Positive Emotions: Joy
If you want to create joyful, happy or laughing Japanese emoticons use high up eyes. For example, you can use these characters: ^, ￣, ´ and `. Mouths are important too. Japanese girls often use character ω (omega) for mouths of their emoticons, thinking that such kaomoji are cute, or, as they say, kawaii. You can also use ∀, ▽ and other characters resembling a smile. And Japanese also like to add different effects to kaomoji (stars, tears of joy, and so on) for better emphasis.
Positive Emotions: Love
Love and kissing Japanese emoji often use character ♡ (heart) or its combination, for example, ノ～ ♡ (air kiss). You can also use a set of characters "chu" for a kiss (in Japan it means a sound of a kiss). Another interesting love emoticons feature is an active presence of such characters as * or o, which mean "rousy cheeks" and are often used in combination with /, \, ノ, ﾉ and ヽ. This emoticons are trying to hide their faces in embarrassment. You can also use character ε (bow lips), which indicates the desire to hug and kiss. Japanese girls often joke saying that such kaomoji look like perverts!
Positive Emotions: Embarrassment
To depict embarrassment, you can use ; character (something like a drop of sweat on a face), or characters for blush (*, o). In addition, you can try to make your emoticon cover its face by its hands in embarrassment.
Positive Emotions: Sympathy
The expression of sympathy or compassion requires at least two Japanese emoticons: one of them will be upset about something, and the other will calm him down. You can use kaomoji from "sadness" category for the first type. A key element for the second one will be "a calming hand" (ノ", ノ'or ヾ) or "shoulder of support" (see examples).
Negative Emotions: Dissatisfaction
Dissatisfaction can be easily expressed by kaomoji's facial wrinkling. You can use ＞＜ characters for dissatisfied or displeased Japanese emoticons. Additional wrinkles can be added by # character. You can also express dissatisfaction with eyes like ¬ ¬ or ¯ ¯ and with a well-chosen mouth. Such techniques are quite common in anime and manga.
Negative Emotions: Anger
The secret of angry or evil emoticons is in their eyes. Use ` and ´ or ｀ and ´. Just don't change the characters' order, otherwise your angry emoticon will become friendly and kind (compare: ` ´ - evil eyes, ´ ` - kind eyes). In addition, you can add "wrinkles" ＃ and their stronger forms: メ or ╬; and 凸 (middle finger) and ψ (claws) as an arm. You can also use "snarl" 皿 or 益.
Negative Emotions: Sadness
Sad or crying emoticons are quite easy to create. Use Т Т, ; ;, > < and other characters for crying eyes. You can also use / \ or ノ ヽ to cover your face.
Negative Emotions: Pain
Use characters > < combined with special effects like ⌒☆ to depict pain. You can also use eyes of “x” type for “stunned” emoticons. Of course, there are also many other ways.
Negative Emotions: Fear
For scared or frightened Japanese emoji use forward and backward slashes and similar characters depicting that they hide their faces in fear. You can also try to depict screaming, waving their arms and so on.
Neutral Emotions: Indifference
You can make indifferent / whatever emoticons by adding special characters for arms (┐ ┌ or ╮ ╭, and various combinations with forward and backward slashes and related characters). You can use ー ー or ˇ ˇ for indifferent eyes.
Neutral Emotions: Confusion
Use "blank eyes" ・ ・. You can add ; or 〃 to strengthen the effect. The eyes like ￣ ￣ would be suitable too. Finally, you can add such effects as thinking (・・・), raising hands (┐ ┌ or ╮ ╭) and propping the head with an arm ( ゞ).
Neutral Emotions: Doubt
For doubt Japanese emoticons use ￢ ￢, ¬ ¬ or arrows. This will create the impression that their eyes look toward as if they hear a lie.
Neutral Emotions: Surprise
For shocked and surprised emoticons use mouth wide open (ｏ, 〇, ロ), surprised eyes (O O, ⊙ ⊙) and raised hands. You can also add character Σ (sharp jerk) or some cofusion (character ;). Furthermore, you can try to use big eyes in combination with small mouth (for contrast).
Various Actions: Greeting
For greeting (and farewell) Japanese emoticons you can use forward and backward slashes as a standard. However, there are a few more interesting options, such as ﾉ or ノ. And if you want your emoticon to wave its hand, try to use ヾ, ﾉﾞ and their various combinations with the "tilde".
Various Actions: Hugging
For hugging emoticons use respective outstretched arm characters.
Various Actions: Winking
Winking Japanese emoticons look cute and they are quite easy to be made. Just use different characters for left and right eye.
Various Actions: Apologizing
In Japan, when expressing apology, it is common to perform a traditional bow. Therefore, apologizing Japanese emoticons are created this way. Use lowered eyes (_ _ or . .). If the bow is performed from a sitting position, you can use m m for the eyes. Otherwise, use characters < > for shoulders.
Various Actions: Nosebleeding
If you want to depict nosebleeding / nosebleeds like in anime and manga use the following characters: i, ﾊ, ;, 〃.
Various Actions: Hiding
Using character | for hiding emoticons makes them look like if they are peeping from behind the wall hiding from somebody.
Various Actions: Writing
Character φ looks good as a pen, if you want to make writing emoticons. You can also add a few underscores or dots to depict the process of writing itself.
Various Actions: Running
You can create running Japanese emoji by adding special motion effects. Among available charactrers are ε, =, ミ and C.
Various Actions: Sleeping
Use zzZ for snoring. You can also put your sleeping emoticon on a pillow [ ]. Simple as that!
Animals: Cat
Japanese believe that cats are insanely cute creatures. This explains a variety of anime and manga fetishes: cat ears and tail, saying "nyaa~" (nyaa - "meow" in Japanese) and other kawaii things. Therefore, it's not a surprise that in kaomoji main animals are cats. So, if you want your emoticon to become a nice kitty, use = = for its mustache and ^ ^ for the ears.
Animals: Bear
Japanese bear emoticons are easy to identify by their special snout (ｴ) or ears ʕ ʔ.
Animals: Dog
The secret of dog emoticons is in the ears ∪ ∪. Use these characters instead of brackets.
Animals: Rabbit
It’s not a secret that rabbits are extremely cute animals. And emoticons are able to make them even cuter. You can use x for your rabbit’s face and slashes for its ears. You can also try other variants.
Animals: Pig
You can use (оо), (OO) or (ω) for a pig nose. Add it to your emoticon and you'll get a funny cute pig.
Animals: Bird
For bird japanese emoticons and their mouths (beaks) you can use such characters as Θ or θ. This is the main idea.
Animals: Fish
Fish and seafood is an inevitable part of Japanese life. That's why fish and sea creatures emoticons are quite popular too. You can use << or 彡 for a tail, and )) for the gills.
Animals: Spider
For spider emoticons use characters /\╱\╮╭╲ for the legs and try to add a few pairs of eyes.
Other Types: Friends
If you want to describe friends and friendship, the best way is to make your Japanese emoticons holding each others hands. You can use 人, メ, 八 and 爻. Although, there are other suitable characters. You can try to find them.
Other Types: Enemies
The concept of "enemy" here is used in a joking manner. Just try to describe how your emoticon kicks his opponent, or anything like that. You can use special effects like ☆, ﾐ, 彡 and Σ for emphasis. You can also use x x for the eyes of unconscious emoticons. All the rest is your creative approach.
Other Types: Weapons
Rifle ︻デ═一, sniper rifle ︻┻┳══━一, shotgun ︻┳═一, minigun ✴==≡눈, gun ￢, laser ・・・--------☆, chain ○∞∞∞∞, bow D・・・・・------ →, bomb (((((((((●～*, syringe ―⊂|=0, pepper spray 占~~~~~, jo-jo ~~~~~~~~~~◎, boomerang (( く ((へ, spear ―――→, grabber ――――C, sword _／ or ¤=[]:::::>, boxing gloves QQ.
Other Types: Magic
Japanese emoticons can depict even magic in its all diversity.
Other Types: Food
Japanese like to drink very much! You can use 旦, 口, 且 and similar characters (for example, simply []) for this purpose. And for hot drinks (tea, coffee) just add ~~ (steam) characters. There is also a great variety of eating emoticons (see examples in the table below).
Other Types: Music
Japanese emoticons can also describe musical aspects of life (singing, dancing, listening to music, etc.). You can just add ♪ character to your kaomoji or change its hands position (if you want to make it dance).
Other Types: Games
Japanese can describe even games and sports through kaomoji. Here are a few examples: tennis, ping pong, volleyball, basketball, ball, boxing, kendo, fishing, bowling, playing video games. Try to find out what is what.
Other Types: Faces
These emoticons have human-like faces.
Other Types: Special
No specific category emoticons are added here. So each of them has special description.