General Discussion

Ok so ive been wanting to be a Furry for a good long while now but never really had the heart to do it. With my fiance loveing the kitty girls and everything as such hes kinda helped me push to make my own furry suit. The thing is i have a bad neck/back and i need help finding a way to make a suit that wont be as heavy on my head and shoulders. Waist down im perfectly fine with any weight. Im doing research on other things furry as well and also trying to make sure im NOT copying anyone with my idea for my fursona. I really just need help with the weight thing. Any suggestions or links to pages that could help would be wonderful! (Also would love to see everyones fursonas ^-^ whether you have advice or not seeing everyones fursonas can help too) I have until first thing april of next year to do this so im hopeing for help soon! NEW: Also opinions on how to make the tail? I want it to be semi realistic in movement and im going with a more poofy but long fox tail shape My fursona so far ^-^ its still a WIP [img]https://i.imgur.com/eXenYZ0.jpg[/img] Has a resemblance to my first kitty, my love for foxes and dragons, and has hints of my first original character i ever made as well as features from my most current original character (i have an over active imagination, adhd, and great memory for visual stuff but you say somthing i forget almost instantly... my characters normally reflect these plus whats been happening to me irl)

@AnimeLover9631 Hallo~ I know that there's lots of new ways peeps are making fursuits, and the fandoms pretty nice if you want to get involved. If you want to talk to more people, I recommend using twitter, as tumblr has essentially nuked peoples accounts. Here's some stuff that might work for you! [emoji=dog 2][url=https://fursuit.livejournal.com/800126.html]Mesh [/url]has made a bit of a comeback, as it's light and breathable. [emoji=dog 2] 3D Printed bases are a thing you can buy online and build off of; [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nI7hgUdtIJA]this [/url]video covers it a bit but this is just the person I watched :p [emoji=dog 2][url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klJulY4g3Oo]Foam [/url]on it's own is very light, and as long as your suit isn't tooooo over the top (lop ears, antlers, etc) should be easy on the shoulders! It's also the oldest method used to make a fursuit! [emoji=dog 2]I know wire is also lightweight, but I don't see it nearly as much as I do other materials! Unfortunately, no recommendation, but it could be something you look into! And don't worry too much about copying...it's...really hard to do lol. Unless your fursona is beat for beat just a copy paste, you should be okay [size=2]If you ever wanna talk, I [i]do [/i]have a twitter I use only for furry/Flightrising stuff, and I can pm it to you.[/size]

@Pawbeast sorry it took a while to get back to you but any chance i had since you posted here ive been looking at your suggestions ^-^ i may go with the plastic canvas or wire (did look that up. Not so good for quick or easy like the plasic but if done right can look nicer than plasic plus is longer lasting, only thing is it might end up heavier than the plastic...)

I would love to chat more ^-^ i just need to make a new twitter for just my cosplay/furry stuff. My main account is cluttered with all kinds of randomness...

Hi there! I just came here to mention that you don't have to have a fursuit in order to be a furry. If you want to be a furry, congrats, you're a furry! Welcome to the community.

That being said, I can tell you really would like to build one, unfortunately I don't know too much about the process and I still don't have a fursuit of my own. But I wish you good luck in the process!

I recommend foam- though I’m not a furry or a fursuiter myself. My friend is, and she has some pretty neck issues and foam has always worked great for her.

@Andrewsarchus thank you! ^-^ that does really mean a lot to me. My biggest thing keeping me away befor was not knowing if id be accepted... ive gone to this 1 convention every year for 7 years now and i always admire the work that goes into the fursuits i see there. This year there was a new 1 that looked like a white dragon with tree branch wings that had sakura flowers all over it and i wish i coulda taken a pic! The fursuits always catch my attention ^-^ the convention i go to is a Japanese cultural con that celebrates all kinds of stuff so theres many kinds of groups that go. Ive been stuck with basic cosplays for these past 7 years (1st was from Naruto, there was about 4 from SAO, i did a kuroko no basket cosplay at some point in the middle, and this year was from persona5. I love cosplay dont get me wrong but ive always felt better behind a "mask". I like showing off my craftsmanship without actually showing myself off.

Also i ABSOLUTELY LOVE animals, dragons, pokemon, you name it (most of my favorite pokemon are actually anthropomorphic like lucario, graninja, and that new 1 zaraura i believe its spelled)

@Mokuba thank you so much for the advice! ^-^ I really wasnt sure about the weight of any of those types just by looking at the tutorials.
I myself have had neck and back pain since i was 7 thanks to an incedent but doctors have never found what exactly is wrong.. i just try crack my neck/back whenever i can to loosen up and i try and stay relaxed and not lift too much (but with a job thats sometimes difficult...)

I'd say foam is the best choice for your suit (I haven't used wire or canvas so I can't speak on that) as it's pretty lightweight! However, you'll like want a balaclava base and extra space in the head so it doesn't squeeze as much

I'd also recommend avoiding resin bases as they can be extra heavy - this coming from the guy who owns a resin base fursuit. They have their advantages but they probably won't be good for your back or neck.

If you also can, build in some in suit storage for things you might need, to limit the amount of stuff you'll need to put in a back pack.

@Homuncullus i didnt even think about built in storage! Thank you! ^-^

Hello!! A lot of people already gave you wonderful advice so I don’t have much to add, but I do want to talk about the mesh method Pawbeast mentioned. It’s fine for a first-time practise suit, but not great if you plan to use the suit alot. It’s much weaker and will fall apart earlier than suits made with other materials, as far as I’ve heard. (I was planning to use mesh for my first suit head too but after doing some research I decided against it, it’s not the greatest material)

I would go with foam if I were you. You don’t necesarily need a balaclava as a base either! I made my heads with the bucket head method (would link, but I’m on mobile rn). It’s just whatever works best for you!

Also, from my experience, most of the weight seems to come from the fur and not the foam. Not sure what you could do against that, but you could try shaving the fur down as much as possible after furring? Maybe even just use a different fabric for the face? Idk

Anyway, hope this helps!