6 Weird And Wonderful Don Quijote Beauty Products

From speed teeth brushing and scalpel-free face-slimming jobs, to getting younger in the knees and enjoying the safest nose job on the market, Japan’s Don Quijote has a solution to every beauty problem you may have.

Anyone even just a little familiar with Japan knows that the country is the unofficial home of bizarre beauty contraptions and the ubiquitous lifestyle mega store Don Quijote (colloquially known as ‘Donki’) is the unofficial home of everything in Japan. So when the worlds collide, it’s a proper journey down a rabbit hole of weird and wonderful solutions to beauty issues you probably didn’t even know you had.

Inspired by the reputation this wonderland store has, I took a quick journey to Donki’s beauty aisle — only to find myself completely lost in it. Though it’s a challenge to narrow them down, here are my picks from Donki’s most weird and equally wonderful beauty products.

For Your Perfect Smile: Teeth Wipes

Yes, like face wipes, but for your teeth. Though on first glance they seem a little absurd, in theory teeth wipes make sense.

The importance of hamigaki (teeth brushing) is instilled in children in Japan from a very early age and it’s common practice for most Japanese adults to brush their teeth after every meal, even if that does mean brushing in public. And since for most people in Japan maintaining good oral hygiene is as essential as washing your hands, it’s not really a surprise to see co-workers and busy commuters brushing their teeth over the communal basins in shared bathrooms.

That is why Donki’s teeth wipes come in handy: Need a little freshen up that mints and gum can’t provide? Don’t have time for a proper brush? Teeth wipes solves all that — and they are just the beginning of all Donki products that are invented to solve problems you didn’t know you had until you discovered the solution.

Your Mini Skirt Anxiety Relief: Anti Knee Aging Scrub Cream

Do you often worry that your knees are giving away your true age? Well lucky you’re in Japan because there’s a solution for that, as well. Anti knee aging scrub is like a face-wash, exfoliator and toner in one, but for your knees.

Don Quijote (colloquially known as ‘Donki’) is the unofficial home of everything in Japan.

The scrub contains peach leaf, soybean and witch hazel leaf extracts, which are meant to provide a tightening effect, and a whole lot of other difficult to pronounce ingredients, which combined promise the very specific outcome that you can now confidently “wear a skirt that comes ten centimeters above your knees”.

Whether it’ll effectively turn back time is up for debate, but I guess there’s no harm in trying it out.  

The Safest Cosmetic Surgery: Face Slimming Mask

Looking like a creation Paris Hilton would produce if she was asked to redesign the costuming for Friday the 13th, this face-slimming mask is just one of the seemingly ubiquitous face shaping beauty products on offer in Japan.

Also popular in Korea, the Face Slimming Mask is supposed to work like a permanent version of Spanx, but for your face. Want a slimmer face without the surgery? This is meant to be your solution. How it works? Well,  it’s meant to be worn — preferably when you’re alone at home (as not to frighten any innocent bystanders) — for around 30 minutes each day.
While worn, the product promises to tense your muscles and make you sweat, so in the end you’ll get what you’ve asked for: it will shrink your face and improve your profile. There’s also a men’s version for that special guy in your life who needs a little facial pick-me-up. In that case, you can wear them on your home date together!

For Your Nasal Beauty: Nose Straightener

With nose jobs being one of the most common cosmetic surgeries around the world, it’s only natural that there’s a gadget that offers a surgery alternative in Japan. The alternative, Hana Putti Bibico, is (in my mind) questionable in effect and funny looking, but again — apart from looking ridiculous for a few minutes, there’s no really downside to it.

The makers claim that with just 10-20 minutes use a day you’ll be the proud wearer of a straighter, stronger, perkier nose and a more delicate appearance.

How it works? Pop the hard plastic prongs inside your nostrils and spend the next 20 minutes praying they don’t get lost up there. Then voila — you’re one step closer to achieving that so desired nasal beauty.   

For Your Manga Eyes: Eyelid clips

This potential product is best described as a cross between office stationary and A Clockwork Orange torture device. In an attempt to achieve bigger eyes — and some may say, a more ‘kawaii’ appearance — having a double eyelid has become an undeniably popular beauty standard.

By attaching it to the eyelid, the clip is meant to achieve a temporary skin fold in the loose eyelid skin — in other words, this is a knife-free temporary alternative to surgery.

If attaching big plastic clips to your eyes doesn’t make your skin crawl, and achieving potentially bigger eyes is a beauty goal — or you want a conversation-starting gift for back home — there’s an abundance of clips on offer for just few hundred yen.

For Your Flawless Feminine Form: Calorie Breath

Potentially the pinnacle of ‘strange Japanese beauty products with dubious outcomes,’ for normal people, Calorie Breath is essentially a toy whistle-looking plastic tube. But, according to its makers, it’s a diet product that will help you transform from Pumbaa to Timon.

It’s safe to assume that the creators of Calorie Breath took inspiration from Japan’s “Long Breath Diet” fad, which sold millions of book copies some time ago and was on TV pretty much 24/7. The concept of the long breath diet is to inhale large amounts of air, resulting in expanding your lungs as much as possible in order to strain and tone your core. Go figure!

While weather Calorie Breath will make you lose weight is unconfirmed, fact is most of us aren’t using our lungs effectively due to chest breathing habits as opposed to stomach breathing — so who knows, with Calorie Breath you might at least experience an increase in blood oxygen levels, which is nothing but a good thing.

What is the strangest, yet useful product you’ve ever encountered in Japan? Share your thoughts in the comments.  

All products in this article have been purchased at Don Quijote’s Nakameguro store (Address: 2-19-10 Aobadai, Meguro-ku, Tokyo). Since Don Quijote leaves it up to each store manager to decide what products to stock, some Don Quijote stores may not be selling the featured products. We advise everyone interested in buying the products to inquire at their local Don Quijote store prior to heading there. 

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