My first Japanese mooks (Picture Heavy!)

Boutique and designer brands in Japan like to release a quality glossy spread they call "mook" (magazine + book) with lots of info and pictures, and as incentive they throw in a decent-looking "freebie". These mooks, usually around 1,300-1,600yen each copy, aren't regularly published periodicals. In my opinion, they seem to be what you would call glorified catalogues. I honestly didn't buy the below mooks for what they are, so really I bought whatever that came with the mooks (I guess it's the same for most people?). Yes, I am turning into an even bigger sucker as I would never pay a single penny for any catalogue in the states :X Hopefully the mooks are worth it for those who actually follow these boutique/designer brands as they are little more than picture books for me.

Japanese periodical magazines regularly come with freebies too, good thing they are about half the price of the mooks, around 550-750yen each copy. I really hope these magazines have more worth while contents to make their freebies truly "free." We'll see about that, I have my eyes on a few...

Anyway, I've been reading about the mooks and magazines online, mostly from Rouge Deluxe, and although many look so tempting with their cute and adorable freebies (or rather, the non-freebie selling point), I'd been successfully refrained because it just didn't make sense to pay a boat load to have them sent overseas to the states. But now that I'm here, I see them everywhere at the conbinis, bookstores, and magazine stands. And let's just say they're thismuch harder to resist when they're right in front of you no matter where you turn. So yes, that was how I ended up with the 4 mooks below.

Released September 21 - Mary Quant 40th Anniversary in Japan Mook.

I walk by the Mary Quant boutique all the freakin' time at the Yokohama Station, and while the daisy logo motif is super cute, I wasn't going to shell out some 2,000-4,000yen for simple pouches. And honestly, most of the pouches aren't that much better than the ones usually included in the common GWP promotions from Lancome, Clinique, Estee Lauder, et al., so the prices for the Mary Quant pouches seem totally absurd to me. But of course, that's how a brand markets itself...

Didn't stop me from being curious though :P And I definitely won't deny the freebie tote that comes with the mook is the driving force behind this purchasing decision ^.^ Who could resist such a cute tote bag and daisy accessory?

The tote has the signature Mary Quant print of the daisy on various cosmetics items. It is cotton canvas, though on the softer side, and measures 31.5(height) x 43(length) x 12cm(width).

There are no zipper or snap button enclosures but there is 1 pocket inside, barely visible from my picture...sorry!

A close up of the print shows gold glitter on the pink coloring, really cute!

The white daisy accessory is on a metal ball chain. Over all, the tote feels somewhat substantial and well made. The daisy accessory is a nice touch and together, I do think they are worth the price of the mook. Given the retails of other Mary Quant accessories, I would much rather buy these :P

Below are some highlights from the mook itself. These pictures were not taken in the order of the pages as I jumped back and forth. It seems many of Mary Quant's fashion designs are very mod (well duh, she's famous from the 60's!). Most are in black and white with stripes, checkers, plaids and other geometric prints. The only flowery touch is her signature daisy. I guess I do like these designs and would definitely wear them for their understated chic and easy pairing. You can check out more of Mary Quant's designs via the Mary Quant Online Shop (in Japanese).

Left column, 3rd from top: love this stripey one-piece with the wide black band bottom, 2 pockets and the matching stripey daisy motif at the bottom left.

Dead center: super cute babydoll one piece with puffy short sleeves and again the daisy motif in black at the bottom left.

Dead center: adore the checkered one piece with daisies across the chest.

Dead center: would totally wear this poncho with tied tassels.

Cute small pouches.

I very tempted to buy these finishing powders at the urging of my other hobby. At 3,675yen each they seem to be in line with the rest of the Japanese mid-range makeup world, namely Maquillage and friends.

But 3,150-3,570 for a strap seems a bit ridiculous to me.

Adorable wallets.

Paying more for a nice handbag, however, seems much more reasonable.

Released September 17 - Jill Stuart 世界中が We Love Jill Mook. I don't have pictures of this yet because it's with my sister - she bought it for me ^.^ That said, this was a popular mook so there are other blogs with tons of pictures of this mook already. See Rouge Deluxeand A Dream of Tokyo's posts for pictures and details of this mook and its attached freebie. I will post my pictures later, though of course they will be late and redundant. Oh well...

Released August 26 - Cath Kidston 2010 Autumn & Winter Fly to the UK Mook.

Bought this along with the 2010 Spring & Summer Hello from London edition because Amazon Japan is still stocking both. Why the hell not, right?

2010 Spring & Summer Hello from London versus 2010 Autumn & Winter Fly to the UK

Normally the frilly flowery prints are so not my type, but the boxes the mooks came in are in polka dots. If you know me in person, you'd know that I'm a total sucker for anything in polka dots.

The mook comes with a set of 2 totes, both are made of cotton canvas that is a bit thinner and softer than the Mary Quant tote above. So for daily use they should be okay, but I wouldn't load them up with heavy groceries or textbooks.

The small one measures 17.5(height) x 25(length) x 9cm(width).

There are no pockets inside and no enclosures either.

The bigger tote measures 30(height) x 41(length) x 14cm(width).

It does have an outer pocket with a small velcro closure.

No pockets inside though.

Small versus big tote.

Released March 19 - Cath Kidston 2010 Spring & Summer Hello from London Mook.

I like the freebies from this edition much better, and not just because this flower print is more elegant and easier to stomach. Between these 2 mooks, I personally could do without the Autumn & Winter edition. Having extra totes never hurts, but if I have to choose, I'd definitely pick the Spring & Summer edition over this newer Autumn & Winter edition. If you have access to this earlier edition and not having to pay an arm or a leg, I would definitely recommend it.

This freebie is a set of nicely sized makeup/toiletry/multi-purpose bag measuring 15.5(height) x 22.5(length) x 5cm(width), a mirror, and a tissue case. The bag and tissue case are made of very sturdy polyester, though they feel a tad rough to the touch. In any case, I'd rather they be rough and substantial versus smooth and falls apart easily. The craftsmanship looks solid too, even better than the 2 totes set in the Autumn & Winter edition.

The best part, for me at least, is the inner polyester lining. It is a to-die-for pale sky blue with white polka dots print. Hooray for polka dots xD *happy dance*

The mirror is pretty with the same print on the front and "Cath Kidston" written on the back. As you can see it's bigger than my hand!

The multi-purpose bag has many pockets inside and I would imagine it is excellent for travel.

Even the tissue case has polka dots lining! *squeals*

I'm not going to go into details of the contents of either Cath Kidston mooks because, you guessed it, it's just a cataloging of items. Visit Cath Kidston UK-US or Cath Kidston Japanwebsites of you want to see more.

In conclusion, I would say the Mary Quant and the Cath Kidston 2010 Spring & Summer Hello from London mooks are much better an investment, unless you're a Cath Kidston fan or like to collect cotton canvas tote bags. I don't regret my purchase of the Cath Kidston 2010 Autumn & Winter Fly to the UK mook, but I don't love those 2 totes either. Oh well...