First Fursuit

March 25, 2013, 3:35 pm

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This is my first fursuit head. It's still a work in progress. (Still on the foam stage). I think I need to bulk up the cheeks some more.
Any advice/comments welcome. The head is slotted to help combat heat, to allow some heat to vent. Not sure how well this will work when the fur is on it. (I've never seen it done, perhaps I could end up the hero if this works!)



More pictures and the construction process:
http://imgur.com/a/fTgXy

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Balaclava WIP, help?

March 25, 2013, 10:19 pm

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So, I tried on my balaclava after working with the foam, leery of how well it would work...

Perfection. It slides on so easily, my glasses have plenty of space, I have wonderful vision and ventilation! I'm so thrilled! The jaw works well as well.

Now I'm concerned about shape. I haven't messed with foam in a while and my previous head was plastic canvas based, so it came out large, though it was easier to shape since there was structure to glue foam to. It's supposed to be a husky, but I want her to be feminine and have a thinner muzzle. Some angles look fantastic, and sometimes a picture of the same angle looks off, even downright terrible... I'm confused and really need you guys to help me out :D Also, how do I keep the whole head from moving with the jaw?

I haven't added the ears or made the expression stand out yet, and it needs smoothed. Opinions though?

Dorumon : Dragon-like head critique time :D

March 26, 2013, 3:01 am

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Dorumon head! I finished the head foaming, at least enough for some nice critique which I love ^_^ *PS: Heading to bed so I can get some rest and hopeful to awake to some awesome critique <3




Soooo....


Red line I made for myself earlier BEFORE the above photos were taken...

Bacalava: I know you're going to state that this type of bacalava is NOT suggested, however I can not stand the thin material bacalavas, they make me very uncomfortable and I don't like to feel wet inside a suit. Oddly enough i've worn a suit for 4+ hours with this thicker cloth bacalava method and I was comfortable the whole entire time and didn't feel wet in my head. Other suits with thin bacalava I felt wet all over my face X_x I HATED IT. Just had to state it in case the bacalava police come to the rescue! XD I'm looking for other critiques like the ones below or anything else.

After making the nose as long as my red line I kept feeling it was WAY TOO LONG, so I had to use about half the nose length from the red line and posted the photos above afterwards. I made the jaw a lot taller but I really feel I should keep the ears large, it gives it a bit more character. Is what I've done suggested?

Moving jaw: I feel as if I always always always need to use a piece of metal to keep the upper jaw in place with my nose position, only because typically the head pushes down too far so the moving jaw has a harder time functioning. This costume's jaw moves better than my previous one, however the wire around the bottom of the upper jaw may help the jaw move by keeping the upper jaw from pressing weight on the lower jaw. I subtracted foam away from the upper jaw slightly which also helped out, but is there a method I should take note of or use instead of wire?

*Elastic: I used two pieces this time, one around the top of the head and the other one a bit lower, both connected at the bottom middle of the lower jaw with added fleece on top for durability.

*Teeth: I'm going to look at some memories for this.... Do you suggest having teeth in the first place? :0 this might be suggested for this character.

Casting polyurethane foam from smooth on?

March 26, 2013, 7:17 am

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Has anyone done this yet? I know draconic has and so has media. I just finished one of the sculpts I would like to cast and have made a silicone mold for it but there are a few different do sites and I've never used it before. Has anyone else used it yet?

Thread in bulk???

March 26, 2013, 10:46 am

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Hey everyone! Im curious if anyone knows where i can get thread in bulk. Im looking for Coats Dual Duty XP heavy thread or at least thread close to that strength. Im not looking for thread used for sergers as they will not fit my sewing machine.

Please let me know. I will really appreciate the help! :)

How do you put glass/resin eyes on a foam head?

March 26, 2013, 2:23 pm

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So I am using a foam/balaclava method, I got a good shape going but much refining has been going on.
I have some glass eyes and I have been wondering how to attach. Do you need to attach them to some kind of ridged base before gluing? Any suggestions/redlines would be awesome!

Am I done foaming?

March 26, 2013, 7:41 pm

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I know I just did a WIP, but I fixed some mistakes, fluffed out the cheeks (and expression), and added ears. I might make the eyes holes smaller, but until then, I'm done and ready to work on the mouth and fur.

I just need your critique before I start. Does anyone see anything that needs to be fixed? The side view seems wrong... Thanks!

PM Progress 2

March 26, 2013, 10:47 pm

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https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/523990_284188728380014_92200443_n.jpg
https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc7/599706_284188638380023_241612739_n.jpg
https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc7/575693_284191488379738_23138346_n.jpg with an old nose i had laying around.
Hey again, took off the poo nose and made a hole...thing the size of the nose i need. It look ok other than the noselessness?

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Finished New Fursuit Head

March 27, 2013, 3:17 pm

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I'd like to step back and reflect on my first attempt at mask making and now my fourth attempt. Of course this time involved a lot of different strategies in comparison to building on a resin cast mask. I actually had a lot of fun making the head this time around. I felt a lot more loose and free and I didn't have to work so tight.
Everything done by me except for the nose, which came from DreamVisionCreations It is a balaclava & foam based head. High quality furs from CR's Crafts. Combination of both glued and sewn parts. I've never had any issues with things falling off with glue- when hot glue is done right and in the right places, it is extremely effective (i.e. hot gluing all ending knots in my stitching).

She will debut this year at Anthrocon. I am really excited about this new head! :D It came out better than I had expected AND I saved so much money doing it myself (though I am still an advocate of supporting fellow artists!). Below are pictures, the first being a comparison of both the realistic resin base head and the new toony head.

I also made a "tips and tricks" tutorial based on my experience with this project here--> http://www.furaffinity.net/view/10217791/

How to get measurements without suspicion?

March 27, 2013, 4:26 pm

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I need to get measurements for a special someone for their first fursuit
The species is a fox that will be a partial. I am a girl suit maker and he is a boy
I will be making feetpaws, head, hands, and tail.
I do not know his head measurements, feet measurements, etc.

How can I either
a) Ask without seeming suspicious (this is a surprise for him)
b) Figure out good measurements without saying anything?

Thanks guys!

White + Blue furs

March 27, 2013, 5:41 pm

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Hi everyone, again.

A friend of mine had his suit made with the legs 1" too short for him and I'm looking to make a tail for my partial, so I was wondering if anyone had any scrap 1inch pile they'd be willing to sell us over in 'Straya?

Thanks guys,

Balaclava Elastic idea?

March 27, 2013, 7:04 pm

≫ Next: Looking for 2 Short Pile Furcolors Brown and White

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Hello guys! I'm getting ready to start my first head, and I'm doing LOADS of research! Well, anyways I wanted to ask y'all something about the jaw mechanism. I personally find fabric elastic annoying, as it easily breaks up. Well I was with my mom at the infusion center where she gets her ivs, when I had an idea. You know those blue stretchy things they tie around your arm before drawing blood and getting an iv? Can you use those to sew to your balaclava? here is a pic...

Also how do I sew it on to ensure maximum jaw movement? Thanks in advance!

(Also, please be kind... I am only 11 soon to be 12 on April 2nd, I'm trying as hard as I can)

Looking for 2 Short Pile Furcolors Brown and White

March 28, 2013, 11:04 am

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I am looking to figure out or to best match these 2 colors to replace my hand pieces on my Victor Redtail Fursuit. The Brown that I have here is 1/4-3/8 inch short pile while the White is 5/16-1/2 Inch Short Pile. I am looking for comparable closely matched Furcolors here. I may want the Brown to be a little thicker but if you got the size or know where I can get that color let me know. The white shouldn't be as hard to find as it's more easily matched. I just don't clumpy fur like this one is already. Hopefully someoene recognizes the fur and I can find some more and get me an extra yard or enough to build some new wingtips for my fursuit. The Colors were taken by a Scaner.

Critique wanted for kirin resin base sculpt

March 28, 2013, 11:33 am

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Hello everyone!

I'm looking for some good critique on a kirin base I'm working on for a customer. We didn't want to use a horse base because it's just too "thick" around the muzzle, so this one has more of a deer-like muzzle with a horse nose and a combination of the two for facial structure. A kirin isn't a straight up horse afterall, it takes elements from all sorts of critters. :) It's been decided that we like how the side view looks, so changes probably won't be made to that.

The eyes have been a challenege because we want them angled on the side like a horse, not close together and facing foward. This causes the tear ducts to be pretty long. So what I want to know is - do the tear ducts look strange or huge? Is there a way I could arrange it to make it look better? Or does it look fine and I've been staring at it too long? XD



Larger photo here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/51672547@N07/8597540423/sizes/o/in/photostream/

Here is another photo with red circles of about where the eyes are located: http://www.flickr.com/photos/51672547@N07/8598646124/in/photostream

They will be up for sale later once I get it all figured out, I think it'd be nice to have a thinner base for other kirins and unicorns who don't want to be a straight up horse. ;)

<3 Panda

Fur Question

March 28, 2013, 4:25 pm

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I am currently have a greyhound head in the works. Resin-based blank being used.

Can someone explain to me the subtle differences between Teddy, Seal, and Short-pile fur?

It is for a smallish head intended for a partial so thicker longer DF stuff wouldn't look right since I would have to buzz every inch of it down. I've heard that seal fur is prone to showing seams, since this head will be all black it probably won't be too noticable but any recommendations? Do seams hide better when form-cut with a pattern and sewn together compared to more eyeballing gluegun methods?

Would a yard be enough for a head and some handpaws?

Also, if anyone has some good pitchblack fur lying around that they want to sell for cheaps that would work, I'm all ears!!

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Cheapest place to buy?

March 28, 2013, 10:46 pm

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I ordered some swatches from Monterey Mills of their Teddy bear and Cubby bear fur and I'm just trying to find the cheapest place to buy it or someplace that has coupons? I'm looking to buy 4.5 - 5 yards of the black teddy fur ( MM only sells it in 15 yard rolls) because it's perfect for what I need~ I've checked CR crafts and USA knit. Is there any place cheaper?

last sock paw question I promise!

March 29, 2013, 10:03 am

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So -- still obsessing over paw pads for these. I don't know why, but I am. I was wondering -- has anyone used like premade paw pads for them? I was considering maybe ordering from Dream Vision Creations, but not sure how well they'd hold up on sock paws. I'd like to wear these around outside (I'd like for them to be something I could wear to a meet) so they'd need to be comfortable, (which I've heard sock paws are) and easy to walk in. I was also considering maybe using anti fatigue matting? Or a combination of the two? Has anyone tried painting anti fatigue matting? I'm getting black so not sure how well that would turn out. I was thinking maybe painting the mat white first, then maybe spray painting? I'd like to have gold (shimmering gold would be best) paw pads for these.

Any tips/suggestions would be HUGELY appreciated!

Finally finished my first fursuit (partial)

March 29, 2013, 2:56 pm

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I stayed up till 2 am finishing the head. I am very pleased with how it turned out and so excited
still needs some touch up fur trimming and of course, it's not perfect. has a random gouge in the fur under left eye and the gluing of eyebrows looks kinda odd on left brow. some nicks in paint of the nose. the the right eyes has some issues. also, still need to edit the back of the neck and the way it closes up over my mounds of hair.


but fudge yea never the less




<lj-cut text=some other shots>
this is how it started

then it got a lil better (trying to keep a moving jaw)

then i figured out the wrong bits and changed my way of doing the ears

then i realized i had duct taped it before lining the mouth, adding teeth (sculpey ultralight), tounge (fleece) and making the nose (sculpey ultralight). also, fixed the jaw

when i first started adding fur, i was really afraid everything was getting ruined. but it started to look reasonable once i threw an ear at it

and now it's finally done :D

also, i made a tail, feets, and handpaws :P



</lj-cut>

despite the sewing machine i borrowed from a friend, everything is handsewn (cuz cheap machines dont like upholstery thread) blanket stitch all the way! XD next stop BODY SUIT D:

but yea, thank you everyone on this livejournal group. this prolly would not have happened without you. and of course, special thanks to matrices for her many fabulous tutorials

Planning my first quadsuit

March 30, 2013, 11:07 am

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This is my first time posting here, so I hope I'm doing it right.
I'm trying to plan out how to make my very first fursuit.  Technically, I don't know if fursuit is even the right term for what I'm planning, but it's the closest thing I could think of.  I guess I'd call it a partial quadsuit.  The character is a sphinx.  So I'll be making a lion rear, arm-stilts for the front legs, and possibly making some sort of padding to bulk up the front and help make the legs look shorter.  Instead of making a head, I'm going to try and use makeup to make my own face more feline.  I plan on modifying some prosthetic werewolf/cat make-up for the nose and sticking fur to some large elf ears.

I've never made anything like this before and I have a lot of questions.  I've found a lot of helpful links here and I think my planning stage is going well.  There are a few questions I haven't found answers for, and I'm hoping maybe someone here could help.

Question 1:  I plan on wearing the finished sphinx costume to Renaissance Festivals.  Those are outdoor events, usually with a lot of dust and dirt.  What sort of materials would hold up best for those conditions?  Especially, what sort of materials would be recommended for the feet?

Question 2:  I've seen the tutorials for the jointed stilts, but I'm not very good with tools.  Does anyone sell just the stilts?

Question 3:  Does my idea sound to weird to work or too ambitious for a beginner?

That's all for now.  I'm working on some redline drawings for my idea.  Once they're done, I'll post them here and see if anyone has time to critique them.
Thanks in advance for any help you care to offer. :)

Borzoi WIP

March 30, 2013, 12:50 pm

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Hello everyone!
After a rather decent success with my aardvark suit, I'm working on my first premade partial.


^ That is a small preview because I didn't want to stretch the board with the full image.




One day I will learn to take a decent picture.
Unfortunately, I'm working with my phone for now.
Trust me, it's a helluva lot better than my camera.

- - - - - - -

Anywho, this is my current WIP collage for my Megaplex premade.
He's a Borzoi, which I've really tried to capture with his sloping muzzle, the large nose in comparison to the rest of his snout and the high cheekbones.

The nose is the planned nose, but it still needs to be painted and sealed. The eyes and ears are just placeholders.

I'd love any critique on this guy. He'll is the first mask I'm making for someone other than my mate and I, so I want him to be the best he can.

He looks a little evil, but I may end up keeping that as part of his character. Thoughts?