ChibiHime: become a tiny 3D kimono princess
Find out how you’d look in a traditional Japanese kimono… if you were super short and had grey hair.
3D printing, as only Japan can
ChibiHime’s a project by Japanese 3D figure printing studio ‘rakushumi’. The mini kimono figs are meant as mementos to celebrate important milestones, like birthdays and graduation.
You can also get ChibiNinjas, and chibi pets. Want us to write more about those? Leave a comment at the bottom of this post, and we’ll look into it.
Dress up with your tiny twin
All figures are made to order, so you’ve got the chance to pick the styles and colours you like. There are 2 model styles: kimono, and uchikake.
Both look nice, but here’s the difference. An ‘uchikake’ is a special type of formal kimono, mostly worn at weddings. This might be your only chance to see what you look like in it.
After your dress style, you get to customise how your figure looks.
Pick from 6 kimono colours, 5 obi belt designs, 5 belt string colours, and 3 bits of contrasting fabric sticking out the top. For the uchikake version, it’s 6 outer colours and 3 inner colours.
You’ve also got the choice of 2 hairstyles, 2 hair accessory colours, and 3 pairs of sandals. In total, for the kimono figure model there are a crazy-sounding 5,400 possible style and colour combos.
Makes the 261 uchikake model combos seem like not many – but that’s still tons of room for mixing and matching. Take your time and work out which co-ordinate works best.
Show more than your average selfie
Once you know what you’re wearing, the rest is simpler. A kawaii kimono-covered, miniature you can be a reality – using only 1 photo of your face.
For the pic to be accepted, it needs to show your whole forehead. Got a fringe? You’ve gotta push it back. Yeah, it’s gonna look dorky when you take the selfie. And if you need both hands for your fringe, get help from someone you trust not to laugh.
Other rules:
- you must look straight ahead – no ‘getting your good side’
- the pic must be in focus (duh, but double check anyway)
- no shadows on your face
- the background should help show a clear outline of your face shape
The site does have some helpful examples of what (and what not) to do when taking your photo. Perfect useable pic on the left, totally wrong on the right.
For some models, you also need to show your ears. That’s not such a big deal, though – those can be imagined instead.
How the ChibiHime 3D order form works
There’s a separate online form for the kimono and uchikake versions. To order, fill out either form, and upload a photo (or up to 5). Unless we’ve put ‘optional’ next to it below, every line’s a required field.
Here’s what the most important custom sections mean, from top to bottom:
- 【ご注文商品】- what you’re ordering (this is just to confirm if you picked the ‘kimono’ or ‘uchikake’ model)
- 【着物の色柄】- kimono colour (kimono model only)
- 【帯の色柄】- obi belt colour (kimono model only)
- 【帯紐の色】- obi string colour (kimono model only)
- 【帯揚げの色】- extra fabric colour (kimono model only)
- 【打掛の色柄】- uchikake outer colour (uchikake model only)
- 【中の着物の色】- uchikake inner colour (uchikake model only)
- 【髪型】- hairstyle (bun or plaits)
- 【髪飾りの色】- hair accessory colour
- 【草履の色】- geta sandals colour
- 【サイズ】- size (5cm or 7cm)
- 【指定サイズ】- specific size (optional)
- 【台座（無料）】- stand or no stand (this is free!)
The address, postcode and phone number etc. need to be Japanese – that’s where we come in.
A quick way to request it is through our online form. Take a look at our full item request form guide to see how it works. Remember to upload a picture of your face, and to put all your style/colour options in the comments box.
We’ll take care of the address and phone number stuff. (Just make sure there’s valid info on your DEJAPAN account, so we can send the model back out.) If we need any more info to complete the order, we’ll email you.
Live out all your Japan dreams
Wanna be a ChibiHime? Or a ninja? DEJAPAN’s here to help you buy weird, one-of-a-kind stuff like this direct from Japan.
