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Kigurumi Padding Theory

Anime style characters rarely have human proportions, this tends to be especially true for bishoujo characters.

So for kigurumi, shapewear and padding are often used to complement the mask's size, and one's body shape to create a more true to 2d anime character.

There are a number of ways to achieve various body types, and the exact padding used can vary depending on your own body shape. Padding in kig is not exclusive to any body shape or gender, even women who kig tend to work their proportions to achieve a more anime style look in kig.

Padding Types​

Most padding tends to fall into three types:

  • Foam
  • Silicone
  • Inflatable latex

Common areas for padding itself are generally:

  • Hips
  • Butt
  • Breasts

Although some may use padding for other areas, these are the most common.

Foam Padding​

The most accessible and flexible to DIY option, foam padding is a classic choice for many kigurumi makers. Foam padding can tend to show lines through the hadatai if not smoothed over with shapewear or an extra pair of pantyhose or two. Some prefer to add layers to avoid lines, some embrace the subtle lines padding creates.

Foam while the most breathable of the padding types, its also one of the most annoying to deep clean.

Silicone Padding​

Less so accessible to make yourself or customize, silicone padding offers neater seam lines, are more flexible and less likely to show through the hadatai.

Beyond costing more, they are also a lot heavier and more of a pain to transport.

Inflatable Latex Padding​

Inflatable latex padding is the most expensive option, but also the most flexible to achieving heavily stylized proportions. Typically in the form of a type of latex shorts, they have inflatable regions to customize their shape to the proportions you desire.

Shapewear​

Shapewear is a type of clothing worn under the hadatai, and usually over padding to smooth out padding lines, refine body curves, and create a more anime style look.

Shapewear is not required, nor is it exclusive to kigurumi by any means. Most kigurumi will use off the shelf shapewear, there aren't exactly kig specific brands.

Various types of shapewear include:

  • Waist cinchers
  • Full body shapers
  • Corsets
  • "Butt lifters"

Kigurumi Padding and Proportion Studies​

We will be referencing 3 of the most common female profiles in ACG (Anime, Cartoons, Games) media for the following section on proportion basics, as kigurumi characters being portrayed are overwhelmingly female: -Loli -JK (女子高生/high school girl) -Older Sister

But first, let's talk about the hard facts with regards to padding and shapewear.

Adding Padding Is Easy​

Adding padding is the go to method of easily changing your profile and proportions.

Bust? Breast forms are easily available in a myriad of sizes.

Hips? Also easily available.

Compressing Soft Tissue Is Harder​

Unlike the additive process of putting on more padding, trying to compress soft tissue is much more difficult.

It can only compress so much, and the body mass is still there, but reshaped or displaced.

The aforementioned shapewear can help, but it can only do so much depending on your body.

And depending on the type of shapewear worn, mobility can be restricted.

Skeletal Structure Are Hard Limits​

You have to work with what you got when it comes to your bones.

Wearing shapewear for kig cannot make you shorter, or taller, or change the fundamental structure of your torso and shoulders.

What needs to be done is understanding the character you are aiming for, the outfits commonly associated with them, and using those details to conceal features you fundamentally cannot change.

For example, if one is on the taller side, with wider shoulders and a larger torso, portraying a mature Older Sister type of character will provide them more leeway in concealing and playing with proportions.

Mask size will also impact proportions, with some taller kigs using oversized masks to portray smaller character profiles.

The talk of proportions leads us into the next topic...

Proportions and Relativity​

By now most kigs should be intimately familiar with their measurements, as ordering a hada requires the filling out of some detailed measurement sheets for the manufacturer.

So let's take a hypothetical John Kigurumi with these generic measurements as a reference: 173cm, 86-80-86, and they are aiming for a more JK build character.

With shapewear compressing their waist, and padding in the form of breast forms and hip pads, they can attain a ratio of 96-77-96 or something along the lines. Wearing a mask will then add a bit to their overall height, but because of the size of the shell, it can actually make their body look more fitting for a JK character.

Relative Proportional Measurements​

The above introductory paragraph gives you a general idea of playing with proportions, but to really start playing around with proportions, these are the following measurements along with their relative proportional influences:

  • Height - Total height, it will be relative to the size of your head when viewed from a distance, and then torso height being relative to the size of the head up close.
  • Shoulders - Relative to bust and hips
  • Bust - Relative to shoulder width, waist, and hips
  • Breast size - cup size relative to bust
  • Torso Length - relative to head and leg length, should be viewed as shoulder to the start of legs
  • Waist - relative to hips and bust
  • Hips - Relative to shoulders and waist, primarily based on the top of your thighs, the meatiest part
  • Thigh Thickness - relative to leg length and distance between. If you have long legs with a thigh gap, they will still look skinny with the addition of padding.
  • Butt - Works mainly by itself, can be smoothed in a transition between hips, thighs and butt. Shape and definition matters more than raw measurements here.
  • Leg Length - relative to torso, and is based around the start of the thighs to where feet stop. Heeled shoes will have the most impact in shifting perception.

Where to buy Shapewear?​

See our Buy Shapewear page for a list of shapewear sellers.