I was late. And I was unprepared. And when the elevator door creaked open on Felissimo’s fifth floor to a slide show already in progress, I was embarrassed. I scuttled into the nearest chair and started nodding my head in interest. At the front of forty or so onlookers, Kate Williamson lit up a slide full of handkerchiefs. Okay, I thought. The lecture is about handkerchiefs. Or textiles. Or could it be about nose blowing? Williamson was on to the importance of maple leaves in Japan before I could make up my mind.

Maple leaves segued into a conversation about moon-viewing parties, moon-viewing rooms and the moon in general. That was when I stopped trying to figure out what this soft-spoken woman in a kilt was talking about and decided just to listen.

A good decision, it turned out, because Williamson seemed to know a quite a bit about almost everything Japanese. With the flip of a slide, I learned a concise history of The Tale of Genji (the world’s oldest novel), the intricacies of kimono color combinations and that Williamson’s favorite is called cicada wings and pairs cedar brown with sky blue. I also learned about indigo dyeing, Okinawan fabrics, and the fashion potential contained in socks.

When the talk finished and Williamson began signing copies of her illustrated diary, A Year in Japan, I kicked myself for being late. Who knows what I missed? Discussions of dragons, plastic wrap or kabuki all seemed plausible. My disappointment ebbed, however, as I walked through the Japan C exhibit on my way downstairs. Examples from Williamson’s talk were all around me: geometric patterns inspired by nature; muted color combinations inherited from court ladies; the world’s best markers. I realized then that I could stroll through Japanese culture (albeit without Williamson’s insights and expertise) whenever I wanted and as long as I arrived before the end of this month, I could even be late.

Don't miss Dolls: From the Cute to the Grotesque: A lecture by Dr. Susan Napier this Thursday at the Felissimo Design House.

The Design Week Japan Launch Party was a huge success. If you couldn't make it, here's just a small tastes of what you missed. If you were there, this is your chance to see just how stunning you looked.

In attendance were staff from Felissimo headquarters in Kobe, and over 20 of the designers whose work are on display at Felissimo Design House now through November.

Click here to see the pictures.

When I got wind that there were free rice balls to be had at Felissimo last night, I promptly scooted over there. As a packed crowd of editors, buyers and other interested parties milled around under the giant collaged ball of Japanese innovation (worth a visit in its own right), highfalutin conversation about product design flowed as freely as the delicious appetizers.

Before my design ignorance was exposed, however, we were ushered upstairs for a talk about the thoughtful genesis of Japanese design. Too often products are viewed as just something shiny and pretty to be consumed, said journalist Julie Taraska and hauteGREEN co-producer/Design Within Reach PR manager Kimberly Oliver—the event’s organizers. The lack of discussion regarding the inspirations, intent, and design process was quickly amended as the five designers (Masmichi Udagawa, a co-founder of Antenna Design and 2008 National Design Award winner; Eric Chan, principal of ECCO Design; furniture designer Jeff Miller; textile artists Atsuyo et Akiko; and multidisciplinary designer Hideaki Matsui.) took the stage.

Our professors—the five designers who were either Japanese themselves or had worked extensively with Japanese companies—all spoke eloquently about the intellectual rigor it takes to come up with a product that is functional, useful and in some cases, benevolent.

Masmichi Udagawa, designer of the omnipresent MTA ticket kiosks, began by walking the audience through his thought process. He spoke of a desire to incorporate the realities of human behavior into his work and not just “guide people to do what we want them to do.” To illustrate his point he took the enthusiastic audience through a list of past examples he tried to model his design around: an ATM machine (scratched when he found out only 50 percent of New Yorkers have bank accounts); a soda machine (tossed because of the universal worry that no soda will appear after inserting your last dollar); a store (the winner because the experience allows you to survey the merchandise, check the price and then make a purchase.)

Engaging talks followed and culminated when the last speaker, Hideaki Matsui, showed the audience that design could do some good while still looking good. His interest and concern in the continued existence of landmines littering the landscapes of countries around the world prompted collaboration with the UN to create a bar of soap called Cleanup. Fashioned in the shape of a landmine, Matsui’s product creates a constant and powerful reminder about an important issue and made me really think for the first time about the power of design.

On my home, I paused by a table of portable ashtrays that are featured in Japan C’s exhibit. Before the evening’s talk, I merely snickered at the accompanying brochure that asked, “Smokers! Are you Carring your “Manner”?” But after my design education, I realized that these products, like everything featured in the Japan C exhibit, are the result of a thoughtful effort to help people solve everyday problems. The Japanese have so much to offer New Yorkers, I thought to myself.

And that’s not just the rice balls talking.

For photos of the Product Placement event, click here.

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

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.

Last week, the Japan Society brought 30 local teachers to the Japan C exhibit as part of their professional development course From Anime to Pokemon: Using Pop Culture to Teach about Japan.

Check out some pictures from the event.

Teachers that are interested in learning about visiting opportunities can contact Tara Hohenberger at 212-956-4438 ex. 111.

Monday, at the historic Felissimo Design House, was the opening reception for Japan C - the eleven week rolling exhibition of all things Japanese. Some luminaries were in attendance, such as:

Tobias Wong & Josee Lepage, the creative team that turned the townhouse into a giant origami sculpture for the exhibit.

Shinzi Katoh, the famous Japanese illustrator who designed the towels that Tara (from our office) is sooo in love with.

Taeko Baba, founder of New York-Tokyo.

Nora Abousteit, founder of BurdaStyle.com.

Bruce L'Orange, Director at Street Attack.

Felissimo Group's president Mr. Yazaki, who flew in from Kobe, Japan, and Felissimo New York Director Haruko Smith and her staff, who were all very happy, if a bit exhausted, from all the work.

In case you couldn't make it, here are the photos.

For those of you who keep wishing all the people would get out of the way so you can see the gorgeous displays & products here are some photos of the displays.

Be sure to check out the calendar for more events & if you want to get up-close and personal with some of the products, check out the online catalog.