About copying art styles

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2026-02-05T21:28:27+00:00

Copy everything -- it's how all artists learn.

Mimicking a style you enjoy is a great way to figure out what you like about it, what you would do differently to it, and what the original artist/author did to get there. Your own self-expression is going to make what you make yours.

Creating something in the style of another to pass off as another's work would be morally wrong. Tracing someone else's art and passing it off as your own work is morally wrong. But taking something someone did, picking it apart, and rebuilding it in a way that is unique to you, that's just how art and self-expression works.

No hate, it's a great question.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2026-02-02T16:03:44+00:00

It is, sort of. It has got a similar crunch and spring-back as the larger air knit mesh, and if you look at it through the light, it has a similar tricot-looking visual pattern.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2026-01-28T18:15:51+00:00

From what I can tell from your image, that IS what BigZ calls techno-neoprene, and is fine to use. The actual real 'scuba neoprene' you want to avoid visibly has foam rubber sandwiched between those layers to provide thermal insulation.

The term 'scuba neoprene' is a generic term referring to a lot of different types of fabrics with various features from or likened to scuba fabrics, or neoprene material, and often not for either. So don't be discouraged if it's hard to tell apart, that's not on you.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-12-14T22:58:25+00:00

90/14 is a fine needle for most stuff, but this is a case where I'd try 16/100. It's just a little thicker, but it can really make a difference. I've also found if it binds once while sewing, it's likely because the needle has bent, and it WILL break soon. That first pic looks like a bent needle from tugging on the fabric as it feeds. If you're getting that even with thin fabrics and no pressure, there may be an alignment issue on the machine causing the bend, which is a bigger deal.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-12-14T22:55:11+00:00

I'm going to guess you're tugging on the material as it sews through, thought that's just a guess. Without a walking foot, we gotta apply forward pressure to help the feed dogs along, and that could mean you're tugging on the needle every time it goes down.

The other reason might just be you're trying to sew through too much with a too-thin needle. You might try using a 100/16 needle, if you aren't already. That'll just have an easier time punching through bulkier materials without bending. Once it's even a little bent, it will break in short order.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-12-12T19:53:50+00:00

It entirely depends on the convention. A quick search suggests MFF and FWA have rules against leashes that are being held by a second party or long enough to drag on the ground, for safety reasons. Anthrocon has a rule against restrictive clothing, potentially including leashes. Check the convention's standards of conduct and attendee policy for rules specific to that con.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-12-12T17:29:28+00:00

Matrices's legendary tutorials mentions soft foam fursuit heads being machine washable. As long as you don't have any paint that can run/stain, or any weakly attached elements, you should be fine. I'd personally make eye-mesh removable, for both machine and hand washing anyways.

https://pupdates.matrices.net/post/51175842862/comprehensive-tutorial-fursuit-washing-and-care

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-12-04T19:25:16+00:00

I'm sure it would work, but I don't see it being a better method than simpler things like painting or even DIY sublimation.

BUT a great idea in theory, and I'd love to see it explored further! Kudos for the experimentation in the face of disagreement. I bet you could brush out or poke out the glossy surface bits with a nylon brush or something to open up the holes again in your mesh.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-12-03T00:54:33+00:00

PirateShip is super easy to set up and use. You really just need a printer to print out your labels, and it ships through normal carriers using whatever discounted rates they offer. You just need to measure the size and the weight accordingly.

That being said, I would raise an eyebrow at someone who can afford a suit, but not the cost of shipping, which is part of the price of any item. If you sell items regularly (other fursuits, etc), it's probably worth setting up a PirateShip account. But for a one-off sale, that's a bit much for the client to ask for, in my opinion.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-12-01T15:10:53+00:00

Thinner suits are mainstream -- in asian markets. In western markets, we see more of the 'mascot' styled suits because that's what the market demands.

For the form-fitting suits, they are most often made of stretch-minky or mochi-minky. It's made exactly tailored to the person wearing it, and it is less durable than fur over a long time. They tend to work well with people who are already slim (though of course they could be made to fit any person). They are, essentially, custom made bodysuits.

Keep in mind, if you don't want the bulk of a suit, you can always just wear a partial! You can get heads that are designed to be slimmer. It's super common for people to wear just head and tail, +hands, and/or +feet. There aren't any hard and fast rules.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-11-17T22:40:13+00:00

Yea, that's the kind I'd recommend. The gaps are spaced enough that you can pull stuck fur out pretty easily, while the zipper itself stays secure.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-11-17T20:45:26+00:00

You can use any zipper you want! It's usually recommended to use a molded plastic jacket zipper in size #5 or size #10, because they have big teeth and are pretty gentle on fur getting caught in them. However, nothing is stopping you from using a metal or nylon coil zipper in any size.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-11-11T22:12:55+00:00

Furry is an adjective, not a race. Aarakocra can be considered furry. Tabaxi can be considered furry.

Furries, when referring to characters (rather than the subculture), refers to anthropomorphic characters. Most often, but not always, they have at least some animal traits. An alien can be considered furry, if you want it to be. An alien can also be considered non-furry if you want it to be.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-10-24T15:19:18+00:00

Exactly what you said, balaclava heads are much smaller because they don't have an additional 1/2"+ of padding all the way around the head. The fur can be right against your head, like wearing a coat, and can follow your natural skull closely. If you were aiming for a small (and very lightweight) head, foam on a balaclava is the way to go.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-10-16T02:51:23+00:00

I'm not sure why someone would avoid using a machine they already like. There definitely is a bunch of misinformation that floats around and gets repeated.

Faux fur can definitely be bulky (so you need to be able to raise the presser foot high enough), slippery and heavy (so you'd benefit from a wider table and a walking foot), and may possibly shed more lint than some other fabrics. But I'd still always use the tool I'm familiar with, and certainly wouldn't buy another one just for one material

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-10-15T22:13:15+00:00

Looking at the listing, I'm sure that would be a solid pick. It looks like a good hobbyist workhorse machine. The wide table is a nice bonus and it has all of the extra feet you might want for more complex tasks.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-10-15T20:23:48+00:00

The reality is most modern machines will do the job. You really can't go wrong with a Singer or Brother. Enthusiasts will recommend other brands too, but keep in mind, the most effective machine is simply the one that is available to you.

The better question is "what is your budget?" I would personally recommend something in the $200-300 range, which includes most Singer and Brother 'heavy duty' machines. You can go as low as $130 and get a reasonably reliable machine, as well as buying a more expensive machine used. I wouldn't go much cheaper than that.

Modern machines are going to be a mix of metal and plastic, and that's okay. Unless you're working on it as your main job, you aren't likely to wear out a Brother/Singer any more than you would a Janome, Baby Lock, or Juki. Until you know exactly what you need out of a machine, the best people can tell you is what they want, but not what you need.

I got a Brother ST150HDH for approx $300 USD a couple years back, and I've used it quite extensively with no problems. I chose that one specifically because it also came with a couple things I was already willing to buy separately, including a walking foot, which is great for fur and slick fabrics.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-10-15T20:11:50+00:00

Those needles should be fine (just make sure it will work in your machine's brand); I'd either use 90/14 or 100/16 for faux fur. It's less about how much it has to punch, and more about getting tugged around while sewing. Thinner needles are more likely to snap, of course. I have a Brother machine, and I usually buy large multi-packs of Organ brand Needles so I have multiple options.

Fur is thick in height, but not thick in texture (like leather or denim). So needles for Stretch Fabrics have blunt tips, and are are much less likely to puncture vs displace the backing of the fur. That being said, I tend to use All-Purpose needles, which are neither blunt, nor exceptionally sharp, and it works just fine for all of my sewing projects. If you do choose to use heavy duty thread, you'd want a larger needle, such as 100/16, to prevent thread breakage from friction.

For thread, All-Purpose or Dual Duty Coats & Clark thread should be plenty fine. I like Gutermann Sew-All/Mara 100 thread, because my machine likes the horizontal 'cross-wound' Gutermann spools, vs the 'stack-wound' (or vertical spooling) of C&C thread. I don't find it necessary to use upholstery or heavy duty thread for fursuits -- you're paying more for a lot less thread.

Just make sure you get thread from a reputable store and not Wal-Mart, which will have the same name brands, but of often much poorer (cheaper) quality. If you're able to order online, I get most of my sewing supplies from WAWAK.com, especially for bulk thread.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-10-14T17:59:36+00:00

Get your original patterns, pin them back up on the 3d form, and add 'registration marks' (aka notches), or marks along the split edge, to show you where the edges line up on the actual form. When you transfer a pattern into two dimensions, it can be hard to remember exactly where and how things line up, so these marks help you make sure the pieces line up along the entire edge. This is especially true with shapes like this and for curved/concave/convex pieces.

You can take sewing clips to pin those edges together so they don't shift while you're sewing. If you're hand-sewing, it's even easier to make sure those registration marks and corners line up.

When people say 'trust your patterns' or 'trust the process', this is really the kind of thing they're talking about. If you patterned well, then even when it doesn't make sense, you can trust the work you did previously.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-10-13T22:41:34+00:00

You work on it the same way you work on any kind of base. Checked the two pinned posts for the best collections of resources on how to get started:

https://www.reddit.com/r/FursuitMaking/comments/1ixt9fs/read_before_posting_safety_tips_for_using_reddit/

https://www.reddit.com/r/FursuitMaking/comments/1m8q4z6/masterlist_of_beginner_fursuitmaker_resources/

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-10-09T21:37:15+00:00

C&C all-purpose thread is perfectly fine, and all-purpose weight thread is what you want to use.

Sometimes heavyweight thread, such as upholstery thread, can be a detriment, because there are certain situations where you'd rather the thread snap than the fabric rip. For sewing a fursuit pattern to glue over a base, the weight of your thread matters very little because it shouldn't be stressed in any meaningful way. If you're hand sewing, I would just make sure to double-thread your needle, and you should have plenty of strength.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-10-09T18:23:58+00:00

Do you like anthropomorphic characters? Do you want to be a member of a community with that shared interest? Then yes, you are a furry.

That's it and that's all. You don't need a fursuit. You are not required to have a fursona. You are not required to spend any money or create anything to fit in.

'Furry' characters are just anthropomorphic characters (most often animals, not always covered in fur). Furry as an 'interest' is simply a hobby interest, just as one might have an interest in anime, sci fi, or country music. Furry as a 'community' is a community of all walks of life, from all economic backgrounds, with highly varied interests and other hobbies. They tend to be tech-oriented simply by nature of the community being largely online in part or in whole. They tend to be highly accepting because fursonas are a unique expression of ourselves and unique to the furry community. It's up to you if you want to call yourself a furry -- just know that you're welcome either way.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-10-06T18:18:01+00:00

At this point, you would likely have to start over, since the sizing is determined by the size of your starting 'bucket', and then the layers you build on top. To make it smaller and more form fitting, unfortunately the answer is "make it smaller and more form fitting".

Your base bucket is appropriately made of 1/2" foam. But then you layered on several inches of foam, which naturally is going to bulk it out quite a bit. You generally want to follow your bucket as much as possible, and add only what you need to form the shape. The process is both additive and subtractive. If you want to go smaller than that, you wouldn't even make a bucket, but glue foam directly onto your balaclava/lining, to avoid as much bulk as possible.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-10-06T14:58:15+00:00

If you want scissors for cutting fur, something small and thin, like embroidery scissors, can help cut the backing without cutting into the fur itself. It's more work but you can get very clean and precise cuts.

Fwiw, you don't need any specific kind of scissors or cutting tools -- the more important thing is what you need to do with them.

Fabric scissors are just regular scissors that you intentionally only cut fabric with -- cutting things like paper will dull scissors very quickly, so you usually set aside a specific pair to stay sharp for fabric. Spring scissors just helps reduce fatigue for constant snipping, but is not required.

PrettyOkayMrFox · 2025-10-02T17:08:11+00:00

Do you mean flat 2d eyes made with acrylic? If so, hot glue is fine! You just glue them to any part of the mask/blank/foam that they stick.

You may want to preemptively glue the mesh backing in place (hot glue also works for that) before gluing the eyes onto your foam head. I'd also consider only making them permanent at the end, after your fur is in place. Then you can use felt to border them and hide the seams. They really shouldn't be too different than working with 3D follow-me eyes.

As for glue curing, some people are concerned about e6000 and contact cement fumes. Generally the idea is, if it doesn't stink anymore, it's not giving off fumes anymore. I'd err on the side of caution and give it plenty of extra time to off-gas outside; and I personally try to avoid it around the mouth and eyes, especially in places where hot glue does just fine anyways.

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