Orangeparfait Sweet Marionettes - Creepy-Cute Pieces Of Art!

While exploring the Yebisu Garden Place Winter Illuminations, we dropped by their Christmas Marche.

All the booths are really unique, but one of them really stands out. It is called Orangeparfait presents a Christmas Story. Let us introduce you to the unique kowaii* marionettes on display here that will pull at your heartstrings.

*Kowaii: A combination of the Japanese words kowai (scary or creepy) and kawaii (cute) describing cute things that are also kind of creepy.

What Is Orangeparfait?

Charmed by the uniqueness of marionettes, creator Mr. Noma decided to start making his own in 2008.

He was particularly fascinated by Czech marionettes. However, Czech marionettes are some of the most difficult to manipulate. They are equipped with a lot of small details including movable joints, jars and sometimes even ears.

Mr. Noma's goal was to create detailed marionettes while making it possible to manipulate them with very little effort. He wanted everyone to enjoy his creations, not just the highly skilled puppeteers.

Mr. Noma quickly developed his own style and created his first sweet mummies shortly after he started making marionettes.

Asked why he chose the name Orangeparfait, he answered that he loves the color orange and that he wants people to enjoy his creations just like they would enjoy a sweet parfait.

First, you ravel in their display and then you will find yourself fully lost in their sweetness.

Mummies, Scarecrows, and Other Creatures

While you will be able to find kid-friendly dogs and teddy bears at Orangeparfait, his most popular creatures are his cute mummies and scarecrows. He refers to his scarecrows as dungarees.

The mummies are his most popular creation and he offers them in a great variety. You can get them with hearts, hair, buckteeth, egg heads and even in other colors such as orange and pink. There are even boy mummies and girl mummies.

His dungarees seem to be mainly girls, but they are nothing short of cute and unique. They feature grabby hands and a cute updo.

But mummies and dungarees aren't the only unique creatures at Orangeparfait. When we visited, Mr. Noma showed us three of his very special creations.

The first one he showed to us was a little drunk angel.

The little one was enjoying himself and took the occasional sip from his bottle while he was introduced to us.

The next visitor was a snowman with his carrot nose the wrong way.

The last special guest was still in the making at the time we visited. It was a kowaii kabuki actor's head. Don't you wonder what he will look like when he is done?

Become a Puppeteer

If you manage to catch Orangeparfait on display somewhere you might be able to ask for a short puppeteer lesson.

The legs, arms, head, and mouth of the marionettes are all movable separately. Considering that Czech marionettes are usually some of the most difficult to manipulate, Orangeparfait marionettes seem rather foolproof. It's possible to get the hang of it very quickly with a little practice.

Get a Custome Made Marionette

As of now, Orangeparfait has no fixed shop in Japan. The easiest way to purchase the marionettes made by Mr. Noma is at his both located in the Yebisu Garden Place Christmas Marche. However, he will only be there until December 25th, 2017.

If you can't make it in time to the Marche you can also purchase his creations at Puppet House. However, please be aware that they have a very limited stock.

The best way to order a marionette from Mr. Noma is to message him directly on his blog or Facebook page. This way, you can get a custom marionette. You can pick from one of the marionettes he has made in the past or ask him to put your own twist on one of his creations. Maybe a green Mummy? How about a drunk Dungaree? The choices are endless.

Orangeparfait ships worldwide so you can receive your little creepy-cute friend wherever you live!

Marionettes for Charity

© Orangeparfait

Mr. Noma has also created dolls for charity. Through his project called "The Heartstrings Marionette Project", he donates his marionettes to schools in the earthquake struck areas of Japan.

Many children in those areas still don't have toys and he decided to bring a smile back to their faces with his sweet marionettes. So if you decide to invest in one of his creations, you can be sure that some of your money will help keep his charity work alive as well.

Creepy-Cute Art Pieces Made in Japan

© Orangeparfait

You can find marionettes all over the world but the creations by Orangeparfait are unique in style and very easy to use. Japan is the land of kowaii things and Mr. Noma's art reflects this perfectly. His marionettes are quirky, funny and have just the right amount of creepy.

An Orangeparfait marionette enables you to get a unique art piece from Japan that will bring you joy for years to come.

How about a unique creepy-cute Christmas present?