THRIFTING in JAPAN🇯🇵Oi Racetrack Flea Market & BOOKOFF Super Bazaar + haul from previous video

Hello everyone thank you for joining me today  we are at the Tokyo City Flea Market which is   actually at the Oi Racetrack a horse racing  track in its car park and usually they have   this flea market on the weekends almost every  weekend unless the races are on this Market  

Is split into two sections the uncovered  side and a covered side so we’re on the   uncovered side at the moment and sometimes  you have regular vendors but you also have   a whole lot of people who are just there  to participate in the flea so you never  

Know what you’re going to get there’s  always lots of kokeshi though this is   one place to come for kokeshi and isn’t that  quite grand it’s like a replica of a samurai outfit so you can just see that truck there on  the right that is where behind that is where the  

Kimonos are, here where is 300 yen on the ground  but it’s just too difficult to video whilst I’m   rummaging so I’ll show you what I bought of it  later let’s check out these boxes of kokeshi I  

Really love these daruma ones you know with um the  daruma babies in their mouth it’s so cute but he   has got a huge crack on his head so I’m going  to leave him there’s a lot in here I actually  

Own one of these ones as well um I think they  usually come on a band though but now this you   recognize a tiny little Yawata horse and this is  a beautiful kokeshi but look at the neck that’s  

Not a bobblehead one so it shouldn’t be sticking  out like that so I’m going to leave her but this   one here is a really popular one you might have  seen her quite a bit actually she’s not in the  

Best of shape and this one it’s kind of weird  because it’s half like bleached already like   the bottom half but the top half is face is really  good and this one is too modern for me it’s not my  

Type of thing her face is kind of burnt brown I  don’t mind if the whole thing is burnt that dark   color like this one I love this one this one I  am getting because of the beautiful beautiful  

Flower and this one too even if it’s a little  bit damaged I love the flower there too so I’m   going to buy those too very nice signed as well I  love all the lines on this one you know and over  

Here I found a little one with dragonflies I  didn’t buy him because his neck was a little   bit off as well but he’s so cute I wish I had  bought him now actually and this type you see  

Quite a lot of I like her very much but she has  a huge huge sore there looks like a wound there   and this see when it’s complete completely gone  dark from the sun I don’t mind it then I feel  

Like it has a story to tell I like the aging  on it this is an interesting owl maybe I should   have picked that one up because everything  in these boxes were 200 yen so that’s about $1.35 so under here I have found some flower  frogs really old ones how cool are they  

And look there’s some double ones down there  as well I see the round ones quite often but   not these type and oh this this candlestick  I wasn’t so sure of where it was from maybe   I should have gotten it I couldn’t tell  what the creature was was it a sheep not  

Sure so yeah there was a double one but  I ended up buying two of the single ones   with the chrysanthemum on them and they were  300 yen each but she gave me a discount she   gave me two kokeshi and two of the flower  frogs for 900 yen total which is about

$6 as you can see the market is actually huge  there’s about 350 stalls as advertised but it   takes quite a while to go through if it’s your  first time there it’s from 9am but some stalls  

I think are open a bit earlier and it closes at  2pm but a lot of people start packing up about   1pm so either I go very early and then stay  till 1 and sometimes I get some bargains at  

1. I’ve had some really good deals at the end  of play as well so it’s worth sticking around   we’re now going to go in the covered section  it’s not like fully covered but see what I  

Mean it’s more covered than the other side so  it’s good for the summer cuz it can be baking   hot but we’re not going to do much shopping here  because it’s already starting to pack up quite a   bit but they have everything from cosmetics  of course more Japanese ornaments as well  

Usually they’re more expensive in this side  it really depends though but if it’s a vendor   that’s there every week they have a certain  price I quite like that lamp I think it might   be a Balinese one more kokeshi I find kokeshi  are also less expensive outside I mean they’re  

All still pretty cheap though a lovely dragon  there again for the year of the dragon this year 2024 and I think this is a Chinese vendor so  they’re here regularly and yeah more kokeshi   if you like kokeshi honestly this is the  place to go for sure and some cool brushes  

Old brushes there for calligraphy and here are  some old antique combs as well very cool loads   of clothes I haven’t shown any of the clothes but  there’s clothes there’s jewelry there’s literally   something for everyone here I think you know  here’s some European style crockery as well  

And you know some of it’s really organized  and then you get to some areas where it’s   completely hectic like this one this area like  it’s you just go in there and rummage and then   you just ask the man there how much things are  but it’s it’s a bit bonkers I haven’t actually  

Challenged myself with this particular booth  I mean look at it it’s just woah but you never   know what you’ll find there I have now changed  location I am at the Omorei branch of BOOKOFF   Super Bazaar this one is a little bit more  expensive than the usual super Bazaar that  

I go to most of my thrifting is done at book  of Super Bazaar in the Kawasaki area so I will   be putting videos up of that too this is pretty  but everything feels a little bit pricey for me

Here this is what we call a futa-mono which  means a lidded object so we would use it to   put food in that and this is Arita ware look how  thin it is it has a sticker so no mark on the

Back taking a little overview of the whole  section there’s only this one row in this   book off Super Bazaar it’s a smaller one  so most BOOKOFF chains are only selling   things like books and comics and anime  things which is pretty good if that’s the  

Thing you’re into now I have no idea about  this dragon but it’s really heavy it’s not   cast iron it’s definitely wrought iron it’s  been hammered into place it’s beautiful I   am taking this for myself I hope I can  find out something about it but I love

It now this may seem like a harsh title  but look it’s 220 yen this book by Adrian   Tomine is about 30 something US dollar about  over 4,000 yen in Japan so it’s a good score   and this is actually a series by a company called  Nuno Nuno so I’m already collecting these so this  

Was a good find as well so let’s have a look  at the thrift haul from the last two shopping trips this is the Golden Ox that I purchased in my  previous thrift video It’s called Koko and from  

Iwate prefecture in the north part and this area  was famous for producing gold back in the day so   they used to be made of gold dust these cows  right but now they are made of wood and they   carry treasure chests on either side so they’re  auspicious for good luck and in prosperity in  

Business and this thing only cost me 300 yen so  that was great another item from I prefecture   this type of iron is called Nambu tekki it’s a  mini version of their kettle and used as a paper  

Weight or I like to use them as a little vase like  this these are all from my previous video by the   way and this is a piece from Kanonji Temple and  it’s a commemorative piece this say on the back  

It’s from the year Showa 50 which makes it 1975  so it’s almost 50 years old and I’m going to use   it either as a trinket dish or I am going to put a  flower arrangement in it with one of these flower  

Frogs I bought these also from the same shop this  smaller one was only 20 yen which is about 13 or   14 cents in US money so pretty good these little  bobbleheads I absolutely love them their heads  

Are in shapes of calligraphy brushes and we have  three characters here we have the one with the   white beard is a daruma, yeah daruma and the one  in the middle is a lady otafuku and then here with  

A long nose it’s the mythical creature tengu and  down here on the right you can see the onsen hot   spring mark and then the kanji (Chinese character)  is a little bit faded I’m thinking it’s going to   be Arima because Arima is famous for calligraphy  brushes and it’s an onsen region and kokeshi,  

You usually pick up often in onsen regions as  souvenirs, they’re so cute and I’m going to keep   these this is the last little guy before we move  onto the Oi Racetrack purchases but he is Hotei  

Is one of the seven lucky Gods he’s known as The  Laughing Buddha he’s a happy guy he is missing his   toes there on one foot and but I have put a whole  lot of wood oil on him so he’s looking much better  

Than when I purchased him there should also be  a fan in his hand at the top there but I think   he’s so beautiful and I’m so glad I got him he is  another keeper for me so here are the flower frogs  

That I picked up from the racetrack flea market I  still cannot figure out what period of time they   came from I believe they are possibly Meiji or  Taisho era so late 19th century to early 20th I  

Believe lovely chrysanthemums on there so I’m not  going to list them or sell them until I know more   currently they’re stocked up like this and I have  some brass candle sticks on top of them but now  

Let’s move on to these lovely kokeshi I’m really  glad I picked these two girls up because I love   the design on them the flowers are so pretty these  aren’t actually supposed to be a pair but I think  

They work well together and this bigger one she  has irises painted and the stripes haven’t faded   too badly they look pretty good uh it’s signed by  the craftsman Shimazu Seichi and it comes from the   Owani area in Aomori prefecture so it’s a Tsugaru  type kokeshi I love her expression and this is the  

Smaller one she’s a little bit bleached on one  side could you see there she has some damage to   her eye too but I love this camellia on her center  there I think she is actually from Tsuchiyu onsen  

Area in Fukushima prefecture yes that’s right on  the right it says Tsuchiyu but I don’t know who   the crafts person is I managed to get these two  kokeshi and the flower frogs for 900 yen total so  

About $7 moving on to the Obi belts this stall was  doing a 500 yen all you can stuff into a plastic   bag deal so I got a few things and here you can  tell this thinner here the width is thinner this  

Is a Nagoya style belt Nagoya Obi so let’s have  a look at the embroidery we have here I believe   it’s a crossover of autumn or fall to winter  because we have for Autumn we have the maple   leaves and chrysanthemums and then we also have  for winter the plum blossoms and bamboo saying  

That you can have bamboo designed on your kimono  and yukata at different seasons too but it’s just   because it’s grouped together here, same here  you’ve got the bamboo again and chrysanthemum   so it’ll be a fall/autumn and winter season some  of the embroidery thread is coming apart there but  

It’s still lovely I think it’s not going to affect  it if you’re going to use it as a table runner or   I like to have it as a runner on the bottom of my  bed you can see that it’s not embroidered all the  

Way around otherwise it would get ruined further  as it’s being wrapped around your body as a belt   it’s all one width because this is a different  type of obi not like the other Nagoya style   obi this is called Fukuro Obi and you can also  see this hexagonal shape which is representing  

A tortoise shell which we often use in Japanese  pattern and design now this isn’t a usual obi that   I would pick up because I find the embroidery so  massive these each individual butterflies are huge  

But the gold was so pretty on it and I couldn’t  leave it behind I mean pretty much you know one   item is about 150 yen that I’m paying for it’s  absolutely nothing on this day this is again a  

Fukuro obi you you can see the embroidery doesn’t  go all the way around and this would also look   nice as a runner on your table or in the end of  your bed or I can chop it and make it into place  

Mats or something on top of a cabinet or something  like this now they often smell pretty bad so it   takes quite some time to get the smell out but  you cannot wash them if you try the silk might get  

Ruined. Usually if you go to the Antiques markets  rather than the flea markets then usually they’re   in a bit better condition although you pay way  more than you do with the flea so this is one of  

The haoris that I bought I love this bright lining  inside there’s a little mark at the top but not   too much I’m going to take the string off there  because it’s actually too small for me that way  

I am likely going to be selling a whole bunch of  haori at one point once I get a new shop running   instead of doing eBay but for the meantime I might  as well wear this one and see how it looks this is  

A bit like a shiborizome like a tie dye look but  it actually isn’t this is a print I believe but   it’s very very beautiful I loving loving these  colors this one was kind of unusual looking it  

Was definitely for me I was going to keep this  from the first place it kind of made me think of   reflections on water but I actually tried to hand  wash this because it didn’t feel like silk and I  

Wasn’t so sure but anyhow bad thing to do because  the dye started to come out anyway I rescued it   it’s fine absolutely fine but yeah that’s why you  have to really careful with these things and here  

We have a cotton yukata which is like our summer  kimono or sometimes you sleep in these I love the   collar there as I was saying before bamboo  patterns you can use all year round and this   see the little round circles? That is actually  a pattern called Koko which is like the spots  

On the back of a Bambi on a baby deer or a fawn  that’s probably the correct word for it so the   sleeves are quite short can you tell and that’s  because it’s for a maturer woman rather than  

Someone say who’s 20, 21 also kimonos and yukatas  for younger people tend to be a lot more colorful   this is quite subdued so I’d like to pair it with  quite a bright colored obi belt like maybe a dark  

Peach or a red or even yellow it’s actually good  to clash things for kimonos and yukata so that’s   what I’m thinking of putting there this actually  I was able to wash no problem and I added starch  

As well to kind of stiffen the fabric here’s  everything stacked up that I purchased for 500 yen   there are four, five, six pieces here I could have  actually got more as I said probably about three  

Or four more maybe but I really don’t need so much  stuff yeah sadly I have very very little storage   space so I have to be really picky and choosy with  what I buy to resell or keep and this dragon was  

One that I decide to take home to keep and this  one has got three toes or three claws which means   it’s likely to be Japanese but it might not be  you never know it’s not 100% a given that three  

Claws means it’s Japanese but it’s quite likely I  couldn’t find any signature on it no marks on it   the only marks I see are, it looks like it’s being  hammered with a tool rather than being um cast I  

Don’t think it’s a cast iron piece he very very  very skinny if you look at it from the top angle   which I will show you now look but I love the big  feet so I’m going to keep it until I find out more  

About it definitely keep keeping it this year for  the Chinese year of the dragon. I picked up some   books this being one of them surprisingly I quite  enjoyed it I did have a read of the comic first  

Um and it’s now listed on Mercari Japan for sale I  can make a really good profit on it cuz only spent   220 yen in fact if you take the cover off you  can actually use it quite nice if you stack them  

And you know you can put a vase or a figurine  on top the color is pretty cool these ones,   there’s actually a whole bunch of them and I’m  collecting them Nuno Nuno books I think they’re  

A maybe a textiles company something like this  and so they have this series out I just have one   left to find and they’re pretty cool because the  inside they have literature written in Japanese   and in English translation so they’re very artful  beautiful books I have six out of I believe seven  

Books in this series so I’m on the lookout for it  it’s quite hard to find and then I will list them   somewhere for them to be sold as the set this  next book I don’t think I videoed finding it’s  

The Sotherby’s Concise Encyclopedia of Glass I  bought it for myself it was only 220 yen so I   can always sell it on it’s interesting the prices  differ so much depending on which BOOKOFF you go  

To but this one is particularly good for books so  I was happy with this score thank you for watching   today I hope you enjoyed the content I do mainly  thrift Non-japanese products for the Japan Market,   that does much better, but I love Japanese  crafts um anything folk crafts so I will  

Continue to make videos that incorporate both  thank you again and see you very soon Bye

Today we’re at Oi Racetrack Flea, the largest flea market in Tokyo with around 350 stalls. Usually on every weekend, depending on if the races are on. Always find it hard to video here as it’s so busy😅but showing snippets where possible!
Popped over to Book Off Super Bazaar Omori branch after and found an amazing dragon to take home🐲🤩
Bit of a longer haul section today as we’ll go through purchases from both this video and the last.

Thank you so much for watching and hope you enjoy the content🥰

*📍Oi Racetrack Flea Market (Oi Keibajyo)*
大井競馬場フリーマーケット
Nearest station: Oi Keibajyo-mae (Tokyo Monorail)

*📍BOOKOFF Super Bazaar Seiyu Omori*
BOOKOFF Super Bazaar 西友大森店
Nearest station: Omori (Keihin TohokuSagami Line)

*Exchange Rate Guide (estimate as at 2024)*
¥50 → 35¢
¥100 → 70¢
¥200 → $1.35
¥300 → $2
¥400 → $2.70
¥500 → $3.40
¥1000 → $6.80

*About me:*
Hi! I’m Michelle. A half Japanese, half British Tokyoite🇯🇵🇬🇧
Aside from reselling, I am also a tour guide. Therefore an avid researcher on all things Japanese🎶
Hope you enjoy coming along, seeing what I find both for resale and for keeps.

*IG*
Tokyotique: https://www.instagram.com/thetokyotique/
Japanescapes: https://www.instagram.com/japanescapes/

*Art Channel*
Michelle Nagisa Art: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCgxs1hCCovdOebPUlQmjtQ

*Shop platforms:*
✔️Domestic market (Japan): Mercari
✔️International market: Was on eBay but have now closed the account. Hope to be listing soon on the Tokyotique online shop.

#thrifting #thriftinginjapan #japaneseculture #Japan #japantravel #fleamarket #vintage

Music from #uppbeat (free for Creators!):
https://uppbeat.io/t/yokonap/cozy-places
License code: JIIYAWEW5IGJOGZ1
https://uppbeat.io/t/oliver-massa/orange-clouds
License code: C8QCZFVZPQQOQ8YE
https://uppbeat.io/t/justin-lee/gently-does-it
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Video No.2

4 Comments

  1. How do you clean your kokeshi. Its dusty here where i live so im having a hard time cleaning them i cant wipe them the paint is erasing

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