I just came back from a window shopping stroll down Abbot Kinney blvd, with a few new-comers and updates on some of the regulars.

The New Tortoise

Tortoise, my favorite Japanese curio and design store, just opened a second store on Friday at 1342 1/2, which will specialize more in the one-of-a-kind and larger furniture items, while the first store at 1208 Abbot Kinney Blvd keeps the smaller production objects and is now dubbed the Tortoise General Store (I love that name).

We open the second Tortoise on the same street on May 2nd. 08. The website is coming soon but at the new store you can see more one-of-a-kind Japanese things such as vintage products, artists' pieces and furniture compare to the first one which we will carry general but high quality production pieces for daily use and small gifts. So you may call the first one Tortoise General Store (TGS)!

Waraku Headwear

It's hard for me to walk down Abbot Kinney and not stop at Waraku, purveyor of  Japanese streetwear imports. I'm not really into the whole sneaker scene, but if you are, Waraku has a huge selection of Japanese exclusives that the owner selects on frequent trips tp Tokyo.

Shopping at WARAKU is like entering a den of t the sneaker fetish influenced with today’s TOKYO culture, and digging up a hidden treasure. There are some unique - one of a kind- sneakers and many limited editions from NIKE, ASICS-ONITSUKA, PUMA, ADIDAS etc. along with Japanese brands like PATRICK and NAMITATSU which hard to hit in the United States. Also be sure to check out the clothing/accessory selection from kitsch lovers’ knick-knacks to asymmetrical reversible jackets by Japanese creative young designers exclusively imported from Japan.

Today, I couldn't resist their selection of hats, and came away with, not one, but two hats. Ostensibly, one is mine (pictured left), and the other is for Natasha, although I know she's going to steal mine if I don't wear it diligently.

Ride eco-friendly surfshop

Another newcomer to the Abbot Kinney scene is Ride, which calls itself an eco-friendly surfshop. I smell little bit of greenwashing there, because I'm not sure what an eco-unfriendly surfshop would be like, but whatever. The store just opened a few weeks ago and carries beautiful boards for surf and skateboarding. Regardless, they have an awesome collection of unique wooden boards, and also carry the E-Glide electric skateboards.

So I find myself on the sidewalk, standing on their demo model and holding the power-controlller in my hand. A controller which looks a lot like one of those gun-shaped racing car game remote controls, minus the little steering wheel (since you steer like a regular skateboard) and with a very sensitive trigger. Wow! after almost flying off the thing as it accelerated away, I really enjoyed the ride.

This would probably be a fun way to get to work during the summer, as long as I don't kill myself riding it from Santa Monica to Venice, or worse fall off, and send the 20-pound powered missile towards some unsuspecting shins.

A+R Design Store

My monthly pilgrimage on Abbot Kinney wouldn't be complete without a stop at A+R. First because I'll admit to a slight design obsession, and because owners Andy Griffith and Rose Apocada are both super-nice and always proud to talk about their latest findings. New stuff in the store includes the ceramic park planters that appeared in the design blog consciousness a few months ago, and Stephanie Simek's gold quail egg jewellry, and Tristan Zimmermann's Phonofone amongst other things.

Natasha had also seen a gorgeous polished rock crystal ring, which we might have grabbed on the way back from our little stroll down the boulevard, had we not already come back with hats in our shopping bags.