What This Book Actually Is
Hiroshi Hirata's How To Draw Manga Vol 34 Costume Encyclopedia Vol 2 Intimate Apparel is one of those reference books that quietly became essential gear for anyone doing character design work in manga or illustration. It is not a tutorial in the traditional sense. It is a visual catalog with some notes, organized by garment type, covering bras, panties, sleepwear, shapewear, and similar items rendered in multiple poses and styles. The book was originally published in Japan and has been available in English through various publishers over the years. Most people grab this book because they are tired of guessing how underwear drapes on a drawn figure. That is reasonable. The book gives you reference sheets organized by style: underwire bras, bralettes, sports bras, briefs, thongs, boyshorts, corsets, girdles, nightgowns, and related items. Each piece is shown from multiple angles on basic mannequins or lightly rendered figures. There is some text explaining construction details like strap placement, band tension, and how different fabrics behave under weight. The Hirata approach here is practical over artistic. He does not go for dramatic fashion photography aesthetics. He shows you the garment as it sits on the body, which is usually more useful than a stylized pose anyway.
I spent probably six months flipping through this book while working on a character redesign for a webcomic. The issue I kept running into was fabric rendering. The reference photos and line art are clear, but translating that into your own pen-and-ink or coloring workflow required some adjustment. My workaround was simple: I stopped trying to copy the shading style and instead used the book purely for structural reference, then applied my own line weight and cross-hatching patterns. That cut down revision time significantly.
What You Will Find Inside
The intimate apparel section covers a lot more ground than most people expect. Beyond the basics, you get detailed breakdowns of seamed versus seamless construction, how lace trims interact with underlying fabric, tucking and gathering techniques for ruffles, and how different body types affect the fit and appearance of each garment. There are also sections on layering, showing how lingerie looks when worn underneath clothing, which is where a lot of artists struggle. The volume also includes a handful of full costume sheets where multiple pieces are combined into complete outfits. These are not random. They show common combinations like a bra with matching panties and a robe, or a corset with coordinating slips. If you are designing a character who wears lingerie as outerwear or as part of a fantasy outfit, these sheets are useful starting points rather than something to trace directly.
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Common Mistakes When Using This Book
The biggest problem I see is artists treating the reference figures as anatomy templates. The mannequins in this book are stylized. They are not accurate human proportions. If you base your character's torso shape on them, you will end up with distorted ribcage-to-hip ratios. Use the garments as the reference, not the bodies they sit on. Another issue is ignoring fabric weight. The book shows everything in relatively uniform line quality, which hides the difference between sheer nylon, heavy cotton, and structured satin. When I first copied panels too literally, my drawings came out looking flat and weightless. The fix was adding a second pass where I noted the fabric type for each piece and adjusted my rendering accordingly. Thicker materials get heavier lines and less visible underform. Sheer materials get lighter lines with more visible underlying shape.
What This Book Does Not Cover
It is not a general drawing textbook. If you need to learn how to draw a human body from scratch, this is not the book. It assumes you already understand basic figure structure. It does not cover swimwear, athletic support gear in depth, or male intimate apparel, which might disappoint some buyers. The price point is also on the higher side for what is essentially a picture reference book with light annotation. For people who want more construction detail, pairing this with a general clothing design book like Ken'ichi Yamamoto's works or even a tailoring reference manual fills in the gaps. Yamamoto's volumes go deeper into pattern drafting and seam placement, which complements Hirata's visual approach nicely.
Where to Get It
How To Draw Manga Vol 34 Costume Encyclopedia Vol 2 Intimate Apparel is available through major online retailers and specialty art book distributors. It has gone through multiple printings, so condition and edition can vary. The most recent English editions tend to have better paper quality than the older print runs, which matters if you plan to sketch directly over pages or scan them for reference. Used copies from sites like Mandarake or Amazon Marketplace are an option, but check the spine and page condition carefully before buying. I have picked up older stock that had yellowed enough to make fine line detail harder to read at a glance.
