This talented Rilakkuma is just one member of an entire marching band of Rilakkumas from the Rilakkuma Wonderland Series from July 2013. I remember being super baffled by this plushie in particular because I didn’t know what was really going on with his snout? But I’ve really grown to love this design, and his expression while chewing is so adorable!
A few bits and pieces of Rilakkuma news from April:
I regrettably haven’t updated the Rilakkuma Lifestyle tumblr recently (which was the site that started it all for me! Even before this blog existed) but I’ll make more time for Rilakkuma photoshoots once my first year of medical school finishes up in 2 weeks. I just have to power my way through hematology/oncology – I can’t believe I’m so close to being done with my first year!
Wow, it’s getting warmer here and finally feeling like spring!
On that note, check out this cute Flower Bouquet Korilakkuma!
Perfect for springtime!
What a beautiful bouquet!
Tag art! Wow, this was back when Green Camel was all over Rilakkuma goods!
Adorable! And really so fitting for the season! She was really quite perfect for Valentine’s Day this past weekend!
This elegant plushie was released by Fansclub back in 2006 – wow, what a long time ago! What’s so special about this plushies is that the inside of the tag even has a little color chart of what the flower colors represent: since this bouquet is orange, this Korilakkuma represents cheerfulness – hooray! Pretty accurate, I think – receiving this Korilakkuma certainly made me cheerful!
Endless thanks again to Trinie, who so kindly sent this cheerful springtime Korilakkuma – she’s so pretty and a perfect fit! <3
In other news, the Rilakkuma world has been abuzz with great new things too!
Check out the new Lawson x Rilakkuma collaboration: the Vegetable Series!
Carrot and Cabbage Rilakkuma!
Tomato and Eggplant Korilakkuma!
Onion and Green Pepper Kiiroitori!
I love these! When have I disliked a Rilakkuma food theme though, hahaha. The little crates are so cute, and I do like how each of them have other veggies in their crates too (though I think tomatoes are technically fruits? hahahaha).
The whole set of 6 is 9135円 (tax included) online, but I believe Lawson stores will be selling them individually at 1450円 (tax not included), too, starting March 14. I might try to get my hands on 3 of them (1 of each), maybe the carrot, eggplant, & onion, but haven’t been able to decide yet – what do you all think? I really love this set a ton!
Even though I’m a Rilakkuma fan through and through, I love that Kiiroitori is getting some solo time!
The plushie and set are expected to come out sometime in mid-April, and they will also be releasing some housewares as lottery prizes at Lawson at the end of March – how special!
I do love the motif of Kiiroitori wearing the Rilakkuma ears hahaha it reminds me a lot of the Kiiroitori from the I Love Rilakkuma Series from 2011 – and it looks like they’re still continuing the 10th anniversary theme with Kiiroitori’s coins! Speaking of which…
Attentive reader Jennifer noticed a super-cute Sumikko Gurashi x Rilakkuma crossover in one of the latest San-X Fan Club books!
Shirokuma as Rilakkuma, Neko and Tonkatsu as Korilakkuma, & hahahaha Penguin as Kiiroitori!
Wow, how amazing is that! Two of my favorite series, celebrating together :D Great find, Jennifer!
This cute model train set is made by Kato Models, and celebrates the Yamanote Line x Rilakkuma collab from back in the summer of 2013! The 11 car set is a cool 30,450円 and the 3 car set is 12,600円 (tax included), but it’s certainly worth it for a model train enthusiast with an eye for stunning detail and Rilakkuma :D
Anyway, I’m so glad to be done with exams for now! It’s so nice to be back and active in the Rilakkuma world, especially since the weather is getting sunnier and sunnier :) I thought the exam went well, but grades haven’t come out yet, so we’ll just have to see! Now onto the next module of immunology and microbiology :O
Would love to hear what you think about the many new developments in the Rilakkuma world recently! I hope everyone’s local weather is warming up, too!
ETA (2/19): The Fukuoka 4th Anniversary Plushies have been announced!
I didn’t even know they went to school…
Looks like they’re graduation themed, and they’ll be available at Rilakkuma Stores everywhere on March 15 for 1,300円 each. What a cute surprise! I really love the cherry blossom petal motif on their tails as well as the border on the ad hahaha
Also two super adorable Rilakkuma keychains and a bookmark (for all my med school textbooks hahaha).
Wow! This set really shows a diverse representation of Rilakkuma over the years! This regal Rilakkuma is a Fanclub UFO plushie from their 10th anniversary series released in August 2013! The bookmark shows the classic Rilakkuma design, while the keychain features Rilakkuma from the 2011 Rilakkuma Meets Honey Series! The relaxing Rilakkuma plush keychain is also a Fansclub Rilakkuma plush from their Happy Picnic release from March 2013 – doesn’t he look a lot like the Happy Picnic Caravan plushie from 2012? Hehehe he’s so cute and relaxed!
This beautiful set came from the super generous Jennifer! Thanks so much again and again for all of your support, your generosity really cheers me up when times get tough, and your warm wishes always brighten my day!
San-X will be opening a temporary Rilakkuma Store in Nagoya as a special event from December 26 to January 6 where they’ll be selling plushies and other merchandise from the new Rose Series! After the event is over, the other 8 Rilakkuma Stores will be selling these plushies on January 11.
The set with all three (top) will be 5,000円, and the individual plushies will be 1,780円 each.
How special! The temporary store set-up is pretty interesting, and I don’t recall San-X doing an event like this before. Ariel at Rilakkuma Desu suggested that maybe they’re testing the waters for opening a new Rilakkuma Store there soon? We’ll see!
YAY I’m so glad San-X has decided to expand on this line – it’s one of my favorites! The collaboration between Rilakkuma and the JR Yamanote Line began in the summer, but I guess it was successful enough to merit an additional release of merchandise!
The train car cushion (3000 円) and the large stationmaster and fan plushies (5500 円 each) will be released on December 20 – they’ll also be available for purchase at the San-X Net Shop! In addition, they are also releasing little nameplate keychains, too. I already have the small Yamanote stationmaster and fan, but I might ask for the train car cushion as an early Christmas present hahaha
In addition, they’re also releasing a (non-plush) Rilakkuma x Yamanote toy train! They’ll be available at Rilakkuma Stores and department stores all over Japan for 2400 円 starting at the end of December. How cool! I usually only get the soft Rilakkuma products, but this is such a cute toy, and it even runs on toy train rails on battery!
Recently, there have been a few interesting minor releases here and there like the new exercise line with a Rilakkuma trampoline, a few Rilakkuma-themed pickles, and a potpourri of new kitchenware items like ginger graters, sausage picks, and ladle holders – but my favorite recent one is the new Rilakkuma cookbook!
Since I can’t read Japanese, the actual recipes would probably be of no use to me, but the photography and visuals are really quite inventive well done! It’s pretty cool because it seems like a lot of the recipes were inspired by existing Rilakkuma designs/plushies, like the cover! This cookbook sells for 1155円, and will be available starting December 13.
Really cute! Maybe I’ll try to pick one up if I end up at a Kinokuniya again :)
In addition to the regular individual plushies and the special Rilakkuma Store exclusive set, San-X will also be releasing their usual XL sitting versions of the individual plushies on January 2 in 2014 for 13800円 in Rilakkuma Stores as well as the Net Shop.
While I likely won’t be getting these XL plushies, I’m really quite partial to this series because horse is my zodiac sign, but also because the illustration with all 3 of them under the horse is just so cute and unique! I think San-X went in a really bizarre direction with it, but I think it paid off and I appreciate it a lot for the creativity! I’m expecting the set sometime soon, and I can’t wait!
In other news, both fortunately and unfortunately haha school has been picking up this week since we have a huge midterm next week that covers the past 10 weeks of anatomy/physiology/histology/embryology – our exam will last the entire day! Good news though, is that once it’s over, I have winter break with finally some time to relax with my Rilakkumas haha. I really felt like I’ve learned a lot this semester, and Rilakkuma has been with me the entire way!
Yay, they’re both finally here: the Yamanote Line Rilakkumas!
Wow, a double Rilakkuma set!
The backs of their shirts match!
Their hats are slightly different: the station master’s is red/gold with a bear, and the fan’s in black/gold with an “R”!
The Yamanote stationmaster Rilakkuma’s ID badge says “駅長リラックマ” (Stationmaster Rilakkuma) with a little gold bear icon! His outfit also has cute bear-shaped buttons with an R lapel pin design!
The stationmaster also has a super cute cross-body bag!
The Yamanote fan’s shirt looks like the front of the train with the Rilakkuma crew inside, and has a “50” (for the Yamanote green line’s 50th anniversary) as well as “山手線 Yamanote Line” printed on it!
Yamanote fan Rilakkuma also comes with this suave camera with a little Rilakkuma detail in the corner! Also, I’m so impressed that they even added a little flash lamp detail on the camera, too!
These two bears were part of this big collaboration between the JR Yamanote Green Line and Rilakkuma back in early August. It was a perfect collaboration because the Yamanote Green Line was celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, and Rilakkuma’s celebrating his 10th!
In addition to this great plushie pair release, the Yamanote Line itself became Rilakkuma-themed! While I didn’t get to ride the Yamanote Line while this collaboration was happening, San-X did take some pretty great photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5.
The Yamanote Line holds a special place in my heart because I rode it so often with my family during my short visit to Tokyo this past summer. Our hotel was close to Tokyo Station, and we took the Yamanote Line to Kanda to get the Pizza Hut x Rilakkuma collab products as well as to Harajuku to visit their Rilakkuma Store!! So these two plushies are sort of like my very belated souvenirs hahaha
The Yamanote Line basically goes in this huge circle around Tokyo, with stops at a bunch of the major city centers! One of the stops, Tokyo Station, actually has a Rilakkuma Store in the terminal!
Getting both of these bears was such an awesome team effort: Ariel (Rilakkuma Desu) helped me get the Yamanote fan Rilakkuma from Tokyo (right on the Yamanote line!), and Liemzie (Tea Two Sugars Please) helped me get the Yamanote stationmaster from Umeda! A gigantic thank you to both of them – be sure to check out their blogs!
In other news, I still have more exciting Rilakkuma stuff to photograph and post (I seem to have a constant backlog haha), but you know, slow and steady with that because I’ve got medical biochemistry on my plate right now too haha.
Whew, I made it to the Philippines!! It’s great to be here, but that also means my Rilakkuma adventures will slow down significantly from the past week – which is totally okay because I have a huge backlog of plushies/hauls to photograph anyway haha it’s good to finally get a chance to slow down a bit.
On my last morning in Japan, I finally got my hands on something from the Rilakkuma x KFC collaboration: an Aloha Rilakkuma fan!
In this campaign, you can get one of six Aloha Rilakkuma items with each smile set (like a kid’s meal). I thought the chicken was pretty good – even better than the KFC in the States! But that might have been because I was hungry hahaha
I really liked the picnic blanket design (pancakes!), but I figured I could get more use out of a fan. My sister ordered a smile set too, and chose the same design fan. I think the hot dog design is super cute and silly, especially since you can’t even buy hot dogs at KFC hahaha
The fan turned out to be a good choice because yesterday was HOT and we had to wait in line in the sun for the bus to the airport. On top of that, the Philippines was hot upon arrival (like always), so even though I’ve only had this fan for 24 hours, it’s already seen a lot of use!
Getting this box/fan was so much trouble – we stopped by a KFC in Kyoto and they had nothing in stock… then in Tokyo, we asked our hotel concierge, and they gave us directions to a KFC that recently closed… then we got directions to one in Shibuya that didn’t carry any smile sets at all… but the employees there finally gave us information to another KFC in Shibuya that did stock the Rilakkuma products that was just a short walk away. Such a tiresome journey, but rather worth it, I think! I did everything I wanted to do in Japan, Rilakkuma-wise!
Wow, I wish I was still in Japan to see this! My family took the Yamanote line quite often in our short stay there. Of course, everything has to happen right as I leave Japan haha
In any case, I’ll certainly be trying to get my hands on these two plushie designs – one for me and one for my sister!
I think more details about this collab will be released in mid-July so stay tuned!
