If you’ve browsed our website, you’ve probably seen the “phone straps” we sell, which are popular in Japan as stylish attachments for your cell phone, although you can attach them to a camera, Sony PSP or PS Vita, Nintendo 3DS or even your keys. Well, did you know these phone straps were actually an updated form of Japanese art going back to the 17th century? Since kimonos have no pockets, men in the Edo Period needed a way to carry their money and other belongings, and they started using small cloth pouches with drawstrings and intricately carved figures called 根付 netsuke (pronounced nets-keh) on the ends of the strings. The original netsuke were fine works of hand-carved art, portraying turtles and Daruma and other talismans of good luck, and the concept was updated when cell phones came along. In addition to the netsuke straps we carry from Japan, we stock the full line of Poddities straps and strap adapters for iPhone 5, which allows you to securely attach an adapter for phone straps so you can use any Japan phone strap you want. All tools are included, and you can return the phone to its original state at any time.
We love “netsuke,” the cute phone straps you see in Japan.
