Studio Ghibli releases new Kiki's Delivery Service collection with Jiji as the star
Watercolour design recalls the talents of painter Ursula from the anime film.
Studio Ghibli's 1989 film Kiki's Delivery Service is all about a young witch stepping into her powers, but for many fans the titular star's popularity is often eclipsed by her co-star, a talking black cat called Jiji. This cheeky feline adds charm and humour to the storyline, and now he's bringing that same sense of whimsy to a new 'Kiki's Delivery Service Watercolour Flower' collection.
There are five products to collect in the range, and each one features a design that looks like it's been finished in pastel watercolours, perhaps by painter Ursula, who also appears in the film.
The series begins with the Square Pouch (2,860 yen [US$20.11]), which is the perfect size for carrying makeup and accessories.
The soft color scheme on the outside of the pouch contrasts with the inner fabric, which uses a Kiki's Delivery Service-inspired bordeaux hue to create a sophisticated, adult aesthetic.
▼ Inner pockets help to keep things neat…
▼…and it zips up securely with Kiki on the zipper pull.
▼ Next up, we have the Tissue Pouch (2,420 yen).
With a convenient front opening, this is a handy way to keep your tissues clean and easily accessible.
In addition to holding small tissue packs, the pouch has a zip section for carrying small essentials like medicine and lip balm.
▼ Now we move on to the Slim Pouch (2,420 yen).
The length of this product gives it extra versatility, so you can use it to store pens, brushes, combs, and long cosmetics items like mascara.
▼ Next, we have the Mirror (2,860 yen).
The convenient folded design makes this mirror convenient to store and carry, so you can use it at home or on the go.
▼ Finally, we have the Pass Case (3,080 yen).
Designed to hold travel cards and passes, this case comes with five pockets in total so you can store a lot within its slim shape.
Perhaps the sweetest element of the design is the gorgeous reel that attaches to the case, allowing you to keep it secure and easy to use when rushing to board public transport.
The collection is a beautiful homage to Kiki's Delivery Service and the sweet black cat who's so beloved by fans, and it can be purchased at Donguri Kyowakoku stores and online (links below) while stocks last.
Source: Donguri Kyowakoku
Top image: Donguri Kyowakoku
Insert images: Donguri Kyowakoku (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Japan Times
5 hours ago
- Japan Times
Studio Ghibli marks 40 years, but future looks uncertain
Japan's Studio Ghibli turns 40 this month with two Oscars and legions of fans young and old won over by its complex plots and fantastical hand-drawn animation. But the future is uncertain, with latest hit "The Boy and the Heron" likely — but not certainly — the final feature from celebrated co-founder Hayao Miyazaki, now 84. In March, the internet was flooded with pictures in Studio Ghibli's distinctively nostalgic style after the release of OpenAI's newest image generator — raising questions over copyright. The studio behind the Oscar-winning "Spirited Away" has become a cultural phenomenon since Miyazaki and the late Isao Takahata — he passed away in 2018 — established it in 1985. Its popularity has been fueled of late by a second Academy Award in 2024 for "The Boy and the Heron," starring Robert Pattinson, and by Netflix streaming Ghibli movies around the world. The newly opened Ghibli Park has also become a major tourist draw for central Japan's Aichi region. In addition to its museum in Mitaka, Tokyo, Studio Ghibli opened a theme park in Aichi Prefecture, in November 2022. | Lillian SUWANRUMPHA / AFP-JIJI Julia Santilli, a 26-year-old from Britain living in northern Japan, "fell in love with Ghibli" after watching the 2001 classic "Spirited Away" as a child. "I started collecting all the DVDs," she says. Ghibli stories are "very engaging and the artwork is stunning," says another fan, Margot Divall, 26. "I probably watch 'Spirited Away' about 10 times a year, still." Before Ghibli, most cartoons in Japan — known as anime — were made for children. But Miyazaki and Takahata, both from "the generation that knew war," included darker elements that appeal to adults, Miyazaki's son Goro says. "It's not all sweet — there's also a bitterness and things like that which are beautifully intertwined in the work," he adds, describing a "whiff of death" in the films. For younger people who grew up in time of peace, "it is impossible to create something with the same sense, approach and attitude," Goro says. Even "My Neighbor Totoro," with its cuddly forest creatures, is in some ways a "scary" movie that explores the fear of losing a sick mother, he explains. Susan Napier, a professor at Tufts University in the United States and author of "Miyazakiworld: A Life in Art," agrees. "In Ghibli, you have ambiguity, complexity and also a willingness to see that the darkness and light often go together" unlike good-versus-evil U.S. cartoons, she says. Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki, now 84, has stepped back a few times before returning with "The Boy and the Heron" which is likely to be his final feature. | AFP-JIJI The post-apocalyptic "Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind" — considered the first Ghibli film despite its release in 1984 — has no obvious villain, for example. Featuring an independent princess curious about giant insects and a poisonous forest, the film felt "so fresh" and a change from "a passive woman... having to be rescued," Napier says. Studio Ghibli films also depict a universe where humans connect deeply with nature and the spirit world. A case in point was 1997's "Princess Mononoke," distributed internationally by Disney. The tale of a girl raised by a wolf goddess in a forest threatened by humans is "a masterpiece — but a hard movie," Napier says. It's a "serious, dark and violent" film appreciated more by adults, which "was not what U.S. audiences had anticipated with a movie about a princess. "Ghibli films "have an environmentalist and animistic side, which I think is very appropriate for the contemporary world with climate change," Napier adds. Miyuki Yonemura, a professor at Japan's Senshu University who studies cultural theories on animation, says watching Ghibli movies is like reading literature. "That's why some children watch 'My Neighbor Totoro' 40 times," she says, adding that audiences "discover something new every time." With Takahata studying French literature at university and Miyazaki also reading voraciously, there are naturally French literature influences in Ghibli's works. | Thomas SAMSON / AFP-JIJI Miyazaki and Takahata could create imaginative worlds because of their openness to other cultures, Yonemura says. Foreign influences include writer Antoine de Saint-Exupery and animator Paul Grimault, both French, and Canadian artist Frederic Back, who won an Oscar for his animation "The Man Who Planted Trees." Takahata studying French literature at university "was a big factor," Yonemura says. "Both Miyazaki and Takahata read a lot," she adds. "That's a big reason why they excel at writing scripts and creating stories." Miyazaki has said he was inspired by several books for "Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind," including the 12th-century Japanese tale "The Lady who Loved Insects," and Greek mythology. Studio Ghibli will not be the same after Miyazaki stops creating animation, "unless similar talent emerges," Yonemura says. Miyazaki is "a fantastic artist with such a visual imagination," while both he and Takahata were "politically progressive," Napier says. "The more I study, the more I realize this was a unique cultural moment," she says. "It's so widely loved that I think it will carry on," says Ghibli fan Divall. "As long as it doesn't lose its beauty, as long as it carries on the amount of effort, care and love," she adds. Studio Ghibli has offices in western Tokyo. | AFP-JIJI Studio Ghibli's heavy hitters Here are the studio's top five films that have delighted fans over the decades: "Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind" (1984) Studio Ghibli was founded in 1985, but this post-apocalyptic story featuring a young, independent princess curious about giant insects is considered its first film. It was based on a comic-strip series that Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki wrote for a magazine targeted at anime fans. Set 1,000 years after a war that destroyed human civilization, the story takes place in a valley protected from toxic air emitted from poisonous forests. Miyazaki won critical acclaim and a cult following for the film about Nausicaa, who discovers the forests' secrets after getting embroiled in conflicts between countries trying to revive a lethal "giant warrior." "My Neighbor Totoro" (1988) This beloved Ghibli classic is set in the 1950s Japanese countryside where two young sisters with a sick mother move from the city. They encounter the cuddly yet mysterious forest spirit Totoro and Catbus, a 12-legged grinning cat with a hollow body in the form of a bus — two characters who have since become worldwide-known Studio Ghibli mascots. The film was also turned into a play for the first time by Britain's Royal Shakespeare Company in 2022. "Princess Mononoke" (1997) The tale of a girl raised by a wolf goddess in a forest threatened by humans was a smash hit in Japan and raised Miyazaki's profile internationally. A young prince on a journey to find a cure for his curse meets San, also known as Princess Mononoke — meaning a spirit or monster in Japanese. The prince sets out to find ways to avoid wars between destructive humans and animal gods, centered around the ultimate god which is nature itself. "Spirited Away" (2001) Miyazaki won his first Oscar with this film about a girl who gets lost in a mystical world of gods and spirits where she tries to save her parents, who are turned into pigs. In order to survive, 10-year-old Chihiro is told by a mysterious boy to get a job at an enormous Japanese bathhouse run by a witch. In a story infused with Japanese beliefs and traditions, Chihiro gains confidence through her work and solves the boy's curse before rescuing her parents. "The Boy and the Heron" (2023) Miyazaki's second Oscar-winning film — and likely the 84-year-old's last feature — follows a boy struggling to accept his new life after his mother dies in the haunting fire-bombing of Tokyo during World War II. Everything changes when he meets a talking heron and embarks on a journey to an alternate universe, shared by the living and the dead, to find his missing stepmother. In a documentary, Miyazaki, visibly affected by the 2018 death of Ghibli co-founder Isao Takahata, said the pair had had a "love-hate relationship" and that he had based the character of the grand-uncle on him.
SoraNews24
2 days ago
- SoraNews24
Starbucks Japan releases first-ever spicy Frappuccino for a limited time
Exclusive beverage designed to make you breathe fire like a dragon. Summers in Japan are incredibly hot and now they're set to get even hotter with Starbucks' first-ever spicy Frappuccino. There is reason behind this madness, with the chain aiming to deliver a 'stimulating zing' of heat to refresh you on an energy-zapping day, and it's being paired with the fruity sweetness of mango, the star ingredient at Starbucks this summer. Called the Hot Honey Oriental Mango & Tea Frappuccino, this beverage gets its heat from a special 'hot honey' sauce which, according to Starbucks, might just make you breathe fire like a dragon, creating a thrilling new Frappuccino experience unlike any before. The main body of the drink combines juicy mango pulp, fragrant jasmine tea, and mellow-sweet soy milk, which helps to fan the flames of the hot honey. Specially crafted to satisfy customers who love spicy foods, Starbucks says the honey will make you feel like your mouth is 'engulfed in flames' and it's best mixed throughout the entire beverage before drinking. The surprising harmony between the rich, sweet mango at the bottom of the cup and the spicy hot honey atop the whipped cream is said to be unexpectedly delightful, and as you continue to drink, the spiciness intensifies, so by the end you'll feel like you're breathing fire. It's so strong that the chain is even issuing warnings for customers to be aware of before ordering the Frappuccino: Spicy honey with strong heat is used as a topping. Please be careful when enjoying this product. Not recommended for those sensitive to spicy foods or for children in elementary school or younger. You cannot increase the amount of hot honey, but you can request less. The new Frappuccino will be on the menu from 6 June to 8 July in a Tall size only, priced at 761 yen (US$5.32) for takeout and 775 yen for dine-in. Those wanting a taste of mango without the heat won't be left out in the cold, though, as the regular Oriental Mango & Tea Frappuccino, which debuted on 28 May and will also be on the menu until 8 July, will satisfy your cravings. Source, images: Press release ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
SoraNews24
2 days ago
- SoraNews24
Burger King Japan adds a Pickleball Burger to the menu… but what's so pickleball about it?
A novel way to draw attention to a growing sport. On May 30, 2025, Burger King released a bold new menu item in Japan called the Pickleball Burger. There are a lot of surprising things about this new release, so we immediately headed out to try it when it debuted on 30 May. The first thing we noticed was the simplicity of the ingredients, with three flame-grilled beef patties sandwiched between patties of rice in place of buns. A number of fast food chains have become known for their rice-patty burgers, but sometimes they can have a hard and rough texture that detracts from the moist deliciousness of the grains. With that in mind, we set the bar low for this burger, but held out hope as it's been made in collaboration with Hachidaime Gihey, a long-established rice shop in Kyoto. At 1,790 yen (US$12.46), this is on the pricey end of the fast food spectrum, but it's a hefty burger, measuring close to 12 centimetres (4.7 inches) in diameter. The cross-section shows just how simple this burger is, with nothing but rice, beef and pickles (11 of them, to be exact) as a nod to pickleball, the racquet sport that inspired it. ▼ Burger King recently signed a sponsorship agreement with the Japan Pickleball Federation (PJF), hence the new burger. Taking a bite, we were amazed at how much flavour these simple ingredients delivered. Even the rice patty was fantastic, with the special blend of white rice and 'Kin no Ibuki', a brand of brown rice from Miyagi Prefecture, creating delicious mouthfuls of flavour. ▼ The rice patty keeps a nice, slightly grainy texture that's moist but not sticky or mushy. The seasoning consists simply of salt and pepper, which is a great way to enhance the taste of the rice and beef. With no sauce to get in the way, these two ingredients took centre stage on the palate, with bursts of crunchy, tangy pickles adding a fantastic contrast that had us going back for more after every mouthful. This is a burger that serves up a lot of flavour, and although it doesn't quite look like a pickleball, unless you see the grains as resembling the ball's many holes, it's a clever way to draw attention to the sport. It's only available for a limited time, though, so you'll want to get in soon to try it before it disappears from the menu, like the Kyoto Whopper that came before it. Photos©SoraNews24 ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter! [ Read in Japanese ]
