#Rilakkuma plush series#

She extensively covers tag placement, content, and design. MaryRilakkuma has an extremely well-researched guide to sorting out the real plushies from the fakes, so definitely check it out. These seams should be symmetric across the midsagittal plane. There will also be two smaller seams that flare out from the base of the head, as well as a seam that begins at the top of the head, and goes down the back to the base of the head. There should also be Y-shaped seaming across the face that is noticeable, but not overbearingly heavy (an indicator of fine vs. I find that even with genuine plushies, there is still a bit of variation, but for fakes, the difference is obvious. Proportion is the key here, so this is where looking at how genuine plushies look beforehand will help. Obviously, this may not apply to plushies with a different expression. The middle of the eyes (transversally) should be near level to the round top part of his black nose, with about a third to an eighth of the top above the white snout. If the target Rilakkuma has a standard face, his eyes should be perfect circles the same black embroidery as the nose/mouth. Many counterfeiters get sloppy sewing the snout on, resulting in a lumpy amorphous shape. The snout should be a very smooth, fuzzy, and centered oval. The bottom mouth part should flare out, but end with a rounded tip, not a point. Because of the embroidery, the black part will dip in slightly from the rest of the white snout, so the white fur around may be visible an immaculately smooth nose outline may indicate that it has been printed on.

The mouth area should be pure black (#000000), and be embroidered (not printed) on. Like fake designer purses, the seaming on a counterfeit will be conspicuous and will likely not have the subtlety of a genuine plushie.įor some reason, counterfeiters consistently mess the nose/snout area up, making it too large, too small, or simply the incorrect shape. Their stuffing is generally not well-distributed, creating a deflated or overinflated appearance.

Construction: does the stuffing look even? Fakes tend to be asymmetric and lumpy, with a lot of puckering.

Check that the tone and shade look accurate – camera settings may vary (for example, catalogue photos tend to be a little washed out), but it shouldn’t be a vastly different color. It can generally be brushed in one direction.

Fabric/fur: how does it look? Rilakkuma’s fur should look very soft and fuzzy to the touch.

Overall, what’s the size of the plushie? For the small collectible bears, they’re generally about 22-23 cm from foot to ear depending on their pose and costume.

Body proportions: does the head size look expected compared to the body size? Rilakkuma has a pretty big head, but it should stay proportionately cute.

Make sure the listing pictures are of the actual product, not just a reposting of the catalogue image. Ideally, you will want to find a handful of listings to compare quality later on.īefore getting into the specifics of genuine versus fake Rilakkuma plushies, just use your first impression and your gut instincts – you can easily weed out many fakes based on overall quality alone. Or, perhaps using an agent for sites such as the Japanese auctions or Taobao – certainly not necessary, but may be helpful.

#Rilakkuma plush series#

It might be helpful to know different versions (like picnic, happy holiday picnic, happy picnic, and hamburger can all refer to the same series) or translations of the series you’re looking for. a bunch of times depending on how rare the item is.

This may mean plugging the name of the plushie into the search bar of your favorite search engine, eBay, etc. I’ve made a longer post on this before, but briefly: searching for your plushie means you might have to scour different avenues of the web before you find listings for it, depending on its rarity. Once you have a specific plushie in mind, save the official San-X image for the product so you can compare listings to it. Rilakkuma store blog – for more recent limited store-only editions

Rilakkuma blog – for general products, limited editions, and caravan editions Net shop blog (before March 2013 / Net shop blog (after March 2013) – for net shop exclusives, posts non-studio pictures occasionally, which may be better for comparisonĬharacter timeline, by year / Rilakkuma timeline I am not affiliated with San-X this list was compiled strictly from personal observation and experience.įirst, if you’re new to the scene, get acclimated to what genuine Rilakkuma plushies look like by browsing through the San-X website: These guidelines may be more applicable to recent releases and may not hold true for older ones. Disclaimer: these tips are specific to the smaller ~22 cm collectible plushies (like this, this, and this) sold in stores and events, not the UFO catchers, licensed goods, larger sizes, or extra-company collaborations (like Lawson plushies).