderly japan, face masks

Not only young people live here… this neighborhood is a nice mix of residential and indie businesses.

japanese manga, tokyo graffiti, stickers

Yukiro couldn’t stop laughing at the “Toy n Gay” stamp on the wall.

purple blue hair, space goth, pastel goths, spiky hair band, hipster glasses

We all love Sailor Moon, crosses, spikes, and cats.

grand bazaar, used lolita clothes, egl sales, lolita community
gothic lolita clothing secondhand store, egl clothes for sale, vintage lolita fashion, snow white skirt

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.

uk flag dress, union jacket dress, vintage store tokyo

This intriguing boutique had Alice in Wonderland decor on the outside. But it was marked “Members Only,” so we dared not enter.

fairy kei, cult party kei, tokyo hipster style, dolly kei fashion, mori girls

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.

shimokitazawa second hand shops, Tokyo Vintage Shopping, thrift stores

Marilyn Monroe overlooks a row of 70s-style tops. If you’re a fan of vintage shopping, you could spend all day here.

Shimokitazawa vintage shop, Haight Ashbury, Japan Tokyo thrift shops

Haight & Ashbury is much-loved among treasure hunters. Items are pricier, but you’ll be sure to find high-quality, rare or designer pieces.

Haight & Ashbury, Shimokitazawa, 下北沢

There’s an outstanding antique / dolly section, with faded lace and Victorian-style purses.

Shimokitazawa travel guide, boutiques, hipsters

Shimokitazawa’s a fun place to spend the day, shopping and people-watching.

tokyo second hand stores, thrift shopping, underground boutiques

Be sure to bring your camera, stop for coffee or pancakes, and wander aimlessly.

doraemon toys, tokyo cat shop

You’ll be sure to stumble upon oddities, like this Doraemon (earless robot cat) store.

skeleton and cello, shimokita weird

Or a skeleton playing a cello.

shimokitazawa shopping, stores, subway station

Have you heard of Shimokitazawa, or been to this Tokyo hipster neighborhood? Which are your favorite vintage stores?

tokyo blogger, street style magazine snaps

And what do you think of our outfits in this post? Let us know below…

SHARE & COMMENT

55 Comments

  1. MasVue
    Posted April 5, 2013 at 10:21 pm | Permalink

    Cheers Mate. Great Style You Have

  2. Lisa
    Posted April 5, 2013 at 10:38 pm | Permalink

    Love your hair color, it keeps changing

    Lisa

  3. Oppa
    Posted April 5, 2013 at 10:40 pm | Permalink

    awww

  4. Tomomi
    Posted April 5, 2013 at 11:09 pm | Permalink

    have you been to “killers” shimokitazawa..? that’s a rad store selling my brand so well. xoxo

  5. Natasha
    Posted April 6, 2013 at 12:12 am | Permalink

    ^_^

  6. Alice
    Posted April 6, 2013 at 12:12 am | Permalink

    amazing hair!! beautiful!!! *-*

  7. Tay
    Posted April 6, 2013 at 12:12 am | Permalink

    ha thay awesome! !

  8. dan
    Posted April 6, 2013 at 3:45 am | Permalink

    Awesome

  9. Sandra
    Posted April 6, 2013 at 3:46 am | Permalink

    Real helpful girl

  10. jill
    Posted April 6, 2013 at 3:46 am | Permalink

    Hi

  11. Yukiro Dravarious
    Posted April 6, 2013 at 4:57 am | Permalink

    wow these pictures captures are inner beauty !! XD love this post mohahaha

  12. Tara
    Posted April 6, 2013 at 7:36 am | Permalink

    I want to go!!

  13. Jeff
    Posted April 6, 2013 at 7:37 am | Permalink

    I miss Shimokitazawa….very fashionable area

  14. Suz
    Posted April 6, 2013 at 7:37 am | Permalink

    That whole post was my idea of paradise!!! I want to go there!!!! :)

  15. Vanessa Lover
    Posted April 6, 2013 at 7:39 am | Permalink

    Great post!

  16. Wendy
    Posted April 6, 2013 at 9:48 pm | Permalink

    I enjoyed it

  17. Jake
    Posted April 6, 2013 at 9:48 pm | Permalink

    you found stores I never even knew existed there!!
    Next time your in Tokyo drop by again!

  18. Cara
    Posted April 6, 2013 at 9:48 pm | Permalink

    awesome blog! :)

  19. Tina
    Posted April 6, 2013 at 9:49 pm | Permalink

    Why didn’t I know about this?

  20. Eric
    Posted April 6, 2013 at 10:35 pm | Permalink

    Great hair style and different.

  21. Mari Kurisato
    Posted April 6, 2013 at 11:24 pm | Permalink

    Does your pink hair color match your pubic hair.

  22. melody
    Posted April 7, 2013 at 8:11 am | Permalink

    oh this rocks! wtf with the comment before me tho.

  23. Glitch
    Posted April 7, 2013 at 8:37 am | Permalink

    Not the full frontal stomach I was expecting. XD

    The “members only” sign just makes the place more tempting to walk into.

  24. Mari Kurisato
    Posted April 7, 2013 at 8:42 am | Permalink

    Does the carpet match the pink drapes?

    • Mari Kurisato
      Posted April 14, 2013 at 12:43 am | Permalink

      In other words does your pink hair match the color of your pubic hair. Your style is ridiculous and lame.

  25. Mari Kurisato
    Posted April 7, 2013 at 8:43 am | Permalink

    I’m a lesbian and I just want to know.

  26. Saturn Orlando
    Posted April 7, 2013 at 2:30 pm | Permalink

    I came here for the promise of midriff, and got Jake Adelstein instead. I would say I came out ahead on this one.

  27. deepseamonster
    Posted April 7, 2013 at 7:01 pm | Permalink

    Where is Yukiro’s jacket from? I’m in love with it!

  28. konjiki_koala
    Posted April 8, 2013 at 1:18 am | Permalink

    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 :)

    • lacarmina
      Posted April 8, 2013 at 10:27 pm | Permalink

      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

  29. Slash
    Posted April 8, 2013 at 6:01 pm | Permalink

    Omfg! I love Harajuku style! <3

  30. Arisia
    Posted April 8, 2013 at 6:23 pm | Permalink

    wow oyu´re so cute

  31. Marilyn
    Posted April 8, 2013 at 6:24 pm | Permalink

    you look awesome love your hair!!!

  32. Mel
    Posted April 8, 2013 at 6:24 pm | Permalink

    HOT

  33. Linda Rose
    Posted April 8, 2013 at 6:25 pm | Permalink

    Love the hair

  34. Alicia
    Posted April 8, 2013 at 7:07 pm | Permalink

    You look so amazing both of you

  35. helen
    Posted April 8, 2013 at 10:18 pm | Permalink

    love this

  36. Neo
    Posted April 8, 2013 at 11:20 pm | Permalink

    Doesn’t really look all that gothic to me . . . but I do like those cross leggings.

  37. CarolSwirl
    Posted April 10, 2013 at 11:37 pm | Permalink

    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!!!

  38. sasa
    Posted April 13, 2013 at 7:16 am | Permalink

    Pretty ♥ btw do you mind following each other? Let me know babe!

    http://www.sasavalencia.blogspot.com

  39. Do you have pink pubic hair?
    Posted April 14, 2013 at 6:12 am | Permalink

    When did the circus come in to town? You girls all look like clowns and a bad joke.

  40. Boring Geek Girls
    Posted April 14, 2013 at 6:17 am | Permalink

    Not cute, not sexy or even clever. All look like a bunch of geeky girls.

  41. SaxyEli
    Posted April 2, 2014 at 2:39 am | Permalink

    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!

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