100-yen shop
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Aging a Seria wooden box with Turner antique wax
Plain Seria wooden boxes look cheap. A quick coat of Turner's antique wax gave them a richer, aged finish in about 10 minutes.
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Split your first-aid kit into two clear boxes
One overstuffed kit was annoying. Separating "major injury" from everyday items into two clear boxes made everything easier to grab.
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Bath slippers that are not freezing in winter
Plastic bath slippers were icy on bare feet. EVA slippers (Crocs-like) stayed warm, fit well, and have not molded after a year--worth the ~1,000 yen.
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Quieting a 10-year-old washing machine with anti-vibration rubber
My 10-year-old washer started rattling and walking. Swapping the 100 yen EVA pads for real anti-vibration rubber (New Shizuka/Hanenite) made it quiet enough to run at night.
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My plastic clothespins kept snapping, so I tried 100-yen polycarbonate ones—nine years later they’re still fine
The plastic pinch hangers on my laundry rack crumbled. A 100-yen “2× stronger” polycarbonate set looked dubious but has survived nine years of sun with no cracks. Here’s what I learned and what else I tried.
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Using Seria’s dressing bottle for natural cleaning powders
Seria (and Can Do) sell a white-cap dressing bottle with a wide spout—perfect for decanting powders like sesqui washing soda, citric acid, and oxygen bleach for quick cleaning mixes.
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Master 100-yen storage by knowing the maker (Inomata)
Instagram fridge-storage tags were full of Daiso Color Life baskets I couldn’t find. I dug into the actual manufacturers and standardized on Inomata baskets—stocked at nearly every 100-yen chain with tons of size options.
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Japanese makers behind 100-yen goods you see everywhere
Many 100-yen storage/kitchen items come from a handful of domestic manufacturers. Knowing the maker helps you find matching pieces across chains (Daiso, Seria, Can★Do, Watts).
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Hunting for good spice jars for salt and seasonings
After bingeing cleaning/organizing books, I wanted tidy spice storage. Seria’s popular Inomata bottles tempted me; I compared them to what I had at home, Amazon options, and IKEA jars—and realized I should prune my spices first.
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Killing tea stains in a Thermos: the melamine-sponge bottle brush that finally worked
Big brushes splashed everywhere, bead brushes loosened, but a ¥100 melamine-sponge brush scrubbed my Thermos clean without drama.