konbini toy /modular doll's house filter

March 28, 2006 4:31 AM

When I visited Japan two years ago, some konbini stores sold boxes with toys that contained a room with furnishings. More rooms could be interconnected to a complete house. I still kick myself on a daily basis for not buying them then and there. Can they be found for sale online?

In a way they were the same as cubefigures.com, the difference was that the rooms had different sizes and the rendering was highly detailed and realistic. If I'm not mistaken the series represented different era's in Japanese history. If you can't find any sources online but know what I'm talking about, still let me know, I will try to contact the companies directly. If you know about modular doll's houses other than the ones I mentioned, also let me know please.

posted by ouke to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (6 answers total)

I think I've seen something matching your description in the physical store of Kawaii Gifts, though I don't see it on their website. They might be able to help you out.

I also don't see the exact rooms you described on the Jbox site, but it might be worth a shot to send them an email and see if they know what you're talking about. They have the best selection of Japanese food/furniture miniatures on the internet.
posted by Alison at 5:20 AM on March 28, 2006

I have seen those types of kits in Taipei as well, in various bookstores, if that helps. Never seen them online.
posted by sudasana at 6:52 AM on March 28, 2006

I think I've seen these as well - I'm pretty sure that the same company also made highly detailed miniature sets of groceries (including a tiny Kewpie Mayonnaise bottle and a loaf of bread), and different sets of restaurant meals. I found a bunch of these at my local asian market, but I think I also saw them on Jbox once upon a time.

Actually, I just found a few kitchen/other sets on jBox - check it out. Is this the kind of stuff you're looking for?
posted by sluggo at 7:12 AM on March 28, 2006

The word you probably want to be searching for is "rement" or "re-ment" - they're popular with doll (blythe/pullip) collectors (for obvious reasons).

I've also seen some at Kid Robot, and I've read about girls who've found them in malls. And I've seen them in San Francisco's Japantown.
posted by birdie birdington at 9:30 AM on March 28, 2006

Best answer: I'm not sure if Re-ment is what you're looking for, because those are only accessories and furniture, not house rooms. However, if you like tiny toys, they are a must.
Mega House is a similar brand.

Here are other sites that sell Rement and Mega House:
Hobby Link Japan, FreeBento.

The Trading Spaces series sound a lot like those you describe.

As birdie mentioned, doll collector sites are good places to find these mini toys. I found these in the Pinky: St forum (link goes to an accessory thread). Many members on this forum sell these accessories.
posted by clearlydemon at 11:43 AM on March 28, 2006

Response by poster: Thanks so much everybody for the beautiful linkage. I placed my rement kitchen/food orders and can't wait till they come in. Clearlydemon: your Trading Spaces comes closest to what I was looking for in a doll's house kind of way. I will try to order them also. I'm not quite there yet in finding the original rooms I saw before, but I found the email address of the people I met back in tokyo with that awesome collection.

If you found this question while searching 'ask.metafilter' these toys are called shokugan. Google this and you'll be on your way.
posted by ouke at 1:42 AM on March 29, 2006 [1 favorite]