About Us

Inspiration from the Japanese knitting and craft scene.

amirisu launched in August 2012 as a new knitting lifestyle magazine. The founders, Tokuko and Meri, met through Ravelry in 2011 and decided to start a magazine together after a few lunches and coffees. They were both frustrated by a lack of modern and elegant knitwear patterns that could actually be worn to work and thought that knitters in other countries, not just in Japan, had the same frustration. Thus the bilingual knitting magazine, amirisu, was born.

amirisu magazine first debuted in print in 2014 and is now sold in over 120 stores in 24 countries around the world. (Check here to find a stockist near you!) The WALNUT shops welcome visitors from all over the world and are regarded as two of the best yarn shops in Japan.

After a few years of publishing the magazine, amirisu co. was established and the collaboration between the two evolved into a business partnership. Based in Kyoto, the heart of the Japanese textile industry, amirisu runs brick-and-mortar yarn shops in Kyoto (WALNUT, opened in 2014) and Tokyo (WALNUT Tokyo, opened in 2015), online shops in Japan and the US, in addition to the growing publishing unit.

To find out more about our journey, head over to Woolful Podcast or Morning on the Dock (a podcast by Squam Art Workshops).

amirisu meri

Meri: Co-owner of amirisu & editor of amirisu magazine.

Our Online Stores

amirisu kurumi: North America
Based in the USA, amirisu kurumi is our online shop for customers in North America. All items are shipped from Portland, OR.

amirisu Online Shop Japan
Our online shop for customers based in Japan, Asia, Europe, & Oceania.