# Halp D:



## Dachindae (May 5, 2011)

I'm thinking about getting or making a fursuit for NDK this year, which is in september.

I like costuming and I think it's very fun.                   
I am REALLY wanting to make a fursuit. I enjoy making people and kids laugh and I feel a lot more confident when no one knows who I am [except for my close friends]

I'm wanting to do this character: [several links]
Basic body [no color]
Body color
Body WITH MARKINGS
Back design
Mouth Detail

The bright blue markings, her eyes, her pawpads, and her eyes would glow blue.
Her neck would not have to be long, it could be shorter. Or some sort of effect to make it look longer. 

I need to know:
-How to make her paw pads, eyes, mouth, and brighter blue markings glow. 
-What kind of fur to get for her body.
-How to make a hinged jaw. [Much like this] [And this]  [This one too! lols]
-How to make legs like that [no idea, would it be easy-ish?]
-How to do the scars
-Everything else lol

I have never made a fursuit, heck, I haven't even worn one before! [how the heck do you use the bathroom in those things?]
*OR. OR.*
How much would one estimate this to cost to buy from someone else? I'm small, only 5' 2" and 130lbs. [hopefully going to shed 10 of those pounds and get into shape this summer]
But yeah, price estimate would be great :3
A suit that fits like this would be awesome 

For her darker markings, I was thinking of airbrushing them on so I don't have to deal with the hassle on her tail or neck. Does airbrushing work pretty well?

The most costuming I've ever done is making a tail and "paws". 
These paws were for a hoodie I made with my mom. She sewed the glove to the inside of the hoodie arm, then cut a hole along the edge of the glove so I could slip my hands out if I needed to grasp something. The 'pads' were cheap and made of black fabric. I glued them on but they didn't stay very well. The claws are made of white sculpy clay and I hand-made all of them. I then cut holes at the end of the fingers and stuffed them through, then I glued them in on the inside. I painted the claws with black paint and then used clear nail polish to make them shiny.


----------



## Furr (May 5, 2011)

Oh boy... Ok, I'm not trying to be mean but all the questions you asked make me think that you have bitten off more than you can chew with this project. 

Also, it's fairly well understood amongst most fur suit makers that glowing fur isn't practical/possible/feasible for fur suits. Now probably some of the more retarded furries are going to pop in here to argue the point, but it really isn't a good idea to encase your body in live wires while you are sweating. 

Glowing head parts are easier as electric wires can be built off of the head frame rather than hanging off your body, or you can use glow-in-the-dark pigment which you can add to resin. I don't think you'll be able to get the paw pads to glow.

If you are determined to build your own fur suit read up on tutorials and stickies in the fursuit forum. 

I do build fur suits myself something like this would run around $1500-1700ish. Keep in mind that you do have a fairly complex design buying a fur suit like this will be more expensive than making it yourself; however, you'll know what you're getting and won't have to worry about ruining hundreds of dollars worth of fur.


----------



## Jesie (May 5, 2011)

Your paws are looking quite good I have to say. Have you done this before?

Also, I have to agree with Furr. Glow-in-the-dark markings are impossible. There are limitations in suit making. Glowing fur is one of them.


----------



## Dachindae (May 6, 2011)

Ah... yeah, now that I actually think about it, glowing markings would be hard x-x
I could still get the tail to glow, right?

Even if the paw pads are a bright blue, but then react to UV light, that would be so freakin' awesome.

I might re-do her markings so her glows are only on the head and tail.

Does airbrushing markings work though? Or is it too hard to get a consistent marking with the fur n' all?


----------



## Inciatus (May 6, 2011)

Phosphorus will glow in ultraviolet light. Hence why urine and white clothes glow under ultraviolet light. I don't think the fur would like that though.


----------



## Dreadlime (May 11, 2011)

It is possible to make a costume glow using EL sheets, LEDs or EL wire.  The thing is, most such costumes tend to be either be based around thin  moisture wicking  body suits or have armor pieces that act as a barrier between the  wearer and the electronics. Fur suits(and for that matter suits of leather armor) are, for all intents and purposes, mobile saunas. Like Furr said, sweat and electronics don't  mix well. Or rather, they mix entirely too well, and any exposed leads or breaks in the insulation can result in shorting out the circuit. At the current these use electrocution isn't an issue but it'll give you a rather unpleasant buzz, like an ant or mosquito bite. There's also possibility of damage to the components.

Another issue is brightness. the light source will need to be placed below the fur. The fabric and fur will diffuse the light, eaning it might not be bright enough to be seen outside or in a well lit convention hall, so folks'll miss the effect entirely.Of couse, these are also conditions under which bioluminescence probably wouldn't be noticable, so it's judgement call. Brightness can be increased by upping the voltage, but it'll reduce the lifespan of the components.

Some links that may be of interest:
http://www.therpf.com/f24/tron-legacy-costume-88230/
http://fursuit.livejournal.com/3243366.html
http://electroluminescence-inc.com/index.html
http://hubpages.com/hub/How-To-Make-A-Halloween-Costume-Glow-Part-1
http://www.ellumiglow.com/Default.asp
http://www.instructables.com/id/WEARABLE-WASTE-OF-ENERGY/
http://www.sparkfun.com/categories/204

The tail should be entirely doable. It's mostly matter of figuring out where to stow the power supply.
This would be a good place to use LED strips or EL tape.


----------



## Ad Hoc (May 12, 2011)

There are glow-in-the-dark fabric/spray paints. You would have to settle for just having regular cyan markings in the light, but they'd glow proper once you were in the dark. I don't know if they work on faux fur, though.


----------

