Animal Costumes Blog

2011-12-29T09:05:00.000-08:00

Check out this new video by Molotov Jukebox, the gang take to Chat Roulette to perform 1000 one-to-one concerts in a day, dressed in all manner of completely awesome outfits. Keep an eye out for our Tiger Kigurumi Costume and the Giraffe Kigurumi Costume that make appearances throughout. We've been hanging out on Chat Roulette hoping they will make a comeback soon, but we're now feeling a little disturbed...

Lego man in a kigurumi

2011-12-27T08:29:00.000-08:00

We've just seen this little dude from Lego's Minifigures range. In case you're not well-versed in the whole Minifigures thing, the range includes all sorts of characters from popular culture, world history and society. So for example you might get a snowman, a mechanic, or a Minotaur made out of Lego.

We are of course very excited that they have decided to include in their new range, a Lego man that appears to be wearing one of our kigurumi dinosaur costumes. Only problem is, when you buy one you have no idea which character you are going to get until you open the pack. We've already bought three and no joy so far! If anyone is interested in doing some swapsies, please get in touch urgently!

Dave and the animals

2011-12-19T12:07:00.000-08:00

This video is amazing. It ain't got no costumes, but it sure as hell got some animals. And it's amazing. Well done Dave.

Animal Costumes Dance

2011-11-24T12:08:00.000-08:00

This Korean video has some absolutely wild dancing in our animal costumes. Really must be seen to be believed...

November

2011-11-21T12:27:00.000-08:00

Yes we know. It has been blooming ages since our last post. We've no idea, of course, how many people out there rely on our updatification as their only source of joy in an otherwise dark and disturbing reality. But for those of you that fit that description, our apologies.

Well it was a hectic halloween, and apprently you lot's favourite kigurumi was... drum roll... more drum roll... slightly awkward drumroll duration........the fox! Not very scary, in fact one our cutest animal costumes, but there you go.

Christmas is looking like it is going to be equally animal costume crazy and we are already running low on some of the favourites. So if you are thinking about purchasing something from our shop for a loved one, please try to do so as soon as you can to avoid disappointment. Particularly scarce, are the Kangaroo, Seal and Lion. Don't say we didn't warn you.

You might also have noticed that we've really ramped things up a notch in our range of animal hats. The British winter has been quite pleasant so far but the new range is proving very popular so far.

We do have some other really exciting developments to tell you guys about, but that will have to wait until next time...

Animal Costumes Shop discount code

2011-08-22T13:49:00.000-07:00

Hello lovely blog readers. We think it is very nice that you take the time to read the stuff that we occasionally blog about, so we thought we'd give you a little thank you pressie - use this discount code to get 5% off any order at Animal Costumes Shop:

Animal Costumes Shop discount code:

BLOG123

Use this once you get to the checkout stage to receive your discount.

Happy animal costuming!

Puppy dudes with clothes on

2011-08-07T06:18:00.000-07:00

We've just discovered a Tumblr feed, that we just had to share with you all. Hipster Puppies is a great collection of photos of puppies wearing sunglasses, the latest trends, drinking fine wines, smokin' cigars and generally looking uber hip. Above is one of our favourite pics, but check out the full range here.

People wearing animal costumes, and now puppies wearing people costumes. Whatever's next?

New kigurumis - movie stars!

2011-07-24T12:04:00.000-07:00

We have just finished working on the launch of a new range of kigurumi animal costumes. These guys are officially licensed movie stars, and they are seriously cool. They are a bit more pricey than the animal kigurumis, but it's really reflected in their awesomeness (we hope you agree!).

Gizmo is the adorable mogwai creature from the Gremlins movies. Possibly the cutest thing to ever come out of Hollywood, he is a little furball of joy and we love him. A word of caution though, if you feed him after midnight all hell will break lose and you will find yourself overrun with nasty little green gremlins. Unfortunately Animal Costumes Shop can accept no liability in the event that you decide to eat a post-midnight snack whilst wearing this kigurumi. Buy the Gizmo kigurumi here.

Batman is not really an animal. Unless you count humans as animals, which really you should because they are. Animal or not, the caped crusader is super dooper enough to make it into the Animal Costumes Shop line up any day of the year. This kigurumi is easily one of our faves, with a detachable cape and a zip up back (as opposed to the usual button-up front). Endearing butler not included. Buy the Batman kigurumi here.

Felix the Cat is a cartoon character that first appeared on screens in the 1920s. He has been through various incarnations but his iconic big white eyes have always been unmistakable. His adventures are among the more ludicrous and surreal of the cartoon world. What will you get up to? Buy the Felix the Cat kigurumi here.

Competition - win a kigurumi

2011-07-20T13:19:00.000-07:00

O my gosh, it's competition time again! This time a kigurumi of your choice is up for grabs. Not here though, that would be way too easy. We have partnered with super-cute-stuff blog Hawaii Kawaii, to run a competition for it's readers. Go there now to enter - it's free!

http://www.hawaiikawaii.net/2011/kigurumi-giveaway-with-animal-costumes-shop/

Kigurumi favourites: old and new

2011-05-05T12:12:00.000-07:00

We are very pleased to announce two new additions to our family of animal costumes - the Duck Costume and the Lion Costume. Both are available in the all-in-one Japanese kigurumi style, and both come in different sizes. They've been online for a couple of weeks now and are proving to be really popular.

We've also recently welcomed back some old favourites including the Giraffe, Dinosaur and Seal. We are working hard to expand our collection of kigurumi animals even further in time for the UK summer festival season - watch this space for some exciting newbies including the super-colourful parrot costume!

April Animal Charity of the Month

2011-04-14T04:27:00.000-07:00

Our animal charity of the month for April is the Bumblebee Conservation Trust. They are dedicated to protecting the UK’s bumblebees.

As well as being one of the coolest animals, bumblebees are incredibly important. Einstein once said: “If the bee disappears from the surface of the earth, man would have no more than four years to live. No more bees, no more pollination … no more men!”

So we think that the work of the BBCT needs a very special mention. Thank you BBCT.

Check out their website for more details, to learn about bumblebees and to find out how you can help. www.bumblebeeconservation.org.uk/

Lobster costumes and the endless possibilities...

2011-03-17T12:49:00.000-07:00

If you are anything like the gang at the Animal Costumes Shop, you are somebody that yearns to live like the rich and famous do. Day after day longing for a taste of how the other half live. Just imagine: Using caviar instead of I Can't Believe It's Not Butter to lube up your finger when it gets stuck in a Smarties tube. Gold plating on your teeth instead of the blu-tac we normally use when we've eaten too many sweeties. Perhaps a beard made from Champagne that has been frozen into a beard-shaped ice sculpture? Hanging out at posh restaurants, hotel lobbies, horse riding hat parties and other similar toff swank.

Does this sound like something you want? It so does.

"But how does one go about breaking into this uber-exclusive champagne-beardy glitterati scene?" we can almost hear you asking even though we were writing this in what is by now (for you) the past. Well the Lottery doesn't work (trust us we tried it last Saturday). Becoming an accountant might be quite fun, but it takes ages to learn how to use those darn spreadsheets. But fret not. Help is finally at hand thanks to the kigurumi lobster costume from Animal Costumes Shop.

You see, those rich dudes, they just lurrrrrrve lobster(s). Can't get enough of it. Lobster for lunch. Lobster for dinner. Lobster for, erm, tomorrow's lunch. The list just goes on and on. So you see its really quite simple. Just put it on and loiter outside the Executive Lounge in Dubai Airport looking vulnerable for a few days and you are bound to be picked up by a passing sheik at some point or another. He will almost certainly take you home and lavish you with delightful gifts of untold fortune and refer to you as "Your Royal Lobsterness".

So go on and add a touch of class to your life! Just make sure you take it off before they boil you alive!

Fox and Red Panda

2011-03-05T10:16:00.001-08:00

The Fox costume and the Red Panda costume made a long awaited comeback in our shop today, and it got us thinking that these are two of our favourite animals that we would like to tame and have as a pet. Which one would be best?

The red panda has obvious assets (being the cutest animal on the planet with one of the furriest tails), but the fox may be less so.

We think a fox would be a really cool pet. Smart and vicious enough to catch a mouse, but cuddly at the same time too (also with a good fluffy tail). A bit like all the best bits of a cat and a dog mish mashed together . Maybe? In fact, this archeological article suggests that foxes might once have been tamed and kept as pets by ancient man.

Which animal would you choose?

New kigurumi animal costumes

2011-02-17T11:47:00.000-08:00

It has been absolutely blooming donkeys years since our last post here. Sorry world. We just got so carried away with our Facebook and Twitter pages, that we just... well... forgot.

Anyway, apologies out of the way it has been an amazing few months at the Animal Costumes Shop. We have been able to expand our selection of kigurumi animal costumes exponentially and it now includes (in no particular order) the Zebra, Unicorn, Mouse, Elephant, Dinosaur, Turtle, Dragon, Shark (our favourite), Skunk, Cheetah (your favourite, apparently), Fox (a real cutie), Crocodile, Bee, Wolf, Lobster.... I could go on all night. Basically there are loads of new kigurumi available from Animal Costumes Shop and they are all almost as awesome as you are. So you should totally check them out...

P.S. lots of new kigurumi and other stuff coming soon

Interactive Youtube starring a guy in a bear costume

2010-09-28T12:50:00.000-07:00

We came across this absolute gem of a viral video today, starring a guy in a realistic animal costume.

It must be magic. Or something. You are actually free to write the end of the story yourself.

Use your imagination and enjoy...

Mary Bale put in dustbin by a guy in a cat costume

2010-08-29T08:50:00.000-07:00

When news broke last week of the bank-worker Mary Bale's atrocious act of animal cruelty (if you haven't seen the CCTV footage click here) she was propelled into utter infamy. The UK was dumfounded - how could a sweet old lady be so cruel to a cute little cat? What were her motives? and why the hell was that bin under 24hour CCTV surveilance anyway?

For a while she remained annonymous. But when her identity was revealed the nation's press had a field day. Check out this video reaction featuring little old Mary getting her just deserts from a guy in a cat costume:

The video was produced by Mercia, Coventry radio station. The video has already been watched by more than 1.5 million people on YouTube.

Bestival fancy dress ideas (fantasy)

2010-08-29T08:16:00.000-07:00

So Bestival kicks off in just over a week and this year's fancy dress theme is 'fantasy'. To celebrate, we're giving Bestivalites 10% off our animal costumes. Just use promo code BESTIVAL at the checkout stage.

Here are some animal-themed ideas for the fantasy fancy dress theme:

White rabbit - the rabbit from Alice in Wonderland. A classic.

Falcor - the labrador dragon thing from The Neverending Story.

Chewbacca - from the original Star Wars trioligy.

Pandorians - Any of the creatures from Avatar=

Noah's Ark - The Bible is surely the origin of the fantasy genre. This option is pretty good for large groups.

Totoro - from Studio Ghibli's brilliant My Neighbour Totoro

Donkey - from Shrek

Sharkboy - from The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3D

Harry Potter's cat - hypothetically speaking

Ator the fighting eagle

Beorn - the bear from the Hobbit

Hopefully that should give you something to think about. Now we've got that sorted. Let's just hope the weather holds out. Happy camping!

Animals with tongues out

2010-08-15T07:33:00.000-07:00

Whilst searching through not-quite-as-big-as-the-other-guys social media platform, Tumblr, we came across a remarkable set of pages.

"Animals With Their Tongues Sticking Out OMG" is the one stop shop for all of your animals-with-their-tongues-out pics. Check it out and send them your own pictures too. Here are 2 of our favourites but check out the full selection here: http://animalswithtongues.tumblr.com/

Check out our Animal Costumes

What is a kigurumi costume?

2010-08-01T10:58:00.000-07:00

Kigurumi is a Japanese phrase, meaning 'a stuffed toy that you wear'. Which says alot about what a kigurumi costume is already.

Many kigurumi outfits represent animals, always with a cartoony or stuffed toy look about them. Other kigurumi outfits represent cartoon characters, both popular and make-believe.

The phrase encompasses great big outfits padded to give an unhuman shape - such as the performing plonkers you might expect to see wondering about in Disney Land and also much smaller scale costumes. The smaller scale outfits are sometimes known as 'disguise pyjamas' or 'animal pyjamas' . These are often light-weight all-in-one jumpsuits, with a hood to give the wearer a new identity. As long as a costume looks cartoony or stuffed-toy like, it pretty much counts.

In Japan, kigurumi animal pajamas have become fashionable streetwear, and it is not unusual to see the latest manga characters or a tiger walking down the streets of Tokyo late at night. Or early in the morning come to think of it. These costumed idivduals are known as 'kigurumin'.

In the west a similar craze exists, known as fursuits, furplay or furries. Although this has yet to venture out from close-knit conventions and private parties into the realms of street wear, largely due to the prevalance of the Disney-style padded costumes. Difficult to negotiate narrow doorways, you might imagine.

At the Animal Costumes Shop we stock kigurumi of the animal pajama variety. These all in one baggy outfits with character-hoods look great on the UK festival circuit and will keep you nice and warm too. We also stock kids sizes and the kids love 'em. See some pics below.

Visit our shop to see our full range of kigurumi animal pajamas.

2010-07-07T14:53:00.000-07:00

Hello. Do you know how to calculate your cat years? It's not as simple as the dog years method. Oh no no no. Multiply by 7 years? How crude.

For cats, things get a bit more complicated. The accepted method is to take the first year as 15 years, the second as 10 and every year after that as 4. Confused? Us too. But don't worry help is at hand - a complex algorithm has been developed by leading scientists resulting in the creation of a 'cat years caculator' site which can be accessed here.

Lovely. Cat costume on. Cat years calculated. Purrfect

...and so it begins

2010-07-01T12:39:00.000-07:00

Well I never!

The eagle has landed, the cat is out of the bag, and golly gosh it sure was hard work. It was 2 years ago that we first dreamt of an animal costumes shop. We have been working like a dog for the last few months and after a huge amount of setbacks (to name a few: serial litigants, idea 'borrowing' and massive fluctations in international currency exchange rates) our dream is now a reality. Our shop is as far as we know the only animal costumes specialist and very exciting it is too. Check it out at http://www.animalcostumesshop.com/, and let us know what you think: hello@animalcostumesshop.com. More stock will be coming soon!