What is a french coffee, and what is in the Starbucks Reserve and Converse Qixi release?

Starbucks Reserve Roastery and Converse teamed up again for Qixi with a series inspired by the Milky Way and the stars Vega and Altair. It goes on sale June 24 at the Tokyo Roastery. The standout item is a Converse shoe-shaped vase in ice blue, joined by six other starry items such as mugs, folding fans and bags.

Last year's Qixi collection from the two brands used shoe-shaped vases with fireworks and misty blue themes. Starbucks has also worked repeatedly with Hiroshi Fujiwara on minimalist home coffee goods for the post-pandemic era, including French presses and blankets. Qixi itself comes from China and is observed in Japan, Korea and Vietnam, with Japan marking it on July 7.

As Qixi approaches, Starbucks Reserve Roastery and Converse have once again joined forces to launch a collaboration series inspired by the Milky Way and the stars Vega and Altair, available at the Tokyo Roastery starting June 24. The most eye-catching item this season is undoubtedly the Converse classic shoe-shaped vase, in a refreshing ice-blue colorway, along with six other starry-skied items including mugs, folding fans, and bags. Looking back at last year's Qixi, the two brands created shoe-shaped vases and home goods themed around fireworks and misty blue. In addition, Starbucks' multiple collaborations with Hiroshi Fujiwara have focused on minimalist home coffee experiences in the post-pandemic era, releasing French presses, blankets, and other quality items. This article gives you an overview of these collaboration highlights, with Front Street Coffee's communication channels listed at the end.

As the Qixi Festival approaches, Converse and Starbucks Reserve® Roastery have teamed up once again to launch a holiday-inspired collaboration series. The collection is set to go on sale on Friday, June 24 at Starbucks Reserve® Roastery Tokyo.

Qixi originated in China and is an important traditional festival. In parts of Asia influenced by Chinese culture, such as Japan, the Korean Peninsula, and Vietnam, there are also customs for celebrating Qixi. After Qixi was introduced to Japan during the Nara period, its main purpose was not to pray for love, but rather to hope that girls would acquire exquisite craftsmanship. In addition, after the Meiji Restoration, Japan abolished the lunar calendar, so the local Qixi festival was moved to July 7 on the solar calendar each year.

No matter the region, Qixi revolves around the story of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, with only slight differences in naming. This legend originated from ancient people's worship of natural celestial phenomena. Legend has it that on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, two stars separated by the Milky Way (astronomically known as "separated stars") would appear especially bright. Combining this with the life of men farming and women weaving, the ancients named these two stars the Cowherd Star and the Weaver Girl Star. Initially, China's Qixi Festival was also about praying for women to be skillful, and girls would gather on that day to compete in needlework or carve fruits, which is why Qixi is also called the Qiqiao Festival. Later, with the popularity of Western Valentine's Day, in order to protect traditional culture, China proposed treating Qixi as Chinese Valentine's Day.

The moving story of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl originates from the enchanting starry sky, so this year's Starbucks and Converse collaboration draws design inspiration from the Milky Way and two shining stars, using light blue tones to bring a cool feeling to the hot summer.

The most eye-catching product among them is none other than the Converse classic shoe-shaped vase! (Yes, it's a vase 😂) It is based on the classic Converse "All-Star" shoe model, modeled after the sole, with the Starbucks Reserve® logo on the tongue and outer tape, and the CONVERSE TOKYO logo printed on the inside. The color is ice blue, and if it were actually made into a shoe, this colorway would look great too!

In addition to the "shoe" vase, this collaboration also includes six items: a mug, an umbrella bottle, a folding fan, a bag, ear clips, and a necklace, each incorporating starry sky elements. From the folding fan, you can see the clever combination of the three: Starbucks' star and Converse's star are placed on opposite sides of the Milky Way, like a collision of heaven and earth.

By merging the brands and the festival into one, the collaboration maximizes its meaning, so that when people see Converse they think of Starbucks, when they see Starbucks they think of Converse, and during Qixi they think even more of this pairing.

This is not the first collaboration between Starbucks and Converse! Last year on Qixi, the two brands launched their first collaboration. That time, it was inspired by the Milky Way and fireworks, using the misty blue of constellations lighting up the night sky. The All-Star shoe-shaped vase also took center stage, with a laser milk-white appearance that created the visual effect of the Milky Way and fireworks. To make it closer to the shoe shape, natural wrinkles from prolonged wear of canvas shoes were deliberately created, and the tongue and sides of the shoe were accented with dual-brand logos.

In addition, six items were launched, including T-shirts, mugs, clear cups, earrings, shawls, and bags. Among them, the interior of the bag recreates the astronomical phenomenon of Altair and Vega, with delicate and thoughtful design.

In addition to collaborating with Converse, Starbucks has also worked with Hiroshi Fujiwara multiple times. Besides regular thermos bottles and cups, considering that making coffee at home gradually became mainstream in the post-pandemic era, last year's collaboration focused more on minimalist home goods, emphasizing a quality coffee lifestyle.

The collection includes a coffee French press, a mug, and a blanket (because each collaboration was released at the end of November). With matte black and white, Hiroshi Fujiwara's favorite colors, as the main tones, the product design is highly modern and also fits his personal style.

I have to say, it's fortunate these collaboration waves are not in China, otherwise this writer's wallet would probably be emptied...

Image source: Internet

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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.