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Kawaii: Going crazy for cute the Japanese way

One can never overdose on かわいいです.  If it wasn't for kawaii Japan would have no reason to exist.

　But what was once simply an adjective is now an all-encompassing ideal, rearing its lovable wide-eyed head in all aspects of Japanese life. Increasingly, girls not only want to own things that are kawaii, they want to be kawaii too, adorning elaborate eye-catching clothing and intricately detailed accessories to transform themselves into the cutest kawaii characters they could possibly be. And you don’t have to travel to Tokyo to get a hint of this unique fashion; kigurumi animal onesies, cat cafés, and Hello Kitty are all examples of the steadily growing influence kawaii has in the West.“In the UK and the States it appeals to the people who like the exoticism of it – it’s a new fresh culture,” says Manami Okazaki, author of Kawaii! Japan’s Culture of Cute, a book published this month that takes a holistic look at the trend. “It’s cute, innocent and different to the mainstream pop cultures in the West,” Okazaki says. “It might be appealing to those who don’t feel an affinity to the more sexy and glamorous mainstream styles. A Japanese girl would prefer to be called kawaii than sexy or pretty.”

Next thing you know they'll be importing Japanese mascots because they are so かわいい.