Altivo

Yes, the costumes are just wonderful. In fact, they have become the primary attraction for me. There are more every year, and they just keep getting better. Mine is really unfinished. I have several finishing touches to add, but it looks pretty decent here.

There are generally two approaches. One is a bit more cartoonish, and you see that in Oryx's eyes and expression here. I was pushing for more realism and pretty much achieved it with the head but I need some padding to shape the body differently still and the bare wrist you see here will be hidden by a little ruff, as will the border between neck and body.

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vimsig.livejournal.com

ah yes - now you have pointed it out, there is a bare wrist. I saw this earlier and thought how you would enjoy the visual

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Dust bath! My Tess likes to do that. It's amazing how much they can shake off after a good roll.

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Oh. That is like me after a good rest *shakes off some dust he has gathered* :)

Shake it, baby... Pretty horsie. Definitely enjoyable.

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Nice pic of the both of you. :)

I have always been a huge fan of Oryx, that is a totally sexy suit. ^.^

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Oryx is a nice guy, but always seems to be rushing from here to there so I've never gotten to exchange more than a few words with him. I do like the suit, though I really, really like Unika's okapi

mrianti even more. In fact, it was Unika who made me realize that I absolutely had to become a fursuiter, though

loriana gets the credit for inspiring me to keep improving on it.

(Sorry for the edits. That's what I get for hurrying)

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No worries Tivo. :)

I was also not trying to take away from your suit by saying I like Oryx. Yours is very nice as well, it's just that I am a huge fan of his and a hoof full of others out there...Brokken's Clyde for example.

One of these days I will likely have one of my own but that sort of money is better spent on other things right now and I am sure that I don't have enough talent to make one of my own.

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Brokken's Clyde is incredibly cute, but everything Brokken does is amazing, when you come right down to it.

Argos is not quite finished, and all that white is pretty simple compared to elaborate colorations like Oryx or Unika, but thanks. Keeping the white clean requires a little vigilance, but so far I've managed.

Making your own suit is more persistence than anything else. It helps to have some clear images ahead of time. I used photos of actual wolves, so when I deviated (as in the ears) it was pretty much intentional. I know several people who have essentially learned to sew in the process of making their first fursuit. They did really well, too.

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*nods* I will agree that whatever Brokken produces is amazing though there are some of his creations that I am not a huge fan of. It all boils down to personal taste you know.

Of course I would want a unicorn as a fursuit and to my knowledge there just aren't a great deal of horse type suits out there. I guess we really are just a rare breed. So that leaves me with very little to go by when it comes to pointing out what I like or don't like in an equine creation. :P

I know I could, and probably should, learn how to sew but I am not sure I am up to the task of taking on fursuit creation. I can see myself becoming incredibally frustrated by it.

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I'm seeing more equine suits every year, though, and some are pretty cool. There were at least two unicorns at MFF, I think, though one was an Asian kirin (very well done, but not, I think, what you'd want.) The other was a horse but with cloven hooves and of course, the horn.

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*nods* I will have to see what (if any) sort of equines show up for Furry Fiesta. I have this gut feeling that I am going to hate the con experience as I have very little to no patience for immaturity and bullshit that we all know goes on at most cons. I think my experience will be brightened by the fact that a ton of my local friends are on staff and I am basically only planning to attend in order to help them as a volunteer.

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You have to pick and choose at a con. Leave the kid stuff to the kids, and follow your own path. Sage advice from the elderly wuff-horse, obviously. ;p

The big cons (AC, FC, and now MFF) leave you no option other than to be selective, because you can't do it all. FF is probably quite a bit smaller, but just remember you don't have to do everything. If it's not your thing, skip it. That will leave you with better feelings about the whole event, or at least, it works that way for me.

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*chuckles* You probably could not drag me kicking and screaming to a large con. I have no idea what the attendance will be like for FF but I hope that it will be decently large. My only plan for FF is to help out my friends with whatever they need to make the con a sucess, past that I am not sure what I will do other than hopefully get to spend some time with friends that I would not normally get to see.

I think it would be quite interesting to follow you around at a con as I get the impression that your tolerance for silly shit is about as low (or perhaps even lower) than mine is.

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Well, MFF has been notable in the past for programming. Panels, panels, panels. You could do the whole con sitting in panel rooms, and I have nearly done that in the past. Want to learn to make fursuits? Hours of tutorials. Practice drawing? Same. Writing tips? More of the same. Then there are sessions on lifestyles, spirituality, science and conservation... Fewer in the last couple of years than there used to be, but all very interesting. Art show, dealer's room, artist's alley are all good bets. I've always avoided the dances because the music isn't my kind of thing for the most part, but this year they had a class on dancing in a fursuit that I probably would have enjoyed. The fursuiters have their own entertainments, some of which can be attended by onlookers, like the fursuit games. The worst behavior I've seen has mostly seemed to come from excessive drinking and private room parties, both of which I avoid. There's always entertainment, if you like 2's standup comedy routine (not my thing, too crude and insulting) or Kage's storytelling (which is funny and fascinating, but doesn't hold my attention so well any more.) The charity auction at MFF is often funnier than any other event, plus it raises money for good animal related causes. Total raised for Rainbow Animal Assisted Therapy this year was $15,000.

Does FF have a schedule of events yet or are they still working on it?

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I'm sorta swamped at the moment so I am going to give you a shorter reply than perhaps normal or shorter than I would like anyway. :P

I seen/heard bits of 2's performance and it's nice of a type but I have serious issues with that I will not discuss in a public forum. Never seen Kage's stuff so that might be interesting. You would probably never see me at a dance other than just for a few moments as the stuff I hear that they play would likely turn me into a axe-wielding murdering unicorn. Music like that just sets me on edge. You would also probably never see me at a room party as I have serious issues with alcohol and it's abuse.

I don't have a great deal of time to tell you about all of the programming for FF but I will give you a link instead. ^.^

http://www.furryfiesta.org/

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Hehe, you two sound like you and I would get along with you pretty well. :)

Well, maybe one day we'll wander in the same meet or a con. Seems we have more than a gre things in commond :P

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I think Tivo and I get along pretty well. We certainly have some things in common but in some areas we are vastly different as well.

*smiles* I'm sure we would get on just fine SoanoS and I look forward to the day that I get a chance to bump into you....Tivo too. :)

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Thanks for the link, that's all I needed. Looks like a good lineup of programming, actually. Hope it all works out well and everything is well-attended.

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doc-moreau.livejournal.com

I think your head came out pretty nicely! The body is a bit plain, maybe some little spots would help (though it might look like too much like you'd been working under a car, so maybe not) Also perhaps some tailoring for fit.
I think the ears are a nice touch... there aren't too many out there with flopped-over ears, and it makes yours more unique!

I've always been a fan of Oryx, his was one of the first suits i saw that made me say to myself "Wow... i really want to do that someday"
He is always running around though! Eventually i hope to get in a picture with him when we're both suited up :D

And yup, horns are an interesting addition to the human shape... you have to make sure you don't forget they're there.
I discovered i always had to crouch a little or tip my head back to enter doorways without hitting the top. Thankfully mine are soft and somewhat bendy - Oryx must have to be really careful!

I'd like to go to MFF sometime. Everyone says it's a really great con... I've been to furfright twice now, and i found the small(er) con to have a lot of appeal, for just that reason. It's a lot more laid back, and much easier to relax at. I'd imagine MFF to be similar.

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Heh. MFF used to be smaller and more relaxed. It has doubled in size over the past five years though, and is almost as large as AC was when I first started attending cons.

Yes, Argos is a work in progress. He does have color details on his back, but none of the photos so far have shown them. The professional photos by Dexcat should have some of that detail when they come out. His chest is to have more textural detail, created by adding pieces of longer fur like what you see on his feet. More of that long fur goes at the wrists and on the shins. Rather than tailoring the suit more tightly, I want to add padding, particularly to shape the legs, but possibly at the shoulders too.

Back and tail, in progress at the time, appear here so you can see the coloration.

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Those are both nice suits. I am in the (less) fortunate position not to have much exposure to suiters so I haven't got much experience about suiting.

But I am more and more tempted to build my own eventually. Who knows... Maybe one glorious day SoanoS Barcoded Mk. II will arise from the smoldering ashes of SoanoS Barcoded.

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Well, as

dakhun (who doesn't fursuit yet) said last year after MFF, it's sort of like turning yourself into a giant living plush toy. And I agree, that's the way I look at it. I know others have some different takes on it, but this works fine for me. I'm after cute, cuddly, and lovable. ;D

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You are all three already :)

*hugs*

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*blushes and shuffles a hoof/paw* Awww, thanks. You're so generous.

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Just honest, dear. :)

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marzolan.livejournal.com

I'd have to say the thing that bothers me about a lot of suits is the lack of fit in the torso... I can see from the comments you plan on making adjustments to the overall fit, but it seems a general complexity to fursuiting.

I'd like to do this sometime, I think, but I'm so particular about Marz I don't think it would be an entirely joyous experience, that and the fact that I have next to know artistic talent whatsoever when it comes to building things like this. I suppose my best bet would be to hire someone to do the creation of it, but even then I'm afriad I'd just bug the hell out of the artist.

But that said, I do love how the paws and head came out, and look forward to seeing the truly finished version.

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marzolan.livejournal.com

Oh yeah, addendum...

I know november is past, but I do hope you'll finish Argos's story. He's too adorable to leave it where it is ^^

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I'm delighted that Argos seems to have found a loyal fan or two. :)

I have every intention of finishing not only the two Argos threads you've seen, but more. I even intend to finish Menander's story, though his following is not so vocal. Barring the limitations of mortality, this should be possible in time.

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Fit is a general complexity to any kind of clothing construction. In the case of stage costumes, which is what we really are dealing with here, it is complicated by the demands of practicality and cost. If you go to an event where you can actually see lots of suits close up, you'll find that there's a wide variation in the way these compromises are worked out.

I deliberately choose the looser fit. For one thing, it is self-ventilating. As you move, the suit itself acts as an air pump and helps to keep you cool. I don't have a very defined physique myself, so choosing a close fit such as can be had if you use spandex under the fur would have no advantage. Instead, I'd have to build up the shape with padding and quilting. This is a frequently used technique, and you see one result in Oryx's case here. The problems with that are at least two-fold. First, it makes the suit much hotter to wear, which is a serious consideration. Second, it produces a stiff, artificial appearance, like a comic book or cartoon character built out of clay or plastic, that I prefer to avoid. Hollywood costume artists can get around some of these limitations, but their methods are costly and time consuming. Even the simplest of padded suits often requires multiple layers of underclothing with straps and velcro to hold it in place, which makes suiting up a complicated business, too.

Argos is pretty fuzzy, so trying to give him too much definition is kind of self defeating. Like my long-haired dog, beyond general shape you really can't tell what he would look like without the fur. His personality lies in the expressive parts, face and paws, on which I did spend quite a bit of time and still have more to do.

Otherwise, the important feature of the suit is that snowy whiteness, which is symbolic and not just coincidental. :) It represents not so much purity as innocence, a deeply seated simplicity that gives the character his charm. Sounds as if you like him nearly as much as I do, which is gratifying. I want readers to like him intensely. In the case of the fursuit, the observer should want to touch him and hug him, like they would a plush toy. (That's probably self-defeating, I know. How do you maintain that snowy whiteness if hundreds of children and adults are wanting hugs all the time?)

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cabcat.livejournal.com

Oryx's eyes always seem to be lookign right at you o.O

How does it do that O.O

Argos looks snuggy :D

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