Crafting a Fursuit 101 – The Head

I am going through the process of making my first fursuit head and while there are many useful resources, I often times see people asking the same questions over and over again.

I thought it might be useful to consolidate those answers in one place and hopefully save on repeat questions.

Please keep in mind that I am in no way a professional fursuit maker. I am simply an amateur that likes to do what I can to assist others and hopefully have less issues than I had.

Materials

Required

Please note the links supplied here are simply SUGGESTIONS and you are welcome to substitute whatever products you feel appropriate. The only things you should avoid are things that can hold moisture like cardboard or other paper products, and low quality fur.

• 1 square yard of 1″ thick high-density upholstery foam
  • High Density Upholstery Foam (select 0.5″ x 24″ x 72″)
• Hot glue gun (high or dual temp) and lots of hot glue sticks (~25-50)
  • Hot Glue Gun
• 1 square yard of high-quality faux fur (more may be required if you have multiple colors) – Many people have gone with ‘Shannon Fabrics’ on Amazon (links below, more colors are available if you search). If they don’t have the colors you want, check out the links on this page: https://www.patchesthe.dog/index.php/crafting-a-fursuit-101-other-useful-resources/
  • Black Luxury Shag
  • White Luxury Shag
  • Purple Luxury Shag
• Something to make the eye surrounds (most recommend “Foamies” or 1-2mm craft foam)
  • White Foamies
• Something to make the eyes (most use loose weave buckram, however tight weave buckram or plastic embroidery mesh works as well)
  • 1yd Buckram (probably more than you need)
• Something to color the eyes (most use acrylic hobby paint and a paintbrush, but I have also seen watercolor used, as well as alcohol or permanent markers)
  • 36 Piece Acrylic Paint Set
• Something to seal the color onto the eyes (this will depend on what you used to color the eyes)
  • Acrylic paint sealer
• Sharp scissors
  • The defacto standard, Fiskar Scissor
• Utility knife (with extra knives or blades)
  • 12 pack of Utility Knives
• Felt for the nose, nose surround, eye surround, ear strengthening, and lining the mouth
  • 1yd Black Felt
• Something to mark the fur (black Sharpies work well but could show through the fur depending on color and length. Be careful with colored Sharpies)
  • 12ct Black Sharpies
• Sewing pins
  • 250 Piece Sewing Pins
• Sewing needles
  • Hand sewing needles
  • Curved upholstery needles
• High strength/upholstery thread (200 yards matching the color(s) of your fur)
  • White
  • Black
• Duct tape (for patterning)
  • Duck Brand 394468 All-Purpose Duct Tape, 1.88 Inches by 45 Yards, Silver, Single Roll
• Scrap paper (for patterning)
• Measuring Tape
  • SINGER 00218 Tape Measure, 60-Inch

Optional

• Electric knife for cutting foam
  • Proctor Silex Electric Knife
• Fur trimmers/clippers
  • Cheap – Great if you only plan to make a couple fursuits or are on a budget. Will not last as long as the ‘quality’ but will deliver good results.
  • Quality – Great for prolonged use, making many fursuits, or trimming your pets!
    • Blade for Quality Trimmers
• 1/2 yard of 1/2″ thick high-density upholstery foam for the ears
  • FoamRush 0.5 x 24 x 72
• 1/2 yard 2″ thick high-density upholstery foam for the muzzle
  • FoamRush 2 x 24 x 72
• Lycra balaclava
  • Cheap 3 pack
• 1 mannequin head/dummy head/hat stand/wig stand (get one with a decently long neck)
  • Cheap long neck model
  • Expensive but MUCH BETTER Head Armature – If you plan to make more than one head, this is SUPER handy!
• Sewing machine
  • Decent and cheap
  • Good and less cheap
• Sewing Clips – These are used instead of or along with sewing pins and are WONDERFUL! If you have an extra $10, these are absolute GOLD!
  • Box of 100 Sewing Clips

Resources

YouTube Tutorials