# Air Brush or Fur Blend?



## SmikKet (Jun 24, 2012)

Okay so I'm in the process of making my first Fursuit.  I wanted to know if it would be better if I just, for the face, took different colors of fur for the little spots that are gonna have color or just air brush them on? The mask itself is gonna be mainly brown and black. What's the best choice? The only place where I can buy fur is Amazon. Nowhere near me sales fur so I have to be extra thrifty.


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## mirepoix (Jun 28, 2012)

Do you already own an airbrush and compressor?  If you don't, the costs of getting started with airbrushing is waaaaay higher than just buying different colors of fur.  You may want to look into drybrushing if you don't want to buy extra yardage of fur.  Google "drybrushing fursuit" and you should get some hits.

How large of spots are we talking about?  Do you have any references or drawings?  What critter is it?


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## SmikKet (Jun 30, 2012)

I already own multiple compressors, I just need purchase an airbrush kit. Here's a picture of how I want him to look. http://www.furaffinity.net/view/8304779/ I basically want to add different shades of brown and the blue, black and green.


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## mirepoix (Jun 30, 2012)

Whoah that's a lot of spots.  Man if you already have compressors, just get the airbrush kit and get experimenting!  You already own the expensive part, haha.

I did a lot of experimenting on my own with paints and inks and found that in order to get a super vivid color, you really have to lay down some heavy painting.  This affects the texture of the fur, however.

To be honest, I think the spots are large enough to where you can block out the different colors with different furs to get really striking, vivid spots.  But if your goal is to save money, I would get the green and airbrush the blue onto it, or vise versa.  Createx makes some decent airbrush paints (in both opaque and translucent), just remember to experiment with watering them down and layering them.  Don't forget a slicker brush to comb the fibers out as they dry!

For the black, I found that waterproof India ink works very well, watered down a little bit.  It's opaque and doesn't affect the texture of the fibers too badly.  Good wash-fastness, too.  (I used the Speedball brand).

Airbrush that brown on.  I don't have any experience with airbrushing realistically, so I'm hoping someone else will chime in on how to achieve that.

Where do you live that prohibits you from getting fur from anywhere but Amazon?


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## SmikKet (Jul 1, 2012)

Virginia *sigh*. Well I haven't tried looking in Joann's yet but that's about the only fabric store in the area (other than a Wal-Mart a few miles away that sells limited fabrics). Other people sell scraps for about the same price as 5 yards on Amazon from what I've seen.

Oh and I checked out drybrushing as well. I don't know how well it would tun out on my suit but I've seen some suits that can pull it off.


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## Ozriel (Jul 1, 2012)

Where are you in Virginia?




mirepoix said:


> Whoah that's a lot of spots.  Man if you already have compressors, just get the airbrush kit and get experimenting!  You already own the expensive part, haha.
> 
> I did a lot of experimenting on my own with paints and inks and found that in order to get a super vivid color, you really have to lay down some heavy painting.  This affects the texture of the fur, however.
> 
> ...




Actually, india ink fades severely over time since it cannot bond with the material. If you want a black, best bet is to go with Black Createx...or drybrush acrylic if you7 can't find it.


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## mirepoix (Jul 1, 2012)

Ozriel said:


> Actually, india ink fades severely over time since it cannot bond with the material. If you want a black, best bet is to go with Black Createx...or drybrush acrylic if you7 can't find it.



The stuff I used (this stuff) on Distinctive Fabric's white fur stood up much better to an aggressive washing than Createx's opaque black during my testing.  I guess what's important for everyone is to do their own swatch testing to decide what's best for their project.



SmikKet said:


> Virginia *sigh*. Well I haven't tried looking in Joann's yet but that's about the only fabric store in the area (other than a Wal-Mart a few miles away that sells limited fabrics). Other people sell scraps for about the same price as 5 yards on Amazon from what I've seen.



Dude, I'm from Virginia!  I grew up in Fairfax, but went to school in Richmond.  It's a nice place.  I thought you were going to say you were in a foreign country, and none of the good fur places ship to you.  Come on, there are waaayyyy better online retailers than Amazon that will not only stock better furs, but allow you to order swatches, sometimes for free.  I don't think Virginia has any sweet fashion districts like Los Angeles or New York, so try some of the online retailers that furries have been relying on this whole time. Check out this thread for a list of retailers.  And don't give me no guff about having to pay for shipping or extra for good fur.  It's better to shell out a few more dollars a yard for great fur than to go cheap and end up with something disappointing.
http://forums.furaffinity.net/threa...S-AND-TUTORIALS-A-LIST-FOR-NEW-FURSUIT-MAKERS

Dont.  Get.  Jo-Anns furs.  They are all abysmal, and you will have an embarrassing fursuit.


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## SmikKet (Jul 1, 2012)

Thanks for the tips! I'm from the Hampton Roads area yet very rural *sigh* I'm lucky I at least have internet. Virginia is a great place but if you lived there for your whole life, it gets pretty boring. I still have plenty of time to look around for furs (my deadline is before Halloween or at least Nekocon)  so Google is basically my best friend right now. 

Oh and also I had a question for foaming my mask and suit. Does anyone know if this Poly-Fil foam http://www.walmart.com/ip/Poly-Fil-Tru-Foam-Roll-24-x-72-x-1/17330713 will be any good? Or do I have to do some more fishing around?


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## soutthpaw (Jul 4, 2012)

Are you wanting a toony or realistic look. Airbrushing will be more realistic... Also Try Jacquard Dye-Na-Flow or Jacquard Textile paints.  I just sent one of each to the person doing my fursuit.  Once I get feedback from her on those I can let you know...  I also have some Nice white and Camel  and a little Black Fur for sale if that would work for you .  $15 yard plus shipping.  both are from City Fabrics in LA garment district.    White is the way to go if dying or brushing it colors..  pics don't seem to work here but I can send you links/ pics if interested  I am pretty sure its the same as this stuff  
http://www.distinctivefabric.com/fabric.php?product=SLDLGHRFUR1


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## Ozriel (Jul 5, 2012)

SmikKet said:


> Thanks for the tips! I'm from the Hampton Roads area yet very rural *sigh* I'm lucky I at least have internet. Virginia is a great place but if you lived there for your whole life, it gets pretty boring. I still have plenty of time to look around for furs (my deadline is before Halloween or at least Nekocon)  so Google is basically my best friend right now.



Fabric hut in Norfolk, VA. They also do custom orders if you have a specific material in mind.
They sell the solid "Punky" furs in the store (Black, white, grey, brown, and sometimes other colors like red, blue, violet, and hot pink).


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## Lejonet731 (Jul 6, 2012)

Someone already mentioned if. If you airbrush. It will look more realistic/even. If you add separate pieces of fur will look more cartoon like,


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## soutthpaw (Jul 21, 2012)

Also depends if you are doing large sections or stripes.     very time consuming to sew all tiger stripes versus a few panels of different color together


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