Japan Envy: Nerdy Latte Art

You know what I like? Japan. Oh, wait, you already knew that? Okay, you know what else I like? Coffee. Oh… you knew that too? Well, what if I told you this Japan Envy post combines both of those things into one unprecedentedly awesome Chic Pixel update?! That was obvious from the title?? Okay, moving on…

Catbus and mini Totoros! (source)

Believe it or not, I don’t think I ever witnessed the standard heart or leaf drawn in a fresh frothy coffee drink until I went to Japan for the first time. That may be because I went to Japan for the first time when I was 14 and can’t imagine that I even drank coffee before that, but let’s pretend I come from the wilds of Vermont where we’re under the constant threat of being attacked by bears and barely have time to pour a cup of joe, let alone draw hearts and flowers in it.

Tonberry! (source)

Recently, I’ve been seeing more and more amazing “latte art” popping up on the internet, and let me tell you, the vast majority of it comes from Japan. Just one more reason for me to be envious of the land of the rising sun, I suppose. The pictures posted above are by my current two favorite latte artists, and I highly suggest following them on Twitter and Instagram if you can, as they update with new creations every day.

The first fellow, George (real name Kazuki Yamamoto), doesn’t use any color, but he crafts some amazing pieces that actually utilize the foam in some pretty crazy ways. He also does famous people along with anime, manga, game, and some Disney characters, which isn’t as common in the latte art I’ve seen.

Sugi, on the other hand, does mostly anime and game characters with a few cute mascot characters and other designs thrown in. Unlike George, she actually uses color, which really makes her pieces stand out (all edible, too!). She has her own YouTube channel where she’s recently started uploading videos of her making some of her creations, and it’s really amazing to see how she makes them. Check out this amazing Card Captor Sakura one, which took 15 minutes for her to make:

Now, join me in drooling over these awesome designs: 

Cobra by Sugi
Goldeen by George
Little green man by George
Sailor Venus by Sugi

Such talent! Now I’m inspired to make latte art of my own… But I’d have to learn how to make a proper latte first! 

About Anne Lee

Also known as apricotsushi. Anne can be written with the kanji for apricot (杏), and sushi was the most quintessentially Japanese thing I could think of when I was 13, resulting in my goofy, albeit memorable, nickname.