
Howdy! Just Bento and big sister site Just Hungry are having a big birthday bash giveaway extravaganza this week! You can read the Just Hungry post here, but I wanted to thank all Just Bento readers specially for helping this site to grow in readership numbers exponentially in its first year!
So, without further ado, here is today’s Just Bento giveaway!
Full information is in the Just Hungry post, but the important bits:
This giveaway is open to everyone, regardless of where you live, as long as you can receive mail!
Your comment must contain the following, or your entry will be disqualified:
Note: None of the following items is a review copy, advertising freebie, etc. They are all items that I have duplicates or similar of myself and have used and loved!
Delivery: I’ll airmail you the item if you win ASAP, but I cannot guarantee you’ll get in time for Christmas.
Here’s the first item for Just Bento!

As I wrote about previously, akinoichigo is one of the leading kyaraben / charaben artists in Japan. Her first book akinoichigo’s Fun Fun! Character Bento (akinoichigoのわくわく! キャラクターのお弁当) is full of gorgeous photos and how-tos, which you can get lots of inspiration from even if you don’t read Japanese (though of course, that would help). The techniques range from basic to rather more complicated, so if you’re looking to improve your cute-bento making skills this book is a must for your library!
DEADLINE: Your comment/entry must be posted before Midnight Greenwich Mean Time on Thursday, December 4th.
Good luck!
This giveaway is now closed. Thank you for your comments!
For more bento recipes, ideas and tips, subscribe to Just Bento via your newsreader or
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And visit our sister site, Just Hungry for great Japanese home recipes and more.
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Kawaii!
Name: Dario Location: USA Thanks for the giveaway!
Congrats!!!
This book is so cool. I am actually happy I found you. I was just looking for tsukemono recipes when I followed a link here. Love this site.
voKx, USA
Happy Anniversary
Just love your blogs, Rami (Tel-Aviv, Israel)
Congratulations!
Wow I can’t believe it’s only just been a year for Just Bento ^_^ It’s YOU we should be thanking for the awesome site, and you’re even offering give-aways! You’re too kind, Maki, but count me in, regardless ^^’
Country: Poland
Wow!
Congratulations on your anniversary - I would love to get my hands on something this cute! I take bento lunches to court every day, and impress my fellow counsel with my cute accessories and picks :)
Name: Ally Country: UK
Happy Birthday!!!
Yay! I’ve been a rabid reader of this blog since about 3 months back. Helped me in nursing my homesickness for my sister’s bento and just being in Japan in general. I haven’t had a bento nor had a good cookbook to use in about over 2 years. Help a girl out :P
Happy Anniversary!
How fun!! Congrats!!!
Name: Alison, Country: USA.
giveaway
I would love this book and I love this blog. Country=USA much love, Damaris
Awesome! Country: Canada!
Awesome!
Country: Canada!
Happy 1 Year Anniversary!!
Name: Cactus Cat Country: New Zealand
Cute prize!! :D
Hey Maki, I love your blogs
Hey Maki,
I love your blogs and it’s one of my goals for 2009 to improve my work lunches, and bento is totally the way forward as far as I can tell. ;)
Djinn, UK
Pictures are good enough for
Pictures are good enough for me! I just want to find a way to entice my 3 year old to eat something besides peanut butter!
oops - I’m in Montreal,
oops - I’m in Montreal, Canada
Huzzah!
A whole year (and a little longer) of bento goodness! Felicitaciones!
Holly New York (USA)
Happy Birthday
Congratulations !! Happy 1er Anniversary ! Shunrai (France)
looks so cool!
* name: Cynthia * Your location: New York City * I would love to learn how to make those totoro rice balls! looks like forbidden rice, yum!Happy 1th anniversary!
Name: Feldin
Location: Hungary
Happy Anniversary!!!! I love just bento! And the recipies :)
I’m a japanese food fan, and I’m always waiting for the next composition :)
Keep up the good work!
おめだとうございます。
まきさん、私はまきさんのブラグがとても大好きです。毎日読みます。料理のために、私もフードブラグを書きます。とても楽しいです。
Please excuse my Japanese. It’s not up to the standard I would like it to be. Anyways, thank you for keeping up with these sites for the past five years. I love reading them and trying out recipes that are here. I’ve also started making bento lunches this past school year. It’s really fun, though for awhile it made me late to my Japanese class, but I’m on time now. Thank you again!
がんばって下さい!
name: risa country: USA
Congratulations!
Happy Anniversary, Just Bento! Thanks for making veggies look good! I’de love a chance to win, my name is Kate and I’m in Hawaii (Kauai), USA.
Congratulations
Country = Canada
Eeee, pick me, pick me!
Australia, here. Grats on both blogs - five years is forever in blog years!
Happy Birthday!!
I love bentos, I really really do =)
I want to make my husband one so he can open it up at work and get lots of little sausage octopi hahaha! I can just imagine his and his workmates’ faces, what a picture!
Keep up the brilliant blogging,
Jan from the UK
oooh
yay fuN!
chau USA
Awesome!
Been checking out your sites for years now. Congrats!
Kristen, USA
Time really flies!
I can’t believe it is a year already. I have read just about every single post! おめでとうございます! Basak- NL
記念日おめでとう!
I’m always inspired by your recipies~thank you
Yves from Basel (Switzerland ;))
Congrats on Just
Congrats on Just Bento/Hungry’s anniversaries!
Ami, USA (NY)
Just Hungry 5th Anniversary Giveaway
This giveaway is great! Sofie, Germany
Congrats!
Hi Maki!
Just Bento is my primary resource for easy and quick (not to mention tasty) recipes for packing my lunch. Thanks to you I have discovered the subtle and amazing flavours of Japanese cuisine. Thank you!
Chely Puerto Rico
Happy anniversary!
I’ve been feeding myself very well with your recipes, thank you!
-Stephanie in Wyoming
Happy anniversary!
I’ve been feeding myself very well with your recipes, thank you!
-Stephanie in Wyoming
Just Bento 1st Anniversary
Congrats to this happy anniversary. Romana, Germany
Looks interesting! USA
Looks interesting!
USA
Happy anniversary!
I love Japanese-style cooking and food! John from Indiana. Oh, wow, Mary, you’re from West Lafayette, too? Cool!
Congrats!
Great giveaway! I see a Totoro in there! :D
Name: Cindy Location:
Name: Cindy
Location: California
I love both of your blogs and I think it’s great for you to give gifts to us fans. Thank you!!
kawaii
wow this is so cute! and congratz on the anniversary! location - united states Ma
I love this site as much as
I love this site as much as justhungry!!! Congrats and thanks for all the helpful bento options
Nyein Fort Collins, CO
thank you for your amazing
thank you for your amazing webpage/blog, I’ve been trying your recipes in my dorm :) (location: US)
Woo Bento
Michael from New York, USA
Yay for Bentos! Happy
Yay for Bentos! Happy Anniversary.
USA
Eee! So cute!
Name: Tuan
Location: United States of America
It’d be awesome to get such a cute booklet!
Happy Birthday!!!
I accidentally stumbled onto your sites a few months ago and have been following them daily since. Thanks for sharing your creations :) Happy Birthday and many good years ahead. Oh, and thanks for the give-away…sure hope to get one of the cutesy bento books!!!
Happy Birthday!!!
Oopss…forgot to add… location: Singapore
Mega-kawaii giveaway
Dear Maki - sama,
I have read Just Hungry and Just Bento for some time now and have picked up lots of ideas from you on how to cook Japanese food. Unfortunately, I didn’t know about your site when I was living in Tokyo for 2 years :( - if I had known, I’m sure I would have been able to do so much more in the kitchen…
Anyway, I have some really cute bento boxes and would love to receive this book so I can practice making Totoros (am a huge Studio Ghibli fan) !!!
Location - Boston, USA
cute cute
love it! hope i win ^_^
congratulations just bento!
hi maki! happy anniversary! i’d love to win this giveaway. i bring pretty bento to work everyday but i have not tried doing karabens YET. this book might make me a convert. :P plus, the nihongo will be good practice. i’ll be seating in for the 日本語能力試験 this sunday; i hope i do well. not only do i LOVE japanese food and bento, i also would like to improve my nihongo. ありがとうございました! name:banana country: japan
congrats on a year! i love
congrats on a year! i love both your sites and visit everyday! :)
Rachel, USA
United States Very cute!!
United States
Very cute!!
Yay!
This book looks interesting, and even if I don’t know any japanese I bet I’d be able to glean a lot from the pictures. :) Thanks for the giveaway, it’s very generous and I hope I win! Claire (USA)