So last year, I made some digitigrade faun legs for the local renaissance faire. However, this year, I would like to re-create the pants and work out the things I didn't like about the first pair. Along with using a duct-tape dummy and using an actual pants pattern, I'd like to get some advice from this skilled community to see if I can work out the kinks c:
A bit about the pants themselves: I don't have any pictures, but basically it was a pair of thin sweatpants sewn onto a pair of comfortable shoes, with carved white upholstery foam sewn onto the top of my thighs, back of my calves, and the tops of my feet, and then the actual fur pants over top of that, glued onto the shoes.
1. So my first kink was the foam pads. Someone told me to sew them on instead of glue them on, but I had a lot of trouble with sitting down and having the stitches rip out (I'll get back to that in another question). The main problem I had with the suit was that the foam pads were almost constantly shifting around and falling down, dragging my waistband down with it. I spent the whole day pulling my pants up. Is this a normal occurrence with foam pads? Or did I do something wrong? Do people put belts inside the suit or something? I couldn't figure out how to include a belt without it looking super weird...
2. Stitching the foam pads on. I think this had a lot to do with why my pads were shifting around so much. Does anyone have tips or a guide on how to properly attach foam padding? or is there a better method to making digitigrade legs? What sort of pants should I be using inside the fur layer?
3. The third thing I was really disappointed with was the stretchiness of the fur. I want the suit to be as tight as possible, but I noticed that if I pinned the fur too tight, it wouldn't stretch enough for me to sit. Is there a good method of making a skintight costume? I was thinking I could make the fur tight in all the non-bendy places but have a bit of extra fur around my knee and ankles. Thoughts?
4. What's the best way to attach the tail? I sewed it right onto the pants but the tail kept drooping and pulling the back of my pants with it; I really wanted the tail to stand up at a 45 degree angle (not straight up, but not down either). Would it just be better to let the tail droop? In your opinion, would that look better?
That's all I can think of for now. Those were my main burning questions. Hopefully you all have some good tips, tricks, and advice for me :) Thank you!
A bit about the pants themselves: I don't have any pictures, but basically it was a pair of thin sweatpants sewn onto a pair of comfortable shoes, with carved white upholstery foam sewn onto the top of my thighs, back of my calves, and the tops of my feet, and then the actual fur pants over top of that, glued onto the shoes.
1. So my first kink was the foam pads. Someone told me to sew them on instead of glue them on, but I had a lot of trouble with sitting down and having the stitches rip out (I'll get back to that in another question). The main problem I had with the suit was that the foam pads were almost constantly shifting around and falling down, dragging my waistband down with it. I spent the whole day pulling my pants up. Is this a normal occurrence with foam pads? Or did I do something wrong? Do people put belts inside the suit or something? I couldn't figure out how to include a belt without it looking super weird...
2. Stitching the foam pads on. I think this had a lot to do with why my pads were shifting around so much. Does anyone have tips or a guide on how to properly attach foam padding? or is there a better method to making digitigrade legs? What sort of pants should I be using inside the fur layer?
3. The third thing I was really disappointed with was the stretchiness of the fur. I want the suit to be as tight as possible, but I noticed that if I pinned the fur too tight, it wouldn't stretch enough for me to sit. Is there a good method of making a skintight costume? I was thinking I could make the fur tight in all the non-bendy places but have a bit of extra fur around my knee and ankles. Thoughts?
4. What's the best way to attach the tail? I sewed it right onto the pants but the tail kept drooping and pulling the back of my pants with it; I really wanted the tail to stand up at a 45 degree angle (not straight up, but not down either). Would it just be better to let the tail droop? In your opinion, would that look better?
That's all I can think of for now. Those were my main burning questions. Hopefully you all have some good tips, tricks, and advice for me :) Thank you!