Kawaii Crafting: Supercute Japanese-Inspired How-To Books

Kawaii is a term from Japanese pop culture that describes cuteness. It comes from the Japanese phrase kao hyushi, which refers to a glowing face; hence, many kawaii images are blushing. Smiling (and sometimes blushing) sushi, cats, tacos, cacti, and pineapples are very characteristic hypercute kawaii images. Cartoons like Hello Kitty and Pusheen would also be considered kawaii. Here are some books to immerse you in kawaii culture and help you create kawaii crafts and images.

Kawaii Craft Life is a multimedia craft book featuring cross stitch, embroidery, sewing and felt crafts. The patterns will help you make a variety of crafts from handy practical items, like coffee cozies, to fun decorative items like the rainbow plushie pin featured on the cover.

Learn how to sketch your own kawaii images with Kawaii Doodle Class. Step-by-step sketches help you move comfortably through the drawing process.  

Bake and decorate your baked goods with kawaii smiles following recipes from YouTube baking sensation Rachel Fong, opens a new window in Kawaii Sweet World. Try the blushing panda cake with Oreo ears!

Kawaii Polymer Clay Creations teaches you about polymer clay so you can mold your own kawaii figurines. Follow patterns for animal and food designs, and then learn to create your own designs!

Learn more about kawaii and other aspects of Japanese culture with the graphic novel and travel guide Cool Tokyo Guide.