San Francisco is a city full of character. I noticed there are lots of characters are all around…read moreSan Francisco all four seasons. Then there are characters on social media without any character being performative in SF at the restaurants and public spaces. It's interesting to see so many characters all over the city especially in the Summer time . There is one place which has lots of stuffed characters ( not from eating food) at a mall in SF. It's at the Japan Center Mall in Japantown of San Francisco and it's called Amiko. On a Japantown stroll I landed at Japan Center Mall West and entered Amiko. Inside you will see some interesting stuffed characters and other items usually from the land of the rising sun. You will also find different characters to fill a public trinket box. Inside you will find shirts and bags. You will also find hats and bracelets. This place has blind boxes and a Kawaii vibe. Amiko has a lots of character. Japantown has lots of good places to go and lots of places to eat and "shop" like getting some sushi with Tonkatsu the Japanese fried "pork chop" and then go to Amiko and see a stuffed bunnies that don't "hop" and grabbing an ice dessert treat with a cherry on "top" Go on a stroll in Japantown also known as a "crawl "you see lots of characters in SF during all four seasons Winter, Spring , Summer and "Fall" you will also see lots of stuffed characters and it's not from eating its seeing a stuffed character "doll"and it all takes place at the "Japan Center Mall"

I've been looking for Smiski and didn't want to risk buying a fake online, so I checked out…read moreJapantown. A few shops were sold out, but I eventually found some at this store. All Smiski items come in blind boxes. I chose the "Let's Exercise" series and ended up getting the Balance one. I also picked up a strap blind box and got a secret, which was a nice surprise. Customer service was great, and the prices were decent. This was my first time buying Smiski, glad I was able to find them here. :)

This is a very cute store for Sanrio stuffs , Korean cosmetic and skin care , cute stationary ,…read morehair accessories, dolls and collectibles. I love to browse around and update myself with the new products they carry . It is located inside the Japan town of San Francisco. Parking is hard so I usually take the bus or uber there. I appreciate the cleanliness of the store and hospitality of the staffs . Each time I find some new and cute items, it makes my day even it may be window shopping. This is a great place to find a birthday present or something cute for special occasions. Very nice and in expensive Korean skin care and make up as well . Don't miss this store whenever you are in the neighborhood.

I feel like Fanloli is the chain of cute items and Asian cosmetics that is filling the gap that…read moreShibuyaLa serves to fill in SoCal. Anyways, every time I've gone to SF Japantown this shop always is filled with people and I can see why. There's a good amount of cute goods here including blind boxes. Lots of Sanrio and San-X goods, as well as accessories and some cosmetics as well. However make sure to double check if the goods are bootleg are not since some items look of dubious quality...

I have shopped here many times, and will continue to do so because it is such a lovely shop with a…read moregreat selection of gifts, and I love supporting a local business. I totally understand the return policy and the fact that they don't want you taking photos so you can find it cheaper elsewhere. Are the things more expensive than Amazon? Of course! But they have put in the effort of having a charming store where I can find all kinds of great gifts, so I am happy to pay up. I don't always know what I want to buy for someone until I see it, and I really appreciate the ability to browse in person. Our son always buys gifts here for his host families when he travels, and we take all of our SF visitors here too and they always find something great. They have such an eclectic and fun inventory!

Terrible service! We purchased a portable karaoke set for $76 and found the exact same one that…read moreday for $18 online found here: Retro Karaoke When we tried to return it less than 24 hours after purchase, we were told store credit only, no refunds! There is no signage in the store or on the receipt regarding this policy. We were told we would have to speak with the owner the next day. When we went back the following day, the woman who claimed to be the owner pointed to an outdated, handwritten "HOLIDAY POLICY 2024". I told her that shouldn't apply to this purchase and it's disgraceful to be charging 4X the price and not be willing to refund. I was told that's the price you pay for being able to "touch the items" vs online purchases and she refused to budge on the store credit. DO NOT SHOP HERE! Attached is a photo which discredit's the shop's response and shows both the $76 charge and "outdated holiday return policy".

Another great little gift/souvenir shop in the area with amazing high quality products, a lot from…read morelocal artists or small businesses. I've bought gifts here for others, as well as little gifts for myself because I wanted to treat myself. There's a wide selection of things: puzzles, socks, pins, jewelry, incense, candles, hand creams.... even more than I can remember. Prices range all over but you're supporting a small local business, local artists, and the quality is excellent. Service was friendly and helpful and she volunteered up some information on the items I was purchasing. Definitely a great shop and asset to the block. You can't go wrong if you're looking for gifts for others or yourself.

I found out the earrings I've been buying here for $30+ is less than $10 from amazon. Exact same…read morepair and quality that I've been buying from this place for years at. I was told that they were hand made by a local artist but instead it was actually from amazon where I can get next day shipping. Explains why they break so easily, I do not recommend a place thats ups their price 3-5x and lies to their customers about where they come from 1 star is generous for the amount of disappointment i feel and amount of money i spent :(

San Francisco is a city full of twist and turns like Lombard street . The crookedest street in…read moreworld of course is in Vermont ( not the state) street in San Francisco. When it comes to art work in the city some art creations comes in a variety of shapes and forms and have so many multidimensional twists. Hand made art can be explored in different neighborhoods in San Francisco through canvases in the galleries and murals on the walls of the city streets. In Japantown there is a place where art is made on paper and with paper and you can create almost any work of art from plants , flowers and also animals like birds and tigers through the art of origami. This place is located on Buchanan Mall in Japantown in San Francisco and it's called Paper Tree. On a Spring stroll around Japantown in San Francisco there is a place to not only learn about the art of origami but also get the art supplies like origami paper to make the pieces of art. You will find inside lots books about origami along with displays of some of the most amazing art work. Komo was very helpful and gave me a lesson about the origami art sculptures displayed inside Paper Tree. This place is so inspirational origami will become my new hobby. In the month of August every year Paper Tree host the Origami Palooza in San Francisco Japantown. Paper Tree have classes to teach and "train " how to make an origami "Crane" and you can also take flight and make a "paper plane "origami is a fun hobby to stay focus and self "entertain" Come to Paper Tree and book a "session" to learn origami and make paper shapes in the third "dimension "and create animals and plants and your own character "invention "and late August in Japantown they host Origami Palooza an origami "convention"

Paper Tree is a family owned arts and crafts store that specializes in origami paper and the store…read moreis located in Japan Center in San Francisco's Japantown. The store was founded in 1968 and is the second oldest business in Japantown. Currently the grandchildren and great-grandchildren of the original co-founder, Nobuo Mihara, continue to run the store. [Parking]: There are two parking garages within a few blocks away from the store - The Main Garage (1610 Geary Boulevard) and The Fillmore Annex Garage (1650 Fillmore Street). Parking rate = $5 per hour from 12 PM to 6 PM and $3 per hour outside of those hours. I got lucky and was able to find metered parking spots near the intersection of Buchanan St and Sutter St (free on Sunday). [What to Expect]: The store has a really large selection of origami paper. In addition, it also carries 3D / 2D stickers, classic Japanese art prints, noshi envelopes, handcrafted pressed-flower cards, adult anime T-shirts, coloring / origami books, socks, stationery, fabrics for furoshiki, etc. There is also a sign stating "Beware of the Dog" with Moira (a 2-year old Irish Wolfhound) hanging out at the store. [Conclusion]: I am not sure if this shop is worth driving out of the way just to check it out unless you are a passionate origami enthusiast, but it is worth stopping by if you are already in San Francisco's Japantown. P.S. - Paper Tree used to have a sister store in Berkeley called Miki's Paper which focused on paper gallery and Japanese papers, but the shop closed after COVID.

A MUST for all cat lovers or if you just love the cute and quirky. Shop is filled to the brim with…read morecat themed goods and gifts, amongst other fun gifts and items. There's accessories like little pouches, hair clips, stationery, and bigger things like posters, plushies, and apparel. They also have a lot of items from local and small artists. There's a cute line of goods themed after Japantown and San Francisco, great for souvenirs! Staff is super friendly and informative too. Definitely stop by to peruse their items. My boyfriend was able to get a super affordable second hand cat print jinbei for around $30-ish when it could have easily been more than double the price. A stop each time if we're able to catch them before they close.

"We missed you," hissed the lovecats"…read more Fog Cats and Yanchanko on Polk street is a tiny world dedicated to all things feline. Across the street from the Japantown mall, this place is run by friendly people who understand that cats are worthy of adoration: local illustrators, designers and artists with a deep affection for all things cat related. Inside we found cat pottery, homewares, enamel pins, wax seals, rubber stamps, art prints, tote bags, and stationery items that are dangerously easy to justify purchasing. It's easy to say, I don't need another mug, but then here feel the pull to adopt one anyway. Closed on Tuesday and Wednesday for a long nap, this cute shop deserves a visit. My wallet will forgive me, eventually.

Very cute store! I…read morediscovered this store on TikTok. I was drawn to the Miffy items they had for purchase. I bought a Miffy postcard for my friend which she loved! The employees were very friendly! Overall, very cute, would visit again :)

Suuuuuch a cute store!! Was so happy to stumble upon this store. Big fan of Miffy & all the cute…read moretrinkets. There's a wide selection of little stuffed animals, stickers, postcards, hair clips, perfume, Baggu, lighters, and other fun knick knacks. Service is fantastic, the workers here are great. I will say, it is quite pricey (for example, $30 hair clips & $25 keychains), so definitely somewhere I'd go to splurge versus anything you really need. Overall, a fun store!

We go to Kit Tea Cafe down the Street and stumbled upon this GEM of a Store. Nice and welcoming…read moreEmployee was on staff and I felt the need to ask Him to compliment the Owner & offered our thanks for such a clean ambiance. It is "meticulously" clean and well stocked with blind boxes, collectibles and very creatively selected children's activity/reading books. A lot of bravery goes into the ownership and this is a Store I pray gets what it needs Monthly. We are finding items that come from Japan and aren't easy to acquire here. Wonderful stock of keychains/bag charms/pins as well, left with some great items and can't wait to come back soon!

Uniko is a shop with stationary items like pens, stickers, jewelry, and cards. The card selection…read morewas pretty cute. Many of them had puns. They also have a good selection of blind boxes including Smitskis!