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Fuctional Fursuits vs Showpiece fursuits
11 years ago
Some of my customers can be disheartened when I inform them I will not make a suit a certain way. This may be because it is a technique I have not done before and am not comfortable making it without some private experimentation on my part (I would much rather play around with a personal suit and fail, than attempt the same with a customer's suit and let them down). Or, it may be because it's limiting in function/movement/vision and I am concerned for a customer's safety or general comfort.
I have a few costumes I have made for myself which I would never replicate for a customer. These costumes I often refer to as "showpiece suits", they are costumes which I made for a costume contest or masquerade where I want to show off my costume making skills to a large audience (such as San Diego Comic Con, or Dragon con). Costumes of this nature are made to wow judges and increase publicity for Komickrazi studios; taking part in or winning an award in high level competitions can be good for advertising and business. Showpiece suits often disregard the wearer for the overall finished look; this can mean they are extremely hot, uncomfortable, bulky, hard to move in, have limited vision/hearing, and may impair my ability to get around without assistance.
Some showpiece suits may also have lifespan limitations. As anyone who makes props for a movie knows.... stuff breaks.... and sometimes it just needs to get on stage for 1 minute and do a thing and get off the stage without falling apart. Although I don't condone cutting corners where possible, I sometimes may choose to not add a harness or support which I would add to a commercially made suit that would alter the "look" on a showpiece suit. Since I know the stress will be shortlived, and the look would change without it, I may choose to leave out a part which I would not otherwise.
If I say no or discourage a customer to make a certain item or add a specific feature I am doing so out of years of experience. Yes, when I made a showpiece I may look awesome, but I am also probably in a lot of pain or physically restricted in possible unsafe ways. I want to make sure that my customers are safe, comfortable, and have a long lasting suit they can enjoy for many years.
Here are some of what I refer to as my "showpiece suits":
Scar from the Lion king musical: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/8437546/
The costume was quite form fitting, so I needed assistance getting the corset on. The head was heavy and caused extreme head and neck pain. I had a raging headache whenever I wore the costume for more than an hour.
Hildr Scourgedatter the Charr: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/11173930/
This costume was hot and cumbersome due to the sheer padding involved, only the backs of my legs were unpadded and the armor was all leather so there was very little breathability to the costume. My vision was AWFUL, I could only see through a 4 inch gap in the mouth, which sat about 1 foot away from my face, so I could really only see directly in front of me about 4 feet (enough to know about things without tripping on them, but not enough to do much else). I required a dedicated handler just to walk down the hallway. The weight of the head on my neck was so much that I had neck pains for several days after wearing the costume.
Getting the costume OFF also proved a challenge. Since the body/muscle suit was so form fitting, once I began to sweat the lycra undersuit stuck like glue to my body. In order to get it off, I had to tuck my head into the neck, hold out my arms and a team of two people would have to pull at the sleeves and neck to help me get out of the suit.
Game of thrones dragons: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/14122179/
All three were extremely hot, the heads alone were about 5 lbs each so neck pains were common, we had limited hand movement and function, none of us could lift our arms above 90 degrees, and sitting was a challenge.... though amusing for onlookers to watch us attempt. When we took the shuttle to the con in the final day we had to make a 3 point turn just to get into a bus seat, and we practically sung a chorus of "sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry!" as we walked down the narrow aisle trying not to hit every person we passed with our wings, thighs or tails.
Old Lace the Deinonychus: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/8738059/
Old Lace's head was made from one of DVC's old raptor head bases. Their bases were hollow and surprisingly light, but still quite heavy comparable to other costumes heads. Built on a motorcycle helmet it was hard to breathe while wearing and pressed on my cheeks and neck quite heavily. To get the proper "look" I had to bend at the waist to get the proper raptor stance, which is killer on the back. Although possible to do with practice and exercise, it's hard on the body for long periods, even if you are used to it.
I have a few costumes I have made for myself which I would never replicate for a customer. These costumes I often refer to as "showpiece suits", they are costumes which I made for a costume contest or masquerade where I want to show off my costume making skills to a large audience (such as San Diego Comic Con, or Dragon con). Costumes of this nature are made to wow judges and increase publicity for Komickrazi studios; taking part in or winning an award in high level competitions can be good for advertising and business. Showpiece suits often disregard the wearer for the overall finished look; this can mean they are extremely hot, uncomfortable, bulky, hard to move in, have limited vision/hearing, and may impair my ability to get around without assistance.
Some showpiece suits may also have lifespan limitations. As anyone who makes props for a movie knows.... stuff breaks.... and sometimes it just needs to get on stage for 1 minute and do a thing and get off the stage without falling apart. Although I don't condone cutting corners where possible, I sometimes may choose to not add a harness or support which I would add to a commercially made suit that would alter the "look" on a showpiece suit. Since I know the stress will be shortlived, and the look would change without it, I may choose to leave out a part which I would not otherwise.
If I say no or discourage a customer to make a certain item or add a specific feature I am doing so out of years of experience. Yes, when I made a showpiece I may look awesome, but I am also probably in a lot of pain or physically restricted in possible unsafe ways. I want to make sure that my customers are safe, comfortable, and have a long lasting suit they can enjoy for many years.
Here are some of what I refer to as my "showpiece suits":
Scar from the Lion king musical: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/8437546/
The costume was quite form fitting, so I needed assistance getting the corset on. The head was heavy and caused extreme head and neck pain. I had a raging headache whenever I wore the costume for more than an hour.
Hildr Scourgedatter the Charr: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/11173930/
This costume was hot and cumbersome due to the sheer padding involved, only the backs of my legs were unpadded and the armor was all leather so there was very little breathability to the costume. My vision was AWFUL, I could only see through a 4 inch gap in the mouth, which sat about 1 foot away from my face, so I could really only see directly in front of me about 4 feet (enough to know about things without tripping on them, but not enough to do much else). I required a dedicated handler just to walk down the hallway. The weight of the head on my neck was so much that I had neck pains for several days after wearing the costume.
Getting the costume OFF also proved a challenge. Since the body/muscle suit was so form fitting, once I began to sweat the lycra undersuit stuck like glue to my body. In order to get it off, I had to tuck my head into the neck, hold out my arms and a team of two people would have to pull at the sleeves and neck to help me get out of the suit.
Game of thrones dragons: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/14122179/
All three were extremely hot, the heads alone were about 5 lbs each so neck pains were common, we had limited hand movement and function, none of us could lift our arms above 90 degrees, and sitting was a challenge.... though amusing for onlookers to watch us attempt. When we took the shuttle to the con in the final day we had to make a 3 point turn just to get into a bus seat, and we practically sung a chorus of "sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry!" as we walked down the narrow aisle trying not to hit every person we passed with our wings, thighs or tails.
Old Lace the Deinonychus: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/8738059/
Old Lace's head was made from one of DVC's old raptor head bases. Their bases were hollow and surprisingly light, but still quite heavy comparable to other costumes heads. Built on a motorcycle helmet it was hard to breathe while wearing and pressed on my cheeks and neck quite heavily. To get the proper "look" I had to bend at the waist to get the proper raptor stance, which is killer on the back. Although possible to do with practice and exercise, it's hard on the body for long periods, even if you are used to it.
Your work is elaborate and I've found stuff like the Charr and Game of Thrones Dragons to be impressive and even considered comissoning one myself for use at conventions and such. I'm not sure why it's such a problem to allow customers to fund you and push you to try new things if that customer truly believes you can do it.
If it's about safety or keeping your character special I completely understand. I feel a disclaimer and emphasis on "I have never done this before" in emails and documentation and everything should be just fine IMO.
However, I am no suit maker so in the end you have the most experience here, this is just my 2 cents as a commissioner. I urge you to keep making impressive suits, your abilities as an artist are incredible and it's wonderful to see your work evolve and improve!
However if someone did want one or want features used in one, I would have to make sure they were fully aware of the limitations and discomfort from wearing them.
At this point, the only thing I am often asked for and will completely refuse are stilts. Walking in stilts is hard to do (actually, that's not true, walking in stilts is easy... STOPPING and Standing still in stilts is hard). Now image walking in stilts with limited vision and mobility! That's an accident waiting to happen.
I will not make stilts or make suits with stilts if they are provided. I just don't think they are safe.
All I could think about while reading this was this year's 1st place winner of the Blizzcon costume contest, whose amazing work never was never able to be seen on the final stage walk because it capsized on a too-steep ramp, not only causing damage to the costume itself but the wearer twisted her ankle as well. :(
At San Diego they have these long wide stairs, there are backstage crew to help you, but it's a lot of "Take a step up... great... now don't MOVE" And you stand paranoid that you'll fall of the edge of the universe until the next act, then they let you take another step up.
Dragon con had a nice ramp with railings (which I was really happy about), until I got to the top when they said.... "now don't fall in the hole on the stage there". It would have been fine normally, but I took my glasses off for the cosplay, so I was completely blind. I had no idea where the hole was they were pointing to >_<
It's nice to know you think about your customers wellbeing and safety when you build.
Out of curiosity if you don't mind sharing how do you go about conditioning yourself for a suit that may be more difficult?
It's a documentary of some of hollywood's famous creature performers and the perils of doing their jobs. There is a lot of Movie magic that people do not realize in creature costumes. They look effortless because of how they are filmed and scenes are cut, and the skill of the actors inside.
I try on costumes a lot as I am making them to see how the range of motion is and what the vision is like. I usually do a dry run of a costume for several hours or more in a safe location such as my house or backyard to see how it feels over a period of time and how I feel when I take it off. I usually film the process too to see if what I am doing and how I am moving looks right, or if I look like an idiot flailing around.
Ah thank you for answering my question
I do it with my tinkering (effects) even so, some I also sell others, such as smoke modules.
Other I think it's too dangerous, such as the combustion chamber of my fire spitting dragon.
I really like the examples you gave and I have always been in awe for them. I cant wait to see what kind of creatures you can come up with in future!
Actually there is two things I am hoping for you to try, either as a showpiece of a personal costume and thoose are:
- A realistic quadsuit with armstilts (as I imagine thoose are easier to handle than legstilts since youre not really walking on them per se?) would be amazing to see.
- A Cats character as a fursuit. I would like to commission one of theese if I ever could afford it but as for now I would like you to try one as well. I can see some of our Jellicle friends being really good characters for fursuits and specially Lady Griddlebone whom I would love to see as a fursuit.
I AM working on a showpiece costume right now, which will include about 120,000 beads..... I've been beading since October T_T
It sounds reminiscent of what my friend told me they put into a cosplay outfit for the world cosplay summit.
Didnt they use a lot of beads in Lion King costumes? I saw one of the corsets from Simbas girlfriends costume and it had tons of beads (If I am thinking of the right thing) but since you have two LK costume already thats less likely Id say. But it would be cool.
And I cant wait for you to realise that quad youre planing, Id seen some really wowmaking quads that Beastcub has made but Ive never come around one IRL.
My lioness only had 5000 beads on the corset and collar.
I Love hearing behind the scenes info on your suits and performing in them!