35 replies to this topic

[Alex the lion]

Keep An eye on this space because I am going to put links to sites that I have used to make my lion costume. (for those at the ball Thanks for your questions and incuragement). Thise are tutorials that poeple put on the web for everyone to look at.

Please be aware That I do not have control over what the sites have on them. I have filterd them the best I could. There are other sites That I have used but due to the content on other parts of those sites I felt it would not be approprate to have the links on this site.

TanidaReal fursuit site: Tanis turorials Basic construction

Edited by Alex the lion, 29 August 2006 - 05:29 PM.

[Alex the lion]

I am going to put a tutorail for my new fur suit here

What you will needfor the head to start off with:
Also watch this space because i may add extra metrials.


hot melt glue gun and sticks (rember they are your friends on this project)
15 Thick plastic coated wire coat hangers ( what you dont use you can use as coat hangers)
fur how meany colours is up to you.
Eletrical tape
Needle nosed pliers and linesmen plires MUST BE STRONG!!!
Calico
Foam that is easy to cut
perspex (a set of cheep safty goggles would do)
paint
Car window tinting the darker the better (you can get it from window tinters they usaly guive the offcuts away that all you need)
Rubber bands or springs for an artiulating jaw.
4CM fans or smaller I would sregest 3 cm fans X2 From Jacar and battery packs to fit 8 AA's as well (Trust me they are needed)
Batting

Scoupltery
clear plactic ball christmas decoration

you may also want to use a electric carving knife to scoulpt the foam.

Edited by Alex the lion, 29 January 2007 - 11:44 PM.

[Alex the lion]

first make a frame of wire coat hangers. holding them to geather with the Electrical tape and bending intersecting wires at the bace. make sure you have a wire going from the end of the nose ot the back of the head and it is running along the center line of the head. This is very inportant to have this wire because it helps with construction and jaw operation.
 Image017.jpg   81.38K   38 downloads
Makeing sure you bend one of the side serporting wire into a full loop on boath sides at the same hight useing the nedle nosed pliers. To form the hinge for the jaw. Making sure that the wire is a snug fit.
The jaw should be made so It lines up with the bottom of the head and bar cut for the chin rest and bend it in to place Just like how they do on the coat hangers from the store.

Edited by Alex the lion, 18 September 2006 - 08:21 PM.

[Alex the lion]

Now lay the calico over the frame you have made and cut a square large enough to cover the frame.
Then fold the pice you have just cut in half lenght ways. Now lay the fold along the center wire that runs from the back of the head to the frount and hand sew it to the calico.

When you have sewen the calico to the wire you pull one side tight and sew each section it to the bottom wire. AS you go you cut the caico to fit each section of the fraime Rembering to keep every thing tight as possible. You may have to sew pices of calico that are not following the wires of the frame down.
Repeat for boath sides

Now glue the fraime to the calico with the hot melt glue making shore that boath sides are glued equaly and the stiching is glued in place

After that glue foam and carve it into the shape you are trying to make
If the shap is wong kep adding foam and carving until you get the right shape

[nymph]

ooh koolish!
a friend of mine wants to make a fur suit 4 next years avcon,
i will have to send these to him!!

[Alex the lion]

I am putting a hold on this costume because of study comitments.

[Metanoia]

Hi Alex... if you have time could you describe the method of making the eyes please?

[Metanoia]

Oh Alex... and also could you please describe how you make the paws for your lion. I want to make just some fur gloves. If you have a pattern or can point me somewhere that would be awesome too

[Alex the lion]

well there are severl methords
for Alex I used perspex from a set of cheap safty gogles. wich I cut and painted. leving the puples and then stuck dark car window tinting in place. (ask the winters to show you how or get them to put it in place.

As for the paws draw around your hands on a pice of paper and cut out. then add serfishant amount of space to get a good fit.
copy this on to some calico to make a fabric pattern then draw your design onto the pattern. Then label each side (one pattern does boath hands. If you ysed your left hand to make the pattern lable the top side right and the underneath left.
Also labe each finger on the hand so you know where it goes if you are doing a two toned paw.
If you need any more help just ask

[Metanoia]

Cool thankyou Alex.

I don't know whether to go for a mesh or a tinted eye. Do you know anything about tinting paints?

How much could you see out of your tinted eyes when you were inside? I think I may have asked this when I met you at the Ball, but I can't remember the answer. I plan on wearing my project inside for the most part so I need to be able to see!!

Or is it that the tinting allows you to see one way but not the other? Like generally you can see easily out of the car, but not in... correct?

As for the paws... I might adlib it and see how I go, but your tips are very helpful. Thanks.

[nymph]

does anyone have any recomendations on good places to go 4 fake fur?
Lincraft in rundle mall has some nice fake fur but far to pricey for me
Im going to need quite a bit for future costumes,
such as my ryo-ohki head piece,
*possible Shuichi dog suit*
and Either the cat suit, or Kamineko from azumanga daioh,
and a ryo-ohki cabit

[Metanoia]

Did you try spotlight in rundle mall too? I think you're looking at about $30/m for fur though. Is that about right guys?

[Silver Moonblaze]

Yeah, that sounds about right. They do have some very nice fur at Lincraft, but I don't know about any place you can get it cheaper.

[Alex the lion]

personly I would go with the tint but aviod the tint paint. Beacuse the tint film will give you the clearest vistion.
As for the vistion at the ball it was just like wairng a pair of sunglasses but a little restrictive (not much parifearl vistion)

Also mesh can in some instaces spoil the look of the suit also I have no experance with a mesh viostioned suit. but I have seen one up close. In my oppinion the tint gives a better effect.

Or is it that the tinting allows you to see one way but not the other? Like generally you can see easily out of the car, but not in... correct?

The answer is yes be cause thir is no light souce in side it tends to look just like that.

Also I would bye the smallest sample you can get away with of your chosen furs because you WILL have to wash them and some do not like it. I have found that superbever washes well but it is a expencive fur.

[Metanoia]

Also I would bye the smallest sample you can get away with of your chosen furs because you WILL have to wash them and some do not like it. I have found that superbever washes well but it is a expencive fur.

The fur I'm getting for a completely unrelated costume to the one I need info about the eyes for.... now I've got you all curious You'll just have to wait!!

heh heh

Thanks for all the info Alex!

Where do you get window tinting done?

[Alex the lion]

I got my tint at my local Solace workshop just look under car window tinters. All you need is some of the offcuts.

[nymph]

i went into Spotlight and they had NONE of the colours of fake fur i need :cry:
and by the sounds the girl had very little clue when they would be getting some more in,
So now its a rush to find the colours i need before December 22
(My Cosplay xmas party)
Though Sarah (Kaname_Nakajima) is going to let me buy some fake white fur off her that she bought earlier this year,
i still need dark brown!
garr
evil spotlight
I still need Orange and Green Flannellette too.

[El Presidente]

Nymph, my teddybear fur was from a company called Fur Fabrics Australia (also knows as Laval's Fur Fabrics) at Unit 5/4 Iris Street, Melrose Park. They stock lots of furs, mainly for the toy bear market. The down side is they're not cheap (I think I paid $65pm, and it wasn't the most expensive) and they're only open Mon-Fri. But they do have a big range, I'm sure you'd find the colour you are after...

[Alex the lion]

Lyne do they have a web site?

[El Presidente]

Couldn't find one Alex, but I did find a NSW address!!
Grange 56 O'Riordan Alexandria NSW (02) 93134100
Hmm, it doesn't come up in the WhitePages though - would be worth phoning to make sure they still exist there.