Christmas comes to Cutenekko's House!

Christmas is a holiday which I love very much; however, as I am in Japan and far away from family and friends, I feel pangs of loneliness, much more than during other times of the year. So, how to make my home feel warm inside and more like Xmas in Canada? Get a tree!

My friend and I went to Nitori, which is a furniture/ household goods chain store. After pouring over the trees on sale, we selected a small, 125 cm tree. I then picked up a box of decorations for ¥499 ($5).

I spent about 50 minutes setting up the tree and decorating the house. I think the results are pretty festive:

My tree:

The tree alone cost $10.

Close up detail (top):

thick ribbon $1, red bows $1, other ornaments came in a package for $5.

More detail (bottom):

This tree has two distinct and very Japanese features. Let's take a look!

a sushi roll! ^_^

I  won this playing a game at a sushi shop. 

Sala from Gundam! ^o^

The total cost of this tree, including all the decorations: $17 (¥1,700). I like frugal living. ^_^

After that, it was off to the dollar store to find more ornaments and decorations for the apartment.

The table centerpiece: 

If you have been following my blog since Thailand, you'll remember my seashell dish....it's been accented for Christmas:

Xmas placemats were ¥299 each at Nitori

I'm a huge fan of candles, so when I saw these two candle holders at the dollar store, I couldn't resist. 

Candle holders & holly ornament -- each cost $1.

I also got a few mini-wreaths, which I hung on some doorknobs around the house. Here's one:

It cost ¥100 ($1)

The tree and decorations help me feel less homesick at this time of the year. Also, I wanted to dispel the myth that Japan is so expensive. There are many frugal shopping options here.


~ Information ~ 

Nitori is a very popular shop to buy furniture and household decorations. HERE is the website. They are much cheaper than Ikea. 

Xmas trees at Nitori range from ¥700 to ¥3,999 ($7 ~ $40).

Daiso ¥100 Shop is one of my favorite stores. Everything in the shop is $1. They have a big selection of Xmas decorations. Daiso company site is HERE. Their online shop is HERE. 

Daiso also exists in Thailand! Click here to visit the Thai website.