Review of Daiso, a Japanese Store in Federal Way, WA with Many Items Only $1.50

If you love Japanese products, gifts, teapots, etc then you may want to check out Daiso. It is a 100-yen store from Japan that has made its way to the US starting with Washington State and California. There are six stores in the United States as of this writing, with the largest being in Daly City, CA at 15,000 square feet. Daiso also has locations in Japan, Korea, Canada, and several other countries.

The Daiso I frequent opened in The Commons mall in Federal Way, WA (a city between Seattle and Tacoma) in September, 2006 with interesting and useful Japanese products stacked up high. Many of the products cost only $1.50 and some cost a little more. I noticed that slippers and pillows (such as decorative pillows and chair cushions) are currently a real deal at $2.00.

One of my favorite sections in Daiso, Federal Way is the pen, pencil, and stationary section. There are Japanese calligraphy pens, and calligraphy paper, plus mechanical pencils, packs of erasers that look like food, and pens of different sizes, shapes, and colors to choose from. The Japanese stationary is one of my favorite sections because there are many different Japanese designs to choose from and some have cute English sayings. I also found some art supplies like drawing paper, drawing pencils, and even Japanese clay and paints for a bargain.

Daiso is also a great place to buy Japanese gifts for family and friends. They have some very nice gift bags that are made out of Japanese washi paper. I have bought some gifts for people at Daiso such as teapots, teacups, and Japanese decorations. The little Zen gardens are cheaper than anywhere I've ever seen them and there are so many miniature items to decorate them with like bridges, Japanese shoes, animals, and buildings.

Some of the other products I saw and purchased at Daiso include green tea, origami, washi paper, dishes, kokeshi dolls, maneki neko (lucky cats), daruma dolls, toys, tools, plastic containers, Japanese stationary, slippers, gardening tools, and much more. I can't even begin to tell you how much Japanese stuff is in this store, you have to check it out for yourself. If you don't live in the Seattle area or San Francisco bay area, it is a possibility Daiso may open a store closer to you. According to Wikipedia, Daiso officials have planned for possibly 20 or more Daiso stores to open in the United States.

Other Daiso locations in the United States besides Federal Way include Alderwood Mall in Lynwood, Wa, South Hill Mall in Puyallup, Wa, Serramonte in Daly City, Ca, West Lake Center in Seattle, Wa, and Bellis Fair Mall in Bellingham, Wa. In Canada, there is a big Daiso in Aberdeen Center in Richmond, B.C.