Kokeshi dolls are hand-crafted japanese dolls. They come from the North-East of Japan and are traditionnally made out of wood. Kokeshi dolls are the typical souvenir travellers brought back from Japan.

Nowadays, japanese kids play with those dolls. But they are also a gift to someone loved or a good friend.

There’s a lot of kokeshi dolls but their original shape is cylindrical. They are made out of wood, painted of flowers and covered with lacquer.

Meanwhile, Maneki-neko is the white and red cat that you can easily find in asiatic shops and mangas. Those small cats always have a paw raised. The left one is supposed to attracyyt client and the right one the attract money.

Most of the times, this cat brings luck to his owner.

Even if they have traditionnally different purposes in Japan, those two figurines are used as decorations on desks and shelves in both the East and the West. For instance, kokeshi dolls inspired Wii’s characters called Mii and the Pokemon Meowth looks like Maneki-neko!

Have a look at Yoco’s dolls!