Manga Amigurumi

September 12, 2009 11:25 AM

MangaFilter: I know nothing about manga but my friend is a huge fan. I'm pretty handy with crochet, so I wanted to knit her a plushie (amigurumi) of something manga-related. Here's where you come in...

I want the amigurumi to be of something from a manga series she likes. I know she's read and liked Fruits Basket, Ouran High School Host Club, and Crossroad, and that her current favorite is Highschool Debut. She's also a fan of Miyazaki's Spirited Away.
I would prefer if the amigurumi was an item instead of a character (the only example I can think of would be a Pokeball for a Pokemon fan.) Something from any of the above mentioned series would be perfect. Also, if you could link to a picture of the item in question, that would be awesome, since I would have no idea what it is otherwise. Thanks!

posted by asras to Media & Arts (8 answers total)

Best answer: Usa-chan/Bun Bun, Kuma-chan/Beary, and Beelzenef are all fairly recognizable toys from Ouran High School Host Club. Of the three, I'd guess that Usa-chan is the most frequently shown, but Beelzenef tends to make the bigger impression, but he's a hand puppet, so I don't know how well he'd lend himself to amigurumi. There's a couple of games here where someone made a virtual paper doll of Kuma-chan and Beelzenef, and I think there's a picture of Usa-chan in there somewhere too.
posted by Diagonalize at 11:54 AM on September 12, 2009

Best answer: There's also Boh and the soot sprites from Spirited Away. And now my knowledge of manga/anime is pretty much tapped out.
posted by Diagonalize at 12:05 PM on September 12, 2009

Best answer: You could totally adapt a mitten pattern into a puppet Beelzenef, which would rock, but yeah, not an amigurumi truly.

***** spoiler *****



In Fruits Basket, the main characters of the Sohma/Souma family are cursed to turn into animals of the Chinese zodiac (+ the cat) when touched by a member of the opposite sex. (Hijinx ensue!).

The two main boy characters are Yuki Sohma (human | rat) and Kyo Sohma (human | cat).

Kyo has a bad temper, so for extra fun, you could stitch on anger marks, like in this plushie.

Ok, now I'm just cracking myself up looking at angry!Kyo!cat products.
posted by clerestory at 12:14 PM on September 12, 2009

Best answer: Fruits Basket has some real possibilities, considering the Soma family characters are also animals! They're the twelve animals of the zodiac, plus one, the cat (Kyo in human form). The cat and rat are the main focus of the 13, though I liked the romance between the boar (a girl when human) and rabbit (a boy when human) too -- they're both adorably cute. Tohru, the girl who comes to live with them, is sometimes portrayed as a triangular onigiri (rice cake with filling). Here's a good photo of a triangular onigiri.
posted by fraula at 12:14 PM on September 12, 2009

Best answer: The onigiri from Fruits Basket would probably be pretty easy to make.
posted by betweenthebars at 12:16 PM on September 12, 2009

Best answer: Free Soot Sprites pattern! I love these lil' guys. If you make one, it'd be a cute touch to include a bag of the konpeito they eat.
posted by Metroid Baby at 12:27 PM on September 12, 2009

Best answer: Have you checked on Ravelry? If you're not a member, you'll have to join (it's free), but there looks to be about a bazillion amigurumi patterns, and some specifically for Fruits Basket.
posted by booksherpa at 12:34 PM on September 12, 2009

Response by poster: These are great--thank you all so much! I'm leaning towards the soot sprites (if I can find that candy at the local asian supermarket) or the Onigiri from Fruits Basket.
posted by asras at 9:11 AM on September 13, 2009