The Story Behind the Self-Pleasure Item iroha mai RURI Produced by Kiko Mizuhara

iroha celebrated its 10th Anniversary on March 3, 2023. iroha and Kiko Mizuhara, appointed as Ambassador for iroha's 10th Anniversary, have collaborated on a self-pleasure item, the iroha mai RURI. This new product was released on June 29, 2023, in Japan.

It is a self-pleasure item inspired by Kiko's love of nature and the sea, and features vibration patterns and colors associated with those elements. It also incorporates the essence of whales, a symbol of happiness for Kiko.

It all began back in 2022 at the TENGA headquarters. In order to develop self-pleasure items together, a development meeting was held between Kiko and female employees of iroha. The result was an item filled with love and Kiko's own passions from her life's work. Here's a look at the development meeting!

Profile Kiko Mizuhara

Born on October 15, 1990, in Dallas, Texas, U.S.A., Kiko Mizuhara was raised in Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. She began modeling in 2003 and made her film debut in 2010 in the movie "Norwegian Wood." In 2017, she launched her own brand called OK. In 2021, she was involved in planning, acting, and supervising her first program with Amazon Prime Video, "Kiko Kikaku." She is actively working as an actress, model, and designer.

OK (Office Kiko) website: https://officekiko.com/

Kiko Kikaku website: https://kikokikaku.jp/

Instagram: @i_am_kiko

Contents

• Kiko Mizuhara × iroha Product Development Meeting Begins!
• With the iroha mai, Discover a New Kind of Pleasure for Yourself!
• Vibration Patterns inspired by the Sounds of Courting Whales.
• Kiko Mizuhara's Original Sound Pattern
• Kiko Mizuhara's Interest in iroha Craftsmanship
• Colors Chosen by Kiko Mizuhara.
• Kiko Mizuhara's Favorite Inspirations and Thoughts
• Kiko Mizuhara × iroha Collaboration - iroha mai RURI
• Kiko Mizuhara Meets the iroha mai RURI! (Video)
• Watch the iroha mai RURI Development Meeting (Video)

Kiko Mizuhara × iroha Product Development Meeting Begins!

Our new statement is "Color Your Pleasure - Love Yourself and Live Life Your Way". Kiko Mizuhara is the embodiment of this statement.

Kiko Mizuhara has a long-standing love for iroha and understanding of the importance of self-pleasure. We invited her to collaborate with us on the development of the iroha mai, an item that provides a completely new type of vibration experience. And to our delight, she enthusiastically agreed. This was also a first-of-its-kind collaboration for iroha.

The development meeting began in December 2022. Joining the meeting with Kiko was Gemma, in charge of product development, Ms. Honda, the designer in charge, and Ms. Nishino and Ms. Inukai from public relations.

The new self-pleasure item in collaboration with Kiko is based on the iroha mai, which uses HapticWave® Technology to provide 10 sound-based rhythm patterns with more dimension and depth.

Gemma (Product Developer): "It has a wide variety of sound waves, from gentle to strong vibrations, so you can choose the one that best suits your mood at the time."

Kiko experienced various vibration patterns of the iroha mai as a member of the development team operates the tablet. When the frequency changed, Kiko exclaimed, "It's amazing! It's like creating music!"

Kiko experienced the iroha mai for the first time on this day. “You can feel the vibrations in your hands and it's so amazing!" She tried various patterns to find her favorites. There are a large variety of rhythms, from slow oscillating rhythms, gentle pulsing rhythms, to light, waltz-like rhythms. All of these have been created by the developers themselves.

When one of the iroha staff explained, “We manually enter the information into the PC from a variety of references, including music and culture,” Kiko looked at the tablet monitor in amazement. She seemed captivated by this analog approach to creation.

With the iroha mai, Discover a New Kind of Pleasure for Yourself!

The iroha mai features HapticWave® Technology.

This technology is used in smartphones and game controllers for tactile feedback through vibration. Just as speakers transmit sound when they come into contact with air, the mai converts sound wave stimuli at 40 to 70 hertz into vibrations to create a tactile sensation, which resonates deep into the body.

When they disassembled the mai and showed Kiko the motor, she was intrigued and asked, "Can I take a picture? I promise not to show it to anyone."

After learning about the mechanisms of the vibrations, the basis of the mai's pleasurable sensations, Kiko said, "I understand why it feels so good now. Of course, I like the other items, but the unique mai sensation that resonates deep within my body is something I have never felt before. It’s amazing you can adjust the strength of each sound wave pattern to three levels of intensity. I feel like I'll be able to discover a whole new kind of pleasure for myself.”

Intrigued by the developer's explanation of the internal structure of iroha mai, Kiko exclaimed, "Wow! There's so much inside! When I touch the body of the mai, I can feel the three-dimensional vibration!"

The design of iroha mai was inspired by waterbirds. Since it incorporates sound wave patterns inspired by dance and music, we thought it fitting to name the series 'mai,' which means 'dance' in Japanese. From there, the design developed from the motif of waterbirds in flight. "The base’s surface is reflective because we wanted it to have the appearance of a waterbird standing on the surface of the water." said Gemma (Product Developer).

Kiko also commented on its beauty, saying, "iroha products are not items you would hide in the back of the closet, but are so well designed that you want to display them in your room. When I learned how meticulously designed these items are, it all made sense."

Vibration Patterns inspired by the Sounds of Courting Whales.

As the development meeting progressed, Kiko helped with the development of the vibration patterns, the color of the silicone cover, the mirror finish of the pedestal, the case, the package, and the name.

Kiko Mizuhara's Original Sound Pattern

First, let's start with the sound wave patterns.

"The vibrations can also be picked up from ambient sounds," explained Gemma, lead product developer. "Tell us what you have in mind and we can create it.”

Kiko immediately responded, "I have a specific sound pattern in mind that I'd like to create." These were sounds that Kiko Mizuhara, who regularly finds solace in nature and the ocean, dearly loves and draws inspiration from.

Kiko holds the iroha mai (R8: Relaxing Musical Rhythm) near her ear, "Amazing! I can hear it!"

"Is it possible to make a whale's call into a vibration pattern? One of the sounds that I love and cherish so much is the sound of whales. I've been swimming with whales while diving in the ocean. At that time, I heard male whales calling out to females. I can't forget the deep and gentle sounds that I felt through the vibrations of the water. It resonated deep within me. I'm not sure how exactly that sound translates into vibration or if it will make people feel good, but the idea just came to me," said Kiko, sharing this idea with a video of a whale she filmed in the ocean. The staff also loved this idea, "It's awesome! It's going to be absolutely wonderful."

In fact, some whale songs are "courtship calls." Depending on the species, males sing songs to females by emitting a characteristic call, or "song," during the mating season. We took the sound waves of this courtship ritual, and turned them into vibrations for this self-pleasure item. In terms of cherishing your own body, this inspiration has created a very wonderful story.

Kiko Mizuhara's Interest in iroha Craftsmanship

Next, let's think about the design. The iroha mai is encased in a soft and smooth silicone cover, and the current lineup includes "TOKI" in cherry blossom pink and "TSURU" in white, both of which give a sense of softness and comfort.

The colors are carefully hand-selected by the designer, who applies paint to an identical plaster replica.

Choosing the right colors can be tricky. If we just pick from a set color palette based on our imagination, the final product might look different from what we envisioned. Design is crucial for iroha products. ”We often mix paints to fine-tune the shades and find the perfect match, but sometimes we discover unexpected colors as we paint," explains designer Ms. Honda.

Prototypes made during the development of the iroha mai. "We tried a lot of colors to find the right one," says Ms. Honda (Graphic Designer).

Colors Chosen by Kiko Mizuhara.

"Wow, that's amazing!" mentioned an impressed Kiko Mizuhara, amazed by the dedication and the hands-on approach to the detailed craftsmanship.

If there is one theme that the color palette is inspired by, it would be traditional Japanese aesthetics in a modern form, or "Modern Japanese". Since all of iroha's products are unified in terms of designs and names being in a “Modern Japanese” style, we also sometimes use colors that are traditionally Japanese as well. Ms. Honda loves to look through Japanese color dictionaries when carefully selecting the perfect hues.

Kiko discussing the color of the main body and the design of the package with the person in charge, "I really want to express the feeling of the sea."

"I like colors that remind me of nature and the ocean. For example, baby blue that resembles the beautiful color of the sea, the enchanting hues of the sky during the magic hour (just before sunrise or after sunset), or a blend of blue and purple like the color of a whale, all of these are lovely," said Kiko Mizuhara.

Thinking of nature and the ocean led to the idea of "whales," and from there all sorts of ideas started flowing, one after another.

Ms. Honda's casually remarks, "We could also change the cover for the product..." Which prompts Kiko Mizuhara to enthusiastically share ideas, saying, "Yes, let's do it!"

Ms. Honda pulls out some old sketches and shows Kiko various ideas for the Charging Base and Cover. "I think a cover that is slightly see-through would create a bit of a mysterious atmosphere, like the magic hour. I also thought it would be nice to have a veil-like cover that envelops the Product Body, allowing a different color to faintly emerge from behind it."

Kiko is delighted to learn that the cover can also be made in an original color, "It would be amazing to have a faint color that evokes the image of the foam of the waves and the sea."

"Light gray for the Charging Base would go well with the body. I want it to have a gentle feel," says Kiko. As she describes her vision, iroha staff can't help but feel admiration, "It's beautiful!” “The image of sparkling white waves is simply stunning!" I have a feeling that this is going to be something insanely cute!" (Nishino from public relations).

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Kiko Mizuhara's Favorite Inspirations and Thoughts

The development meeting proceeded at a brisk pace. As the ideas begin to come together, the enthusiasm of the iroha staff begins to rise, “This is going to be a fantastic product!” "With nature and the sea as key themes, the iroha mai RURI is packed with many of Kiko's favorite things. I'm really looking forward to seeing how the motifs of whales and courtship songs come together in this one product," says Ms. Honda, lead graphic designer.

Kiko was also relieved, saying, "It was a heavy responsibility to collaborate on such an amazing item, and a part of me was worried about whether I would be able to do it. However, I am really happy that I was able to contribute with various ideas. I am looking forward to the final product. I never thought I'd be able to come back here (iroha) again. I'm happy to have this opportunity, and I'm determined to pursue my vision to the fullest extent!" she said passionately.

Kiko (center) and iroha members after the development meeting of the iroha mai RURI

Kiko Mizuhara × iroha Collaboration - iroha mai RURI

A completely new type of sonic vibration with HapticWave® Technology.

Enjoy sensations you have never experienced before that will resonate slowly and deeply inside your body.

Introducing the new iroha mai RURI.

Equipped with 5 rhythms patterns developed together with Kiko Mizuhara.

Experience even deeper pleasure with the iroha mai RURI.

iroha's HapticWave® Technology

converts 40-70 Hz sound waves into vibrations with haptic technology*, providing a "realistic" tactile experience for your body.

Experience a deeper, more three-dimensional vibration experience.

* Haptic technology provides tactile feedback through vibration and movement.

Click here for Product Information!

Kiko Mizuhara Meets the iroha mai RURI! (Video)

Kiko Mizuhara x iroha collaboration, the iroha mai RURI is here!

Want to see Kiko Mizuhara's reaction when she first saw the finished product? Be sure to watch the video!

Watch the iroha mai RURI Development Meeting (Video)

You can also watch the video of the iroha mai RURI development meeting with Kiko.