In the name of anti-bacterial cloth and kawaii, begone disease!

At the beginning of the year, Japanese Twitter saw a surge of drawings featuring a mermaid-esque figure. With long flowing hair, bisected fins for feet, body-covering scales, and a bird’s beak, the figure seemed more monster-like than soothing for a worldwide pandemic that left multiple countries shut down.

Known as amabie, the yokai, or supernatural creature, from the Edo period (1603-1868) served as a ward against illness. The tradition goes that by simply drawing its image, one could be guarded from disease, and to no surprise, many Japanese artists took to Twitter with their amabie creations, through the conventional mediums of digital art as well as the unconventional mediums of sewing, latte art, and pancakes.

Maybe you aren’t too confident in your art skills though, and for our more clumsy folks, Sanrio has teamed up with Japanese goods producer Asunaro-sha for a delightful solution: Hello Kitty Amabie products.

While Hello Kitty’s poster-girl, Kitty-chan, has taken up a number of odd jobs to support her company, this time she’s taken up the gig of modeling as a traditional amabie. With a new luscious hairdo and petal-shaped fins, Amabie Kitty’s fresh look is eye-catching and pleasant, highlighted by soft macaron pastels.

▼ This limited-edition collab features Amabie Kitty on three special design templates.

The typical Hello Kitty collaboration has your standard fare of charms, snacks, and stickers, but the highlight for this particular collab is the inclusion of anti-bacterial cloth. Products made from this special cloth include a makeup pouch, a reusable shopping bag, towels, and even socks. Maybe superstition can’t fully protect you from disease, but at least you can stay eco-friendly and relatively germ-free.

▼ The makeup pouch and reusable shopping bag are respectively 1,100 yen (US$10.26) and 1,300 yen (US$12.13) each.

Special snacks featuring Amabie Kitty will also be available for fans of the esoteric yokai and Kitty-chan. Stans can choose between cider drops (400 yen) or cookie sandwiches with a cream filling (600 yen).

Sales for these collab products will begin from August on Asunaro-sha’s online shop, though the snacks will be available to purchase from the end of June. If you’re looking for something with a little more sustenance with the same amount of cute, there’s also Ikumi Mama Animal Donuts in the shape of amabie for everyone’s eating and viewing pleasure!

Source, images: PR Times
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