Quaint Japanese Village Is Home to the World’s Most Elaborate Rice Field Art

Inakadate, a nondescript village of around 7,000 people, located in Japan’s Aomori prefecture is considered the home of a rice field art form more elaborate than anywhere else in the world. The story of Inakadate village as a world-renowned tourist destination began in the early 1990s, when local authorities realized that youths were moving to […]

Art Student Creates Amazing Dress Out of Thousands of Plastic Cookie Wrappers

A talented Japanese art student has created a mantua-inspired life-size dress exclusively out of thousands of plastic senbei wrappers. The mantua fashion of the 17th and 18th century Europe was one of the most flamboyant and elaborate in human history, but that didn’t stop one very talented art student from recreating one such life-size dress […]

Talented Artist Colors Anime-Inspired Paper Cutouts With Real-World Environments

Japanese artist Kotetsu blends illustration photography and kirie (Japanese traditional paper cutting) to create beautiful works of art that bring anime heroines into the real world. Instead of using ink or colored pencils to color the outfits of his illustrations, Kotetsu cuts out the paper canvas and juxtaposes his creations against various backdrops, thus letting […]

The Unlikely Success Story of a Man Who Gets Paid to Do Nothing

A 37-year-old Japanese man has built a successful career by renting himself out to do nothing. For some reason, he is inundated with requests from people who just want him by their side. In just two years, Shoji Morimoto has gone from being just another unemployed middle-aged man in Tokyo, to a minor Japanese celebrity, […]

Alien Dumplings – A Downright Scary-Looking Dish

The world is full of unappetizing dishes, from fermented fish dishes to the dreaded Kiviaq, but few actually look scary to get near to, let alone put in your mouth. These Japanese dumplings definitely fall in the latter category. Last year, we published a story on one of the world’s most bizarre looking fish, the […]

This Ninja-Like Face Mask Promises to Give You a Non-Invasive Face Lift

People nowadays pay lots of money for youth-maintaining facial plastic surgery, but one Japanese company claims that its’ face mask can deliver the same results as a lift, so you don’t have to go under the knife. Japanese company Ya-man claims that its MedLift silicone mask can keep you looking young by sending electrical signals […]

Japanese Company Launches Ultimate Electrically-Heated Gaming Onesie

If you’re an avid gamer who would rather freeze than risk overheating their PC while playing on Ultra graphics settings, you may want to check out this weird-looking electrically-heated gaming onesie. Japanese company Bauhütte specializes in gaming accessories, from comfortable and ergonomic gaming chairs, to innovative gaming desks and cable management tools. But their most […]

Japanese Family Has Been Sharing Their Home With 7-Foot-Long Crocodile for 39 Years

Some people wouldn’t get anywhere near an adult crocodile for all the money in the world, but one Japanese family in Kure City, Hiroshima, has been living with one for almost four decades. Nobumitsu Murabayashi bought “Caiman-san”, his pet crocodile, from a pet store, after his young son begged him to. He never thought he’d […]

Japanese Fruit Farmers “Employ” Owls as Pest Control

Japanese field voles can seriously impact the profits of apple orchard owners, if left unchecked. For centuries, many farmers have relied on owls to keep vole numbers to manageable levels, and research has shown the night predators to be incredibly efficient. Ural owls have been setting up their nests in orchards with high rodent populations […]

Japanese Artist Carves Whimsical Worlds into Tiny Tree Leaves

Japanese self-taught artist Rito (@lito_leafart) spends hours painstakingly carving tree leaves to create stunningly detailed scenes that capture viewers’ imagination. Rito’s leaf cutouts are impressive enough by themselves, but the story of what inspired the artist to take up leaf art in the first place makes them even more so. Apparently, the Japanese artist suffers […]

Rare Grape Variety Is Larger Than a Chicken Egg

Pictures of giant grapes, larger than the average chicken egg, have been doing the rounds on Vietnamese social media this week, raising questions about their authenticity and origin. Novelty fruits are particularly popular in Japan, where specialized shops can sell certain varieties of apples, peaches, melons or grapes for mind-boggling prices. However, the popularity of […]

Japanese Company Wants to Buy Your Face and Sell It as a Hyper-Realistic Mask

Would you ever sell your face? If the answer is yes, there is a Japanese company that wants to hear from you. It’s in the business of buying the rights to people’s faces so it can sell them in the form of hyper-realistic 3D-printed masks. Ever since Kamenya Omoto, a Tokyo-based specialty mask maker and […]

Boat Shaped Like Giant Zip Puller Looks Like It’s Opening the Water

Japanese designer Yasuhiro Suziki has created a unique boat shaped like a giant zipper puller that looks like it’s opening up the water when sailing. Unveiled as part of the Designart Tokyo 2020 event, the zipper puller boat – officially known as ‘Zipper Fastener Ship’ – is the brain child of Japanese designer Yasuhiro Suzuki, […]

Japanese Boy Masters the Art of Makeup to Become Female Cosplay Goddess

Makeup is an incredibly powerful tool in the right hands, and if you’re wondering just how powerful, this Japanese young man has been using it to cross the gender barrier and become a female cosplay idol. Looking at the photos posted by @Makina_Jeanne, a popular cosplay enthusiast from Hokkaido, you could swear she was a […]