Last week the designers from Boford came by to check out the Japan C exhibit.

Here's a picture of them in front of the Japan C sphere.

Ironically, living in a city where designers big and small compose whole neighborhoods does not make it any easier to cultivate a distinct look. In fact, it presents added challenges. Invariably, a subway ride or a trip to the grocery store incites indignation when two women, a man and a savvy 5-year-old all wearing the skirt you just blew your paycheck on file by. Instead of being flattered when people compliment you on the street, you regard them with skepticism and develop amnesia when they ask where you found such a beautiful jacket. This week, however, all that changes with Felissimo’s showcase of gorgeous Japanese accessories. Awe-inducing products like Teishin’s modern pearl jewelry and Hishiya’s traditionally inspired footwear will help you regain your memory and your benevolence. And equally seductive is the opportunity to field questions about your unique pieces with a fashionably nonchalant shrug. “Oh this little thing—it’s Japanese.”

Bubble wrap has come a long way. From New Jersey, where an unsuccessful attempt at plastic wallpaper created it 50 years ago, to Japan, home of the world's first and only bubble wrap think tank, the ubiquitous packing staple has long been the antidote for idle hands and anxiety-ridden office workers.

Now, with the October debut of Mugen Pop Pop, popping bubble wrap becomes a boundless diversion no longer tied to the UPS man's delivery schedule. Bandai, the Japanese purveyors of cool and quirk who introduced us to Tamagotchi and the Power Rangers, return to the handheld game scene with this pocket-sized, battery-operated square of bubble wrap. Mugen Pop Pop slips easily onto a key chain and features simple games, in addition to straight popping pleasure. The playful stress-buster is already a hit in Japan where the bubble wrap market is saturated with scented varieties, various shapes, and even a high-pressure version—not for packing family heirlooms, but for creating an extra loud pop, of course. Poppity Pop Culture Laboratory, the aforementioned think tank, even decreed August 8 as National Bubble Wrap Day (the lucky day was chosen because the date-hatchi hatchi-sounds strikingly like the onomatopoeic Japanese name—puchi puchi.)

And while we lack a think tank devoted to the stuff, Americans are just as crazy about the cathartic popping paper. Numerous websites and even the iPhone already feature simulated popping for those who find themselves without packing materials or in the library confronted with icy glares.

If you can't wait until October, stop by Fellisimo's Japan-centric exhibit to play with the display models. In fact, head over there anyways to check out the bright green plastic edamame pod, another ingenious Bandai product, which exploits the simple pleasure of popping beans from their husk. What will they think of next? My money is on one of two things: either a set of portable knuckles or everyone’s nightmare—an eternal blemish.

My Japanese in-laws live in an apartment in Tokyo, and the only gardening they do is to prune the potted eggplant on the balcony. So, imagine my surprise when one day my father-in-law pulls out the biggest pair of branch cutters I’ve ever seen. Those must be some eggplants, I thought. Then he opens the kitchen window and matter-of-factly hacks a branch off the neighbor’s fruit-laden kumquat tree, growing right outside. Like the orangutans who poke sticks into termite nests to fish out a tasty snack, a healthy dose of opportunism, combined with the right tools, can make for interesting primate behavior.

Perhaps my father-in-law would appreciate a pair of gardening scissors from Otake Sangyo, Co., Ltd. They are made with premium quality steel, manufactured using traditional Japanese iron-making technology. Their blades have the reputation for being as sharp as samurai swords, making them ideal for bonsai pruning, flower arranging, and, perhaps, opportunistic kumquat harvesting.

Soon the leaves will turn, the air will chill and fall will once again descend on New York. For some, autumn is synonymous with bobbing for apples, haystacks and pumpkin pie. For me, it is the season I throw open the door to my bulging closet and sullenly note that I have nothing to wear. But instead of fortifying my wardrobe with items for which I feel fleeting affection, this season I’m going to accessorize with Milk.

And I don’t mean bringing back the mustache.

I mean the laser-cut products from the ingenious Japanese jewelry maker’s original collection, Chaluette. Simultaneously simple and intricate, the jewelry’s unique way of casting shadows on the body lends an added dimension to the stale clothes cluttering your room. The distinctive necklaces, earrings and bracelets currently highlighted during Felissimo’s accessory week mean that the muumuu in the back of your closet—the one you got a stoop sale 15 years ago, have taken on every vacation and refuse to throw away despite the fact that you have never worn it—can finally be debuted. Because not only does Milk’s jewelry allow you to add silhouetted intrigue without a tattoo that will trigger your mother’s disapproval, this jewelry will make a burlap sack look sexy. Perfect for both those who approach shopping with calculation and rationality and for people with a swollen closet and collection of muumuus like me. Only one question remains this season. Got milk?

There is nothing like living in a confined space to inspire creativity. While the incarcerated fashion shivs out of toothbrush handles, the Japanese take their lack of space and turn it into a legacy of practical design—one that makes the most out of every nook, cranny and level. A host of these ingenious products are on display this week at Felissimo’s At Home in Japan week where storage—a particularly resonate topic for New Yorkers—is masterfully conquered.

Marvel how easy recycling becomes with the help of Like-It’s Recycle Station, a waste container designed to store recyclable garbage. That means the stained, old box you keep newspapers in can now be added to the recycling, instead of housing it. Take a deep breathe and enjoy the extra space in your closet of an apartment when the Nest table from Santo Sangyo, allows you to finally uncross your legs with its Russian doll inspired tables. Take trash to a new level with the hanging waste basket from Hachiman-Kasei which forgoes tradition plastic for eco-friendly materials like resin mixed with wood powder and recycled paper. So before you finish honing that toothbrush to teach your roommate a lesson about her dirty laundry, stop by Felissimo to check out these products and more from the masters of living comfortably in cramped spaces. For New Yorkers, there is no way these products will get lost in translation.

Word of the week: ズボン

Zu-Bo-N; pants or trousers

Learning Japanese is hard. Three alphabets, verbs at the end of sentences, and English words stretched like taffy. McDonald’s becomes ma-ku-do-na-ru-do’s; a ballerina becomes a ba-ra-ri-na. And pants become zu-bo-n. Zubon? That doesn’t sound anything like pants.

It shouldn’t, for the Japanese love of appropriating words does not stop with English. Instead, they turned to the French word for underskirt or briefs—jupon—altering both the pronunciation and the function.

I read that in Japan, every day there are dozens of earthquakes, some so minor they’re undetectable, some strong enough to pop you out of bed. They say that when there’s a big earthquake you should open your front door as an escape route, then dive underneath the dining room table with a pot over your head. Both the table and pot are supposed to protect you from falling debris, although the time it takes to grab a pot before diving under the table might make such precautions useless. There are also earthquake survival packs, a prepackaged bag you keep by the door in the event of a big one, complete with first-aid kit, radio, nonperishable food and water, etc. Being ever so thrifty and clever, I made my own survival pack, which included such survival essentials as face cleanser, dental floss, and tweezers (in case I need to pluck my eyebrows at the evacuation shelter).

Short of leaving a soup pot under your table as a precaution, you could use the waste-paper baskets by Hachiman-Kasei Co., Ltd. It is a line of environmentally friendly plastic goods, which includes baskets made with resin mixed with wood powder and resin mixed with recycled paper. They’re attractive enough to display in the dining room, with subtle colors and an organic texture that looks more like pottery than plastic. The best part is that it’s phenomenally strong, even under intense pressure or magnitude 5.5 earthquakes. Just grab this as you’re diving under the table, stick it over your head, and pray your cosmetics will survive the damage.

In college, I studied the art of Japanese Tea Ceremony. “Studied” being a glorified word for “clumsily attempted”, but it was still a wonderful experience. In tea ceremony, the meaning behind every movement is as important as the purpose of the movement itself, therefore the symbolic act of “purifying” the tea scoop involves wiping the bamboo implement with a silk napkin in slow, choreographed movement, which probably doesn’t purify it much but looks really pretty. While serving tea, guests sit in a tatami mat room, decorated with an ornamental scroll and perhaps a simple flower arrangement reflecting the season. It creates a wonderful haven of serenity…that is, until guests try my tea, otherwise known as “green mud”.

Like the subtle artwork in tea rooms, the artwork from Sincol Co., Ltd. gives a sense of peace and serenity with its subtle colors and patterns. A textiles manufacturer, they mount top-quality upholstery fabric to create artwork. The texture of the fabric panel gives a sense of warmth and comfort. The company also creates a wall panel which features an inkjet print photograph, but captured on a textile canvas that lends a diffused, calming effect. These unique artworks can give any room a sense of serenity…minus the gluey beverages.

Heavy metal took on a whole new meaning Wednesday at Felissimo’s Accesorize your Passion for Fashion party when designer TK Nezca, inventor of the iridescent metal cord that shares his name, dropped by to demonstrate his innovative trimmings to a rapt audience. Nezca explained how he used traditional Japanese braiding techniques to embed thousands of Swarovski crystals into a piece of ordinary cord, catapulting it to brilliance. The resulting material (also called nezca) reflects light in all directions and is extremely flexible, both qualities that have made it prized by top designers. A dress from Yumi Katsura’s fall line TK was exhibited as an example of the bejeweled strands in practice. Though various accessories demonstrated nezca’s versatility, it was Ms. Katura’s short, gauzy black dress that stole the show.

Looking like body armor for the fashionably forward, I couldn’t help but wonder how long one could wear the dress before the gorgeous but weighty network of cords looping down the front was ripped away by gravity. Mr. Nezca, however, swiftly put my worries to rest. He explained that the nezca portion of the dress actually hangs from the neck—like a tangle of beads a giant might don for Mardi Gras. But no matter. Even if this dress creates a slight pain in your neck, the luminous response you’ll receive is well worth it. Check out all the other ways nezca is used through October at the Japan ^C exhibit.

Visit our Flickr page for more pictures from the Private Fashion Event