i've actually been stewing over this design since 2023!
the traits i decided on before even starting a sketch were:
child
traditional jp clothing
androgynous
the reasons are pretty self-explanatory:
jirachi's big head and small body + eyes low on the head translate well into "child-like" features
jirachi is inspired by the tanabata festival
jirachi has no gender
i'll break down some of the design elements in my gijinka below!
first, jirachi's star shaped silhouette comes from its 3 pointed hat and its short body's legs to form the 5 points of a star. since turning it into a human means losing this shape, i preserved the star shape by keeping the hat but adding a giant bow to the back to form the 5 pointed star. (this gives a logical explanation for the flowing yellow ribbons too.) also, the pose i drew the gijinka in preserves the star silhouette too.
the next most notable feature jirachi has is the eye on its stomach! but it can't be a real flesh eye because traditional jp clothing is very modest, so making a stomach window/crop top to show skin will look unnatural. (trust me, i tried.) so the eye on the stomach has to be the "concept" of an eye.
i had to make it visually understandable as a "closed eye" at first glance, so i added "eyelashes" to the "closed eye" even though the original jirachi design has no eyelashes.
the outfit itself is a mix of shinto priest (body, male coded) and shrine maiden (sleeves, female coded) outfits. the reason i didn't go with a regular kimono is bc white kimono imply connections with the deceased/funerals and that's not what jirachi is really about. plus shrine related outfits seem more "legendary" than a common kimono and jirachi IS a rare mythical pokemon
the hakama/pants is something both sexes wear, and the short length is for the kid-like knee length shorts vibes + to preserve the "short body" the original jirachi design has. the rest of the legs are bare to look invisible to the rest of the design.
Q. why did you add a star on the forehead even though the original jirachi doesn't have that?
A. it's cute and whimsical
Q. why the rope on the sleeves instead of regular ribbons like regular shrine maiden sleeves?
A. rope looks heavier + implies being tied down/sealed off which i like bc it ties into jirachi's sleep 1000 years wake 7 days cycle. also, shinto rope aka shimenawa indicates a sacred area/is the border between ordinary and spiritual. sooo the story it tells is "a sealed off wish granting being who is only granted release for a mere 7 days every 1000 years"...
extra stuff
here's the 2023 sketch that i posted on twitter only:
it doesn't capture jirachi's original personality very well (bc i was trying to make all my gijinkas witch themed back then) + the crop top and exposed stomach look off so it got scrapped/left unfinished until now
the inspos i used while drawing the final design:
here's a scrapped sketch:
its the same design as the final; the only reason i scrapped it was bc the proportions were off. i wanted to draw a child but this sketch looks like a preteen. maybe it can be a more grown up jirachi-tan but what i wanted to draw was baby jirachi-tan so this one will remain a sketch forever
I love your designs! You pack a lot of personality into them! Is there anywhere where you post more about your characters, like story ideas or character relationships??? I know some artists don't write much and just enjoy the design process, so no pressure. But if you have more I'm sure I'm not the only one who's interested!
ty so much!!!!!! im so happy u like them :DDD
tbh ive never thought of actually writing down stories/inspo for the designs ive made since this is an art account and ive been making an effort to post only art here
but now that you mention it its not like a text post or two will kill anyone lol. i could explain the reasoning behind the design choices i made for some designs... ty for putting the idea in my head!!!
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