Mom Li Ming prides herself on her Bento Monsters, the gorgeous boxed lunches she makes for her two school-age sons.
She says she makes about six of the lunches (also called charaben or kyaraben) every week.
“I started making charabens when [my older son] went to primary school in 2011. He missed me terribly then and had problems adjusting to the longer hours at primary school. I started packing him charabens, hoping to cheer him up and let him feel my presence and love through them,” she wrote on her website. “My younger boy … loves the charabens I make for his brother and requested for them too.”
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Each of her elaborate creations is filled with both nutrients and whimsy. Ming shapes food to look like cartoon characters or animals, and shares step-by-step tutorials on how to re-create her magical meals on her blog. Previous designs have included quail eggs draped in seaweed to look like tiny penguins, and a Hello Kitty snowskin mooncake.
“It’s difficult to say which ones are my favorite because I like all of them for different reasons. Ideas come from everywhere,” she told The Daily Mail.
In the future, she plans to release a book about how she does it. For now, here is a sampling of her fantastic bento boxes.
H/t BoredPanda