How many of these plushies do you own?
Cover photo: Raffles City Shopping Mall
We speak to Craftholic designer, Ikuko Yamamoto, about her best-selling Japanese toys and plushies.
A special illustration drawn exclusively for Weekender.
Age doesn’t really matter
Craftholic characters transcend all ages, as people of all ages love the cuddly characters.The dolls have also been used as a therapeutic tool for expression with autistic children, and some couples treat their collection like children.
2017 will be an exciting year
Besides the recent Craftholic cafe pop-up in Singapore, there will be a permanent cafe launching in Japan soon. Plus, the brand will be more focused on fashion and beauty products, like makeup and accessories.
How Craftholic characters are birthed
Each character is unique and they already take on a personality as early as when they are on the sketchpad. But don’t ask Yamamoto what her favourite character is, because all of her designs are like her kodomo (children in Japanese) and she loves them all equally.
An unlikely singaporean mascot
If there were a Craftholic character inspired by Singapore, it would probably have a chilli crab or merlion print on it!
A version of this article appeared in the print edition of Weekender, Issue 167, December 9 – December 22, 2016, with the headline ‘Building an Empire of Adorable’.
ADVERTISEMENTS