Bathing a Chibi

Step 1: Undress the chibi and place it into the bath water. Chibis are too small to use actual bathtubs, so you will need to find a container to use as a makeshift tub. A Japanese-style rice bowl works nicely. (See figure 1, "rice bowl", above.) Fill the bowl three-quarters of the way full with warm water BEFORE you bring the chibi to be bathed. This way, the chibi will not spend long without warm clothing or warm water around it, and will avoid catching a chill.

Step 2: Brush the chibi's hair back from its forehead with a fingertip. Keep your finger there to protect the chibi's eyes as you pour a small amount of warm water onto it to wet its hair.

Step 3: Apply a few drops of shampoo to the chibi's hair. Keep one fingertip on its forehead to shield the eyes, and gently lather the chibi's hair with another finger. (See figure 2, "lather", above.) Most chibis enjoy having their hair washed, as you are basically petting them on the head.

Step 4: Using the same method as step 1, rinse the chibi's hair with warm water. Let the chibi play in the soap bubbles that the shampoo produced; provide a bath toy, such as a rubber duckie, if possible.

Step 5: When the chibi is finished playing, carefully lift it out of the rice bowl using both hands (cup them beneath the chibi) and place it on the table. Give the chibi a scrap of terrycloth (a cutting from a towel is ideal) to wrap itself in. Place a second piece of terrycloth onto its head and gently rub the hair until it is damp and fluffy. (See figure 3, "towel scraps", above.)

Congratulations, you now have a clean chibi!

WARNING: DO NOT leave the chibi unsupervised in the water. It may not be able to climb out on its own, and will get upset if it feels trapped. Please always think of your chibi's safety when bathing it.

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Care and Keeping of Chibis series

Caring for a Sick Chibi...

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Psst...in case it's hard to tell without any clothes or goggles on, the chibi featured this time is Matt!

Matt is from the anime/manga Death Note, and belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata.