What is Animegao Kigurumi? 
Animegao (アニメ顔, meaning “anime face”) kigurumi (着ぐるみ, a Japanese word encompassing costumes that cover the body), or simply "kigurumi" in some circles, is a cosplay medium that originated from anime stage shows, but eventually became its own subculture. The medium allows for fictional characters to be brought to life without the restrictions of human appearances. Wearers use a fiberglass or plastic mask to replicate the stylized facial features of anime characters and a skin-colored bodysuit called a hadatai to maintain the illusion of an animated look, though some have opted to not wear one at all if the mask matches their skin tone. Some wearers use breast forms and/or hip padding to depict the exaggerated body proportions of some characters. The medium also depends on expressive body language, so characters are brought to life beyond the mask.
It’s very important to mention that animegao kigurumi is usually a very expensive hobby, with the average price for a mask being around $600 USD. Why? I don’t know, but I think that because these masks tend to be one-off items and the makers put in a lot of work (such as capturing the character’s appearance accurately and making it functional), the price is equivalent to the effort. There are cheaper options, such as buying generic masks or making them yourself, but generally, people commission a maker to make their masks for them.
Majority of the characters people tend to kig are usually female anime characters, but there are some that portray male or even non-Japanese characters. Some even kig as original characters, too. On the contrary, the majority of kigurumi performers are male, but there are some who are female or those who don’t identify within the gender binary (such as myself). I think it’s like that because many men want to become their favorite female characters, but feel they don’t have the appearance to do so with traditional cosplay. With Kigurumi, it allows for them to embody the characters without those limitations.
What is NOT Animegao Kigurumi? 
Due to this medium being very niche, there’s bound to be common misconceptions, which is why this section is here so early. This section will both debunk myths, why some might think this way, and be an excuse for me to rant about comments I just can’t stand reading even though they’re not directed towards me.
"Kigurumi is a fetish."
Certain people in the community use kig as fuel for bondage related kinks and other sexual stuff. Due to the nature of kig being basically someone dressed as (usually) a girl, being fully covered in a bodysuit, and wearing a hard to breathe mask (especially ones that have locks in them), it’s easy to see why people would think that. This does not represent what kigurumi is. In fact, this should be a separate community entirely. The fact that we have to deal with these people often sucks.
"Masks are made of silicone."
People likely think this is the case because of the appearance or that most cheap Halloween masks are made of such. If it were the case, the masks would be all floppy and sad. As stated before, masks are usually made of plastic, fiberglass, or just some kind of solid material. The image shown on the left is likely one of the first things you see when you search up “kigurumi mask”: a creepy, melting face. Be aware that mask scams on websites like AliExpress, DHgate, and other dubious websites use the term in their listings. No real mask maker would sell on those websites or use that word.
“This is creepy.”
This is a comment I often see and I don’t like it. Almost every time I watch a kig video on YouTube, someone says that. Seeing such comments demotivates me. Listen, dude, we try not to be. That’s all I can say. In fact, it says more when a kig calls another creepy.
“Can you stay in there forever?”
People who comment this are either joking or a fetishist. Either way, this makes me uncomfortable. To answer the question, no. We do this for fun and not for your sick kicks. Some might, but not everyone. If I ever get this comment myself, I will smack their grandma to the sun.
“Why are you scared? Isn’t this what you wanted?” and other “ANIME IS REAL!” related jokes
This is the most common joke people say and I hate this the most. If you see any kig photo outside of kig communities, someone will say this and it will severely bother me personally. The image shown on the right is the most common image associated with this stupid joke, but there are several variations. I also don’t like how some kigs themselves get into the joke as well. They might like the joke, but I don’t. Can you guys PLEASE get a more original joke?
This one comment that thought a kig video was animated LMAO
I can’t find the video this was on, but I saw this comment and I’ve been thinking about it ever since. It said something like “I thought this was real!” The fact that they think kig is so unbelievable that they thought it was an animation is beautiful. This isn’t exactly a rant, but I just think about this comment a lot.
Beginner's Dictionary 
I already used a bunch of terms you didn’t recognize. This section is, as stated, for beginners. Not every term is on here, but here are the most common terms you’ll likely stumble across in kig spaces. To anyone in said spaces, please let me know if any of these terms or definitions are inaccurate.
Kig or kigu (noun): short for kigurumi Kig (verb): to do a kigurumi cosplay of a character; probably a term only I use Kig (adjective), performer, wearer, kiger, kigu (adjective): several interchangeable words to describe someone who wears kigurumi Hadatai, zentai, skinsuit, bodysuit: several interchangeable words to describe the skin-colored suit that covers the body; is also used in general cosplay spaces Generic: mass-produced masks where the person can only choose the hair and eyes Padding: foam or silicone pads made to shape the body; also used in general cosplay spaces Handler: a person supporting a kig in public to make up for the mask’s limited vision; is also used in general cosplay spaces Hard hair: some masks have hair made of solid material, so not every mask has a wig; I’m not a fan of those personally
The Kigurumi Guidebook’s dictionary has more terms and definitions, so please check them out.
How I got into Kigurumi 
One day, I dreamed of being a cosplayer, but since I’m ugly and didn’t want my actual face to be publicized, I didn’t know how I could make it. I randomly remembered the existence of animegao kigurumi and decided to do that... Yeah, I don’t remember the first time I learned of kigurumi. I only remembered that it was a thing. Not a very exciting story, is it? What I can tell you is my first hands-on experience with kigurumi, which is more exciting.
My very first kigurumi mask was from Munimuni Works (むにむに製作所) and I got it around 2021 when I was like 14 years old. Specifically, the KAWAII-75 mask. I think I actually chose that one impulsively. I initially wanted to choose the KAWAII EX-15 mask, but I dodged a bullet of regret because the final result wouldn’t look as okay. However, the next part is when I did face some regret. I purchased my hadatai from DAME Kigurumi, a UK based mask maker... and it cost around $200 USD. Mom, I’m so sorry for making you spend that much on a skinsuit considering Munimuni already provides some. One day, I hope to recycle the fabric of the suit and give the money back to her. I still remember her being bothered by the amount of measuring she had to do and converting inches to centimeters. Anyway, the last parts are the usual: costume, wig, some accessories, the works. I got all of those from EZCosplay, a website you shouldn’t buy from because the people behind the site are a bunch of sleazebags. The listings are gone, but the items I got were the typical “mass-produced cosplay of okay quality” type thing. I remember the purchasing experience. I was in my mom’s room watching her buy these things using her phone. She was having issues buying the costume because her bank thought it was fraud or something. She had to call them and purchase the thing during the call. At some point, I thought the call was over, and said some unnecessary stupid shit like “Yay!” when the purchase was successful, so the person on the other side definitely heard me and I am still embarassed about that to this day.
Now, I won’t explain my first experience putting on the full costume because that’s pretty obvious. I couldn’t see much, breathing fogs up the lenses, my sense of touch was gone, and all that jazz. The photo on the left is the most decent photo I have of my first time trying it on. It’s not bad (besides that sucky costume). There’s a reason why I put a Mikunano photo for this section: My first kig was Hatsune Miku. A real “expectation versus reality” situation going on here.
I wore her in public two times: at Comic Con Revolution Ontario (California, not Canada) 2021 and on Halloween 2022. I looked like total crap, but the people thought I was cute. The Comic Con experience was extra special because I got a few free Miku shit from people who saw me and I took a picture with Santa Claus (though I don’t know where the photo is). Halloween was also good, too. At the mall, someone thought I was Sailor Moon, I was called cute many times, at a church, a really little kid was confused, a person at a game at said church questioned how I could see and I ominously rubbed my lenses in the area where I could see. I think about that specific moment often. At the time, it was a school day and masks weren’t allowed, so I couldn’t wear it at school.
After those two times, I never wore her again. I thought she looked bad (the bangs never stay put and the twintails are a tangly nightmare), I needed to do more research on higher quality items, and overall actually take the time to look good. It will take a lot of time and money to become a good looking kigu, so the changes won’t be happening soon.
Characters I Want to Kig Now, here’s my favorite part. My kig ideas are some of the most random and specific you’ll ever see. Some of these may be the first ever kigurumi cosplay of the character. Note that costume variations of the same character aren’t listed (except Hatsune Miku). Hover over the images to see the character's name and source.
.png "Hatsune Miku (MORE MORE JUMP! ver.) (Project Sekai)")
.png "Rika Seto (D4DJ)")
Kigurumi in Popular Culture .png)
Though kigurumi is used in stage shows and hobbyists, there have been other ways people used this cosplay medium. Minami Momochi (pictured on right) is “the world’s first animetic idol” who specializes in anime and Japanese idol music. You can find her social media links here: Official website (archived on the Wayback Machine) YouTube channel Twitter Instagram
Now here’s one most people recognize. Electronic music producer Porter Robinson’s Cheerleader music video (screenshot on left), released on March 20, 2024, features several duplicate kigurumi masks created by Kigurumi Sensei using a Munimuni base mask. In the description of the music video, where the production credits are, their name is erroneously misspelled as “Kigarumi Sensei”. Music video on YouTube Kigurumi Sensei on Etsy Kigurumi Sensei's YouTube channel
Lulu Hashimoto (pictured on right) is a “living doll” Lolita fashion model created by fashion designer Hitomi Komaki (or is it Millna? Are they the same person? Very contradicting information). Her appearance is that of a BJD (ball-jointed doll), which is a subcategory of kigurumi and multiple people have worn Lulu over the years. The project ended on September 15, 2021 due to issues with the mask production circle Nukopan. Official website Instagram Article by Reuters Article on Lolita Fashion Wiki
I only learned of this one because of YouTube recommending a video to me by some YouTuber. Monster Party is a cosplay café located in Akihabara, Japan where the food is monster-themed and the waitresses are monsters of different varieties. The most prominent of which are cyclops. Pictured on the left is Monaka, one of the more known waitresses. Cyclops masks are another subcategory of kigurumi masks and I think they have an advantage when it comes to sight because the singular eye allows for a wider view. On February 19, 2024, quirky plush company itemLabel announced a collaboration with the café where a special edition of their character OuiOui can be purchased from April 18th to the 30th. Official website Instagram Article by Tokyo Weekender
Sources 
Graphics: Logo is made by myself using Inkscape Fancy Parts Nyaa on Neocities Picsart (keywords: cutecore, juminocore, jojifuku, heiseiretro) Pinterest (keyword: animegao kigurumi) Crusher on Rentry Blumchen.cafe on Neocities Drizzle on Neocities Cursors-4U.com
Information (that hasn’t already been listed): The Kigurumi Guidebook Animegao kigurumi on Wikipedia Kigurumi on Japanese Wikipedia