Latest news with #BigTotoro
SoraNews24
26-06-2025
- Entertainment
- SoraNews24
Beautiful forest-style Studio Ghibli specialty shop reopens at Tokyo Skytree this summer
Catbus and multiple Totoros getting ready to receive guests once again. There's more to do at the Tokyo Skytree than take the elevator up to the top of Japan's tallest spire. The Solamachi entertainment complex at the foot of the tower has an aquarium, a planetarium, and a wide variety of restaurants and specialty shops, and one of those shops that's opening soon is going to be very special. Donguri Kyowakoku boasts the biggest selection of Studio Ghibli anime merchandise you'll find anywhere in Japan, with several items exclusive to the chain. With Ghibli's movies having built up a global fanbase, Donguri Kyowakoku often has branches in spots that see a lot of international travelers passing through, and until recently the Skytree was one of them. However, this past spring the Solamachi Donguri Kyowakoku closed down for renovations. The work is nearing it's completion, though, and not only will the shop be open and ready to receive customers again this summer, it'll look cooler than ever too! With its name translating to 'Acorn Republic,' most Donguri Kyowakoku stores have a woody look to their interiors. The renovated Skytree branch, though, is really committed to this theming. One section of the store will look like a leafy forest, and even feature a special flooring meant to simulate the sensation of walking across soft-packed earth. Waiting among the trees will be a jumbo-sized Catbus, and if you follow the path the Small and Medium Totoros are on, you'll find their Big Totoro brethren doing what he does best: taking a very cozy-looking nap. The designers say that another part of the store will have the atmosphere of a cottage outfitted with antique furniture and include a mysterious array of vials and flasks, akin to what you'd see in a witch's home laboratory. The Skytree is located in Tokyo's Shitamachi district, which was the busiest and most bustling part of the city during the Edo period (1603-1868). So while they're not exclusive to this particular Donguri Kyowakoku branch, you can the store to be well-stocked with Ghibli items that have a traditional Japanese vibe, like the Totoro folding fan and tenugui towel/tapestry seen below. Donguri Kyowakoku's Skytree branch's grand reopening will take place on July 11. And if you're looking for more sky-related travel destinations in Japan, we've got a whole bunch of them right here. Shop information Donguri Kyowakoku (Tokyo Skytree Solamachi branch) / どんぐり共和国（東京スカイツリータウン・ソラマチ店） Address: Tokyo-to, Sumida-ku, Oshiage-1-12, Tokyo Skytree Solamachi East Yard 2nd floor 東京都墨田区押上1-1-2 東京スカイツリータウン・ソラマチ イーストヤード2F Open 10 a.m-9 p.m. Source: PR Times Top image: Studio Ghibli Insert images: PR Times ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
SoraNews24
23-06-2025
- Entertainment
- SoraNews24
Transforming Totoro neck pillow plushies turn travel naps into Ghibli cuddle sessions【Photos】
Totoros Big and Medium are ready to support your neck and warm your heart. A neck pillow is a very handy thing to have if you're traveling to or around Japan. It's a long flight to the country from many other nations, and if you've got a long-haul express train or highway bus ride making up part of your Japan trip itinerary, there are going to be plenty of opportunities to catch a few Zs while in transit from one town to another. And if you'd like your handy neck pillow to also be an adorable travel companion, those are both roles that Totoro is ready to fill. Part of Studio Ghibli specialty store Donguri Kyowakoku's travel products lineup, the Totoro Neck Pillow folds up into a cute plushie cushion when it's in standby mode. Undo the snap strap, though, and it quickly converts into a soft but supportive neck pillow, with the Totoro multiplying into several anime forest spirits on the fabric pattern. The appeal of this bead-filled pillow goes beyond its good looks, too, as it also has a hood built in, giving you a little extra privacy and also shading you from ambient light, helping you relax and doze off even if it's not lights-out in the vehicle you're traveling in. In addition to the best-known gray 'Big Totoro,' there's also a blue 'Medium Totoro' design. The Big Totoro and Medium Totoro names, though, are simply reflections of the specific My Neighbor Totoro characters that inspired their visual designs, as both pillows are the same size, 35 centimeters (13.8 inches) across. They're also identically priced at 3,080 yen (US$21), recently restocked and available through the Donguri Kyowakoku online store here, so you can have yours in plenty of time for the debut of Tokyo's new sleeper trains. Source: Donguri Kyowakoku Featured image: Donguri Kyowakoku Top image: Donguri Kyowakoku Insert images: Donguri Kyowakoku (1, 2) ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
SoraNews24
31-05-2025
- Entertainment
- SoraNews24
Totoro Mini Pouches are enormously cute【Photos】
Big Mini and Medium Mini Ghibli pouches are like little functional plushies. In laymen conversations, the name 'Totoro' tends to get tossed around to refer to this guy. But as educated anime zoologists know, the gray forest spirit indicated by the arrow in the above image is just one of three distinct Totoros. Technically, he's the 'Big Totoro,' not to be confused with the blue 'Medium Totoro' or white 'Small Totoro.' So it is, arguably, just a bit confusing that Studio Ghibli specialty shop Donguri Kyowakoku is now offering a 'Big Totoro Mini Pouch,' but any extra effort our brains need to parse that description is more than offset by the joy the design gives our hearts. The zippered pouch is part of what Donguri Kyowakoku calls its wazakka line, with wazakka loosely translating to 'Japanese-style housewares and accessories.' The rustic, course-touch fabric is meant to evoke traditional Japanese textiles, and the designers say the pouch is especially well-suited to stuffing in the sleeve of your kimono to store important stuff as you head out to a summer festival, though with it looking this adorable, there's never really a bad time to use it. And don't worry, they made sure to include the Big Totoro's tail too. Of course, the Big Totoro Mini Pouch name implies the exitance of other-size Totoro Mini Pouches, and sure enough, there's one for the Medium Totoro too! Though the big gray guy is the most famous Totoro, you could argue that the Medium Totoro is the more appropriate muse for a pouch, since in the anime he's often depicted carrying around a sack of acorns, though that isn't part of the pouch's design. Despite their 'Big' and 'Medium' names, though, both Mini Pouches are identically sized, at 10 centimeters (3.9 inches) in height and 90 centimeters across. They're also priced the same, at 1,980 yen (US$13.65) and share the same style of leafy zipper pull. Both the Big and Medium Totoro Mini Pouches are available now thanks to a restock, but oddly enough there doesn't seem to be a Small Totoro Mini Pouch available. Maybe it's coming soon, but for the time being the Big Totoro pouch can be ordered through the Donguri Kyowakoku online shop here, and the Medium one here. Source: Donguri Kyowakoku Top image: Donguri Kyowakoku Insert images: Studio Ghibli (edited by SoraNews24), Donguri Kyowakoku (1, 2) ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
SoraNews24
04-05-2025
- Entertainment
- SoraNews24
Have a cool summer, say Totoro and No Face with Ghibli towel-type pillowcases【Photos】
Characters from My Neighbor Totoro, Spirited Away, and Kiki's Delivery Service want to help keep you cozy on hot summer nights. 'Have a cool summer!' It's really not the deepest sentiment, but hey, what else are you supposed to write when you're about to go on summer break and suddenly asked to sign a casual-acquaintance classmate's yearbook? For generations, it's been a go-to phrase for cordial, noncommittal well-wishing, even if it's not a particularly personalized piece of prose. However, 'Have a cool summer' takes on an added joyous significance when it's the unspoken message from Totoro. With the start of summer coming up fast, Studio Ghibli specialty shop Donguri Kyowakoku is standing by with its Towel Pillow Cover series, featuring characters from anime classics My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, and Spirited Away. Starting with the Totoro designs, there are three to choose from, with the first showing the Big Totoro on one side, and the Small Totoro on the other, with a group of Soot Sprites hanging out with them. Early summer in Japan is marked by frequent rain showers, which makes not only the motif on the above pillow appropriate, and the high humidity that continues for the entire season is what inspires the material choice. Made of a stretchy, 95-percent cotton, 5-percent polyurethane blend, the terrycloth-like Towel Pillow Cover are invitingly soft, but also breathable and absorbent, helping reduce sweating while you sleep and also soaking up any perspiration your head still needs to produce. They're essentially pillowcase counterparts to the Totoro and Catbus towelket blankets we looked at a while back. Ah, but what about the Medium Totoro, the mid-sized blue forest spirit? Don't worry, here's present and accounted for too in a patterned pillowcase. The gray Totoro pattern cover is actually a bit of a conversation piece/debate prompt. From the color, you might assume that it's depicting the Big Totoro, and the chubbier proportions also align with the largest-size version of the creature. Even Donguri Kyowakoku itself designates it the 'Big Totoro Silhouette' pillow cover. However, if you look closely, you'll see that these gray Totoros only have three markings on their chest, like the Medium Totoro, and not the more numerous marks the Big Totoro is usually depicted with. ▼ Both cases have 'My Neighbor Totoro' written on their reverse sides. Also here to help you stay cool as you sleep is Spirited Away's No Face, flanked by Soot Sprites and with the 油 emblem of the Aburaya bathhouse of the gods… …and his travel companions mouse-form Boh and Yu-Bird on the other side. Finally, there are two Kiki's Delivery Service Towel Pillow Covers… …with black cat Jiji representing the charter cast, though the sign little witch Kiki hands up outside the bakery she runs her courier enterprise from is shown too. The second pillowcase, though, is all Jiji. Donguri Kyowakoku lists all of the pillowcases as 'for adult-use,' but that's a reference to their size, not an indication that they're inappropriate for young children, as they're for use with pillows 63 centimeters (24.8 inches) in length. Priced at 2,200 yen (US$15.15) each, the whole lineup is available through the Donguri Kyowakoku online store here. Source: Donguri Kyowakoku Top image: Donguri Kyowakoku Insert images: Donguri Kyowakoku (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6) ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
