Art Notes
Random Notes
Eyes
printed on an adhesive vinyl kind of material, then affixed to the mesh with vision through the black mesh: Print Shop.
Coated paper may work if it's not moisture sensitive.
Feet
Currently using: Santoprene Rubber 1mm thick: Welcome mat / Utility mat (black, shiny)
Wish to use:
Feet rubber ( Reoflex or silicone with silicone pigment ): Shore Hardness: 55-60 seems to be ideal.
( Urethane and Vyta Flex causes allergic reaction ).
Crepe Rubber: 1/4"-1/2"
Soling Sheets: http://www.cobblersupplies.com/servlet/the-Soling-Sheets/Categories
Hand/Nose rubber
( Dragonskin with silicone/resin pigment )
Psycho Paint® Platinum Silicone Paint Base (for color effects)
Wish to order:
Wonderflex (armor/beaks/etc).
Modular Hose (large diameter).
Pfaff Select 4.0.
Polyester Elastic (latex-free elastic for allergies).
Nylon #69 Thread Industry Standard.
Thread Lube and Lube Box: reduces friction and fraying.
Gel medium for acrylic paint: 3d effects.
Screen ink: meant for brightly staining synthetic fabrics
Shaving blades:
3 = 1/2"
3F = 1/2"
4 = 3/8"
4F = 3/8"
5 = 1/4"
5F = 1/4"
7 = 1/8"
7F = 1/8"
9 = 5/64"
10 = 1/16"
15 = 3/64"
30 = 1/50"
F represents a finishing blade, and someone who has a pet grooming background can probably explain the difference in the cuts, in regards to an "f" blade vs one without. On fursuits I trim I have two blades I switch between, a 10 and a 7F blade. I use my 10 blade with guards, and the 7F without guards. The 10 I use without guards to mostly make very precise line cuts in spots where it akward to get scissors to go. Like cheek smile creases. Otherwise I prefer it with guards.
Molds
make my own mold: paint a few layers of latex over a round shape, until it is strong enough to hold up. If you use a plastic object as the base the latex should peel right off, making a little stretchy cup shape. It peels right off the resin too, after it cures. The only drawback is that the latex cups probably won't hold up for very many applications.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Worlds-easiest-silicone-mold/?ALLSTEPS
Resin
Wet-sanding: can use a peg for it in a cordless drill.
Headlight polish: after sanding.
Clays
Monster Maker's clay: It is very malleable when heated and soft (though it foes melt very fast, so I would advise a low-heat blowdryer to have on hand to use on your sculpts when needed to soften something up a little) But when hardened/cold, it's soo easy to shape and refine with a sharp instrument like a razor blade. then you can go over and smooth down the whittled edges with a brush and some isopropyl(rubbing alcohol). for a smooth surface.
Milliput: Dries quickly, more durable than sculpey. Used to make models.
Tutorials
Clipping corners and curves: http://www.makeit-loveit.com/2010/08/sewing-tips-clipping-corners-and-curves.html
Dyeing Fur
http://www.furnation.com/big_bad_wolf/coloring.htm
http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/how_to_dye_acrylic.shtml
http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/dyeblog/C557981556/E20090127083845/index.html
http://www.prefurs.com/Faux-fur-colorizing.asp
These are the ONLY dyes that are going to actually produce results on acrylic faux fur:
http://www.dharmatrading.com/html/eng/2518921-AA.shtml
http://www.dharmatrading.com/html/eng/1813-AA.shtml?lnav=paints.html
http://www.dharmatrading.com/html/eng/5590684-AA.shtml?lnav=paints.html
Electrical Information
Each battery has a storage capacity measured in Ah (Amps per hour) or mAh (milliamps per hour): How long they last.
Non-rechargeable AA battery is 1.5V. Rechargeable is 1.2V.
10xAA rechargeables to make the same voltage as 8xAA non-rechargeables.
9V batteries, where the rechargeable is a multiple cell version of a 1.2V battery so it can only provide 8.4V.
It's possible to run a 12V fan on 9V (as low as 5 to 6 V might even work), but it will lose a lot of it's power and produce less noise - find a combination that works best for your situation.
LiPo (Lithium Polymer) batteries: DONT USE, VERY dangerous!
Tutorials for Electrics
How to Solder: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLfXXRfRIzY
How to wire LED: http://fursuit.livejournal.com/5391987.html
Products
Battery Box: 9V: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007PA7YUC/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i03?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Vinyl Connectors- 100 count: http://www.amazon.com/Install-Bay-BVBC-Connector-100-Bag/dp/B0058TX6NQ/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1378763623&sr=1-2&keywords=butt+connectors
Radio Shack: Can provide battery packs, wire and a soldering kit.
You just strip some of your wire ends down (so the metal is exposed) and stick the respective ends of the battery pack and fan wire into a butt connector (the reds into one and the blacks into another), crimp it down HARD (pull to make sure it doesn't pull apart) and that's pretty much it. The battery pack already has an on/off switch on it which I just tucked in a little part of the inside of the cheek with a flap to open and close via velcro. The wire I just cut open part of the foam and sandwiched it in between. No soldering required. You can't really use AAs all that well to power fans as they require more "juice" than what AAs can put out
Business
Incorporate the business to protect personal property.
Sole Proprietorship: If you owe money and don't pay, you can get sued against other sources of equity/capital/income that are non business related. In a Sole Proprietorship, you can deduct the losses of your business against other sources of income, so it's great if it's a hobby business. You can be a sole proprietorship if you don't plan on taking out loans, lines of credit. Cons are deductable, materials are deductable, travel and gas to get materials are deductable, new equipment is deductable, etc, etc.
c) If you ever employ someone you become a full fledged small business, taxes go up and you have to meet wage standards, etc. So be careful if you do.
Limited Liability Company/Corporation: If you owe money and don't pay up, you can get sued against only what the company owns. This is inventory, working capital, machines, real estate, etc. It can be taxed the same way as a Sole Proprietorship, or a partnership, you can take it against personal income if you have another job. The downside is that the tax rate is much higher unless the business makes over $250K in profits, then you start to get tax breaks.
Companies/S-Corporation. Don't really see a need for this here unless you plan to sell shares of your company.
You incorporate with the state, and if you employ people or allocate yourself payroll, you need a tax id for employers (which you can file for online). As far as doing business, if you live in city limits, some cities don't allow many businesses that carry inventory out of the house, or let costumers come to the house. One of the only exceptions to this is "dress maker", as it has been grandfathered in many cities. There are sales permits, city and county business permits to consider. The cost of becoming a company varies from state to state. Some states it's $100, some states cost $800-900.
Unless you have business training for accounting, I would highly suggest hiring an accountant as if you make a mistake, you can owe a lot of money.
Liability insurance will drive up the price of your fursuits, and make sure to note that you have liability insurance just in case.
WIP Foam Heads: Unfurred and Furred!
http://fursuit.livejournal.com/4491618.html
T-shirts
Zazzle base: $14.95
Cafe press base: ~$18
Galloree base: $10