Got a question about the blog, our writers, how to work with us, or kawaii culture in general? Have a read of some questions we often get asked. If you don’t see an answer to yours, our contact information is at the end. Do check though, as we will not respond to emails if the questions is fully answered below.
Working with us
How do I get featured on the blog?
Check out our Submissions page! We really would love to hear from you.
How do I get you to review one of my products?
Have a read of our Reviews pages and get in touch.
What are your advertising rates?
Check the advertising rates page for up to date info.
How can I collaborate with you?
If you have something to promote, have a read of our Reviews and/or Advertising pages for information on some of the ways we can work together and get in touch if you have a different idea. If you are an influencer/content creator, do remember that we are too! Super Cute Kawaii is a blog, not a shop. We don’t create, sell or own the products we feature, and can’t send you freebies. However if you have a fun idea for a collaboration to grow both our audiences, contact us with a rough idea and we can discuss further if it appeals to us.
Can I write for Super Cute Kawaii?
We do occasionally add new writers to the team and will advertise widely on our blog, social media and newsletter when applications are open. If you are serious about wanting to join us, I recommend getting familiar with our blog and working on improving your writing skills. Read our posts and see what topics we cover, how we write about them and how we format the posts. Visit regularly and leave comments so we get to know you too. Start your own blog or social media account to get in the habit of writing regularly and to have proof of your skills when you get to apply.
Do you accept guest posts?
We don’t accept unsolicited guest post submissions – any emails about this will be ignored and follow-ups will result in your email being blocked.
Problems
Help! I’m having trouble using the site
Oh no! Occasionally SCK is offline, or has technical issues so try again in a few hours and check our social media for updates. If the problem seems to be only you, try clearing your cookies, using a different browser and/or using mobile data instead of wifi. If it keeps happening, please contact us and we’ll see if we can help. Please include as much information as possible e.g. which browser you’re using (Safari/Chrome etc.), whether you’re using a Windows desktop PC, Apple Mac, iPhone or Android phone etc. and what exactly is happening.
My comment hasn’t appeared or is being moderated
We automatically hold all comments from new users for moderation to weed out spam. Usually your comment will be approved within 24 hours. Comments may not be approved, or deleted later, if they include links, personal information, libellous statements or self-promotion, or are irrelevant and not adding anything to the discussion. SCK is a private blog and we can delete any comments we like, for any reason whatsoever! If you’re sure your comments are worthwhile and still never appear, contact us and we’ll check in case they’re being wrongly marked as spam.
A link is broken or information you posted is incorrect or out date!
SCK has been running since 2008 and we have over 3000 posts so it’s impossible to check them regularly. If you come across a broken link or other issues with a post, please contact us so we can fix it. Starting in 2021, we have been slowly updating our archives and hope to finish this soon, but it’s a never-ending task.
You’ve posted a product that’s a rip-off of my work or another artist/maker!
Argh, we’re so sorry. While we obviously want to promote original work, sometimes we’re unaware that someone is actually copying their designs from someone else. If you suspect someone we’ve featured is a copycat please contact us rather than leaving a comment – it’s a strong accusation and can get both of us in legal trouble. Send us all the information and we’ll do our research privately. If we agree that they are copying, we’ll remove the post and write a new one about the original designer.
You’ve used an image of mine without my permission! How do I get it removed?
We take sourcing and crediting images very seriously and generally only use our own photos, promotional images, product images, public domain images or stock photos with the appropriate credit and link. Sometimes we use images from Instagram, blogs or social media (with full credit and link) but only when the post is promoting the creator. Occasionally we may make a mistake. If so, please contact us and we’ll update or remove the image/credit/post as required.
Do you use AI or feature AI generated art?
No, we have a very strict policy against AI use. All our writers are humans and we research and write our own posts. Spotting art, craft patterns, shops etc. that rely heavily on AI is becoming increasingly difficult but we are doing our very best to avoid promoting them. If we feature something on the blog you think is AI, please contact us so we can remove it and feature someone else.
Products & Shops
How do I buy a product you featured?
Super Cute Kawaii is a blog, not a shop. We don’t create, sell or own the products we feature. All information is in the blog post including a link to the shop. If a link is broken, contact us – including the link to the original post – and we’ll try and find another source, though it may be long gone. If you don’t have a link to the post, please provide as much information as possible as we have over 3000 blog posts in our archives, all with multiple products.
I have an image from your blog that I found on Google/Pinterest – where do I buy this?
I have a surprisingly good memory for things we’ve featured so contact us and I’ll do my best to find the original post for you.
Can you send me free stuff?
Super Cute Kawaii is a blog, not a shop. We don’t create, sell or own the products we feature, and can’t send you freebies. However, some of the items we receive for review are kept aside to share with our readers in giveaways. Keep following our blog or social media to find out about the next one.
Why don’t you post about X topic/brand/character?
We write about our own interests so maybe no-one on the team is a fan of that brand or has the knowledge to write about that topic or craft. We may just not have considered it, or found out about it yet though so you can always leave a comment with a suggestion and if a few people ask we may cover it. We’re also always trying to pick new team members that can broaden our content so maybe you should apply next time!
Why don’t you make Youtube videos/join TikTok/post more on social media?
Sadly, we just don’t have the time or money! All the team have other jobs and write for SCK on a freelance basis. As well as being the Editor, setting the blog schedule, writing her own posts and keeping the site running and the money coming in, Marceline also has to do all the social media promotion, write the weekly newsletter and more, all while running her own business and working a part-time job. Being successful – or even seen! – on social media is increasingly difficult, thanks to the algorithms, so it doesn’t feel like the best use of our time.
General
What’s kawaii?
Kawaii (pronounced a bit like the US state Hawai’i), is a Japanese word that means cute or adorable. Here in the UK, we use it to describe the Japanese style of cute, which pervades the entire Japanese society. SCK co-founder/editor Marceline took part in an article explaining kawaii at Folksy and also wrote a whole book, The Super Cute Book of Kawaii, which goes into lots more detail.
Have you visited Japan? Do you speak Japanese?
Many members of the team have visited Japan, some multiple times, or have even lived there. Some of us speak or read Japanese to some extent but we don’t profess to be experts in Japanese culture or language.
Why don’t you have more Asian writers on the team when you’re a blog about Japan?
While we share Japanese characters, shops and travel tips, SCK is a general kawaii, crafts and shopping blog, not a Japan blog. We’ve always been very open about being a UK-based blog and our original aim was to share Japanese kawaii characters and the artists and makers inspired by them. As 2 UK-based creatives, we started out mainly sharing Etsy makers and UK-based kawaii shops. Since then, we have added writers in Europe, the US and Asia to broaden our content and provide more original tutorials etc. We are a small team with a tiny budget so while we are actively working to make our team more diverse, we can’t just hire a load of new writers.
How diverse is the team?
You can read about our current team in their own words, though not everyone wishes to include personal details like this – please respect that. I can say that our team is entirely female and non-binary, while some members are also LGBTQIA+, neurodivergent and/or have disabilities/chronic illness.
How old are you?
The kawaii community is sadly very judgemental about age (and looking/dressing cute) so not all the team wish to state their exact ages. SCK has been running since 2008 and our current writers range from Gen Z to Gen X, We all genuinely love kawaii culture and get paid very little for our work on SCK. If the age of our writers would affect your enjoyment of the site, maybe you should consider why. Fandom would not exist without older fans keeping the flame alive over the decades and the same applies to the elders of Etsy/Youtube/Blogger/Twitter etc. who built a lot of these communities from nothing.
How does Super Cute Kawaii make money?
Well, it doesn’t really! We use income from advertisers and affiliates to cover the costs of web hosting and other business expenses, pay our writers a small fee per post and buy supplies and products for original content. We also receive free press passes to events and products for review. SCK has no full time staff and no one is paid anywhere near what they deserve but we do it out of love for kawaii.
What’s the difference between a sponsor ad and an affiliate ad?
Sponsors are advertisers who pay upfront for an ad. Affiliates are shops that have an affiliate program that we’ve joined – they don’t pay for the ad, but instead give us a percentage of all sales that come directly from links on our site. We’re always interested in hearing about new affiliate opportunities with suitable sites.
Images & Links
Can I use your images and/or posts on my own site?
You can repost product images, as long as you credit the shop owner or makers. Our posts are copyrighted and you cannot copy them directly without written permission. The same goes for our own banners and images. Bunny, Panda, Koala, Monkey, Polar Bear and the Le Buns are copyrighted characters and may not be used without written permission. The Super Cute Book of Kawaii and associated imagery are copyright Pop Press/Penguin. If you wish to use any images or characters used on our blog for commercial purposes you must get permission from the image owner.
Can I link to your site on my blog?
Please do! We have some images you can use here.
Who designed your kawaii avatars?
We made them using Chanrio, Sanrio’s free kawaii avatar maker.
How do I get my own avatar to appear next to my comments?
If you want your own avatar instead of a random geometric shape, you need a Gravatar. It’s free to sign up and takes a few seconds and then you’ll have an avatar that’s linked to your email address so any time you comment on a site using gravatars (most blogs using WordPress, Disqus etc.), it will automatically show up. Cool, right?
Who did your design? Will you design my website?
The SCK mascots and web design are by Marceline, SCK’s co-founder & editor. Have a look at her portfolio and get in touch if you’d like a quote.
Reviews & Giveaways
Can you send me kawaii to review?
Review items are provided to us by makers and shops to be reviewed by our writers, not by random individuals. If you wish to review products by shops we’ve featured, you should contact them individually through their own websites. Most makers will not send out items for review unless you have a well-known blog/channel and a large active social media following.
How do I sponsor a giveaway?
Have a read of our Giveaways page and get in touch.
Why don’t you run giveaways any more?
We stopped during the pandemic when mail services were disrupted and restricted and later decided they would no longer be a priority. Giveaways require a lot of admin and were attracting hordes of random entries from giveaway sites when we would rather reward our regular readers and fans of the character/brand. We still run the occasional giveaway with shops and advertisers that we already have a relationship with.
I’ve never won a giveaway – do people really win?
They really do! Here’s some of our happy winners with their prizes. We use Rafflecopter for our giveaways which records every entry and picks the winner using a random number generator so there’s no way for us to cheat and choose our own winner.
If you haven’t won yet, here’s a few tips:
- Enter everything. If you enter all our giveaways you have a better chance of winning something, than if you just enter the one you really really wanted to win.
- Use all your entries. We offer extra entries for social media follows, blog comments and more. Do as many as you can for the best chance.
- Follow the rules! Almost every giveaway, we have to disqualify people who have either not answered the question in their comment or haven’t completed a social media entry as stated (eg. following our Twitter account).
