Adding Fur to Werewolf Stilts

[doylesarahpal]

Your video was the inspiration for my costume

[OnAngelWings]

Hey i have a question about fur. I'm making a faun costume with padded legs. I'm struggling with how to attach the fur in such a way that i will be able to bend my legs. I know fur has some give, it is stretchy but not hugely. Any tips? Should i just go for it and hope for the best?

[gryphern]

@OnAngelWings Make it a little loose, so it's got slack material to move over the knee. You could also build a two piece leg on Spandex, with a flap covering the knee bend, that way you can have a tight leg with a slightly shaggy knee, but full range of motion.

[IndicatorRed]

I love her "auh! "... .:o)

[OnAngelWings]

there's a dude on youtube who made an interesting addition to your design. he added a bit of wood under the front of the shoe to take the pressure off his toes. with yours don't your feet get hurt? its just im wondering which design to follow and if im to be walking about in this i want the most comfort possible. thanks for uploading this nonetheless, it really helps with my costume!

[gryphern]

@OnAngelWings This is discussed briefly in the How To book, SquigglyLee added a toe support to his design, too, and he said it increased comfort.

[jgantner1]

I likez pizza GIR! :P

[Austinbum67]

Watching your first test video of the stilts, I new that there was going to be that problem. But everything else is absolutely great!! You have really great designs nd really inspiring videos!!! Keep it up!!!

[rfridaythe13th]

cool! thanks

are those sleeves sold like that? with fur covered on it? or do u add fur to it?

[RicardoRoveran]

cool

[joeprice010]

cool dude hahah, must take a loottaaa work.

[lochmarFiendhiem]

Anyone else get a stiffy when she "moved the fur away from the toe"?

[michaelsproductions]

Thank you very much for these werewolf videos! I will try to make a Wolfman costume using your stilt design.

[ZEUSFURY1987]

where can i buy or find places to get the fake fur?

[gryphern]

You can buy fake fur swatches (smaller squares of fabric) at the craft section in Wal-Mart, you can buy fur cut form big long rolls at fabric stores like JoAnne fabric. Craft stores almost always have the smaller swatches, so big chains like AC Moore and Micheals will have fake fur squares too. Fur off the bolt (long roll) is usually easier to work with, but the swatches can be high quality, too.

[xxemocorexx3]

u like the word hacking im guessin lol

[velociraptorpckleadr]

on my stilts i cut and stitched the fur itself into 3 toes and stuffed it with that fluff from a pillow that my cat ripped apart then made a strip that led to my ankle and did not get glued to the wood and my friend is wondering if your method would be a little better before she makes hers i havent tested mine out yet and i was wondering how well you tink it would hold up

[gryphern]

I thought about it for a couple days, and remembered I made giant stuffed eagle feet for a mascot costume once, and since the stuffing was firm they worked really well without being attached to a solid base. Before your friend decides she can try a visualization exercise, where she imagine what each final product would look like, and try to imagine how each one could screw up, then decide which would screw up less. Visualizing can be done through writing words or drawing images.

[velociraptorpckleadr]

o.k thank you

[toolmantaylor]

just got my package from zagone studios. The howloween werewolf moving jaw mask, chest and hand wolf gloves. Now im making my digigrade stilts base on your design. the problem is i cant find brown fake fur. All i got is a dark blue fur. So i decided to color it with textile paint brown, The fur did stick together a bit. But it gave me a dirty rugged looking wolf paws. ty for the design!

[runawayagent]

I have an old brown blanket, would that suffice fur?

[gryphern]

I'm looking at your Channel right now... Once the Freakin' Flash Player Work Properly I Really Hate This Mother Fu--oh there we go.

first off: Beautiful construction, your pieces fit together very tightly and they're nice and slim to your leg.

If you plan out your blanket pieces to make a neat fit that matches your stilt construction, trace the shapes you cut onto newspaper and save them, so if you want to do it over with furry fabric you have patterns.

[gryphern]

Sponge painting watered down paint onto the blanket surface could also help give the illusion of muscles or texture adding to the impact of your stilts. Same for brush painting any lines to represent extra hairy areas.

[runawayagent]

Thank you, ill get on that ASAP. Thank you Thank you. oh and how should i deal with the shelving sticking out from the leg? wouldn't it look a little awkward sticking out half an inch from my leg? i have a rotary tool and most other hardware tools.

[gryphern]

You can try padding next to the metal bars to make a leg shape that's more natural, like cut up a car-wash sponge into strips, anything that would construct the shape of an artificial leg underneath he blanket pieces. Your leg would sit inside the shell of a leg formed by blanket and padding.

[SpecialKyo]

Great job :) Thank you for posting, i would love to give digitgrade a try soon.

[semipessimistic]

what would you differently if you were covering the gargoyle legs?

[gryphern]

I'd do careful padding under the fabric to create a shapely musculature. Then, I'd use vinyl, stretch fabric, or very short pile fur to cover the muscle shapes and create a believable leg, rather than a baggy, shaggy, werewolf hide.

[FireDrake2464]

Where do u guys buy the fake fur?

[gryphern]

Local fabric stores, there's two around here I buy from. There's a fair amount of buzz about the distinctivefabric website, so try there too if you don't have a nifty local store that'll order stuff for you. Some of the big chain stores, like the US Joanne fabrics can be really great depending on the management and the store size.

[gryphern]

I got my foam from a local hardware supply store when i lived outside Seattle. They sold foam for boat seats and furniture, and when they cut it for their customers there were scraps left over, scraps were $7 for about 5 cubic feet. You can buy foam from craft stores or furniture stores, but they charge A LOT, worth hunting down used or scrap sources like a furniture reupholsterer. I bought the fake fur on sale, "off the bolt," most of your cheaper fake furs are identical.

[hsg141]

Questions, if you don't mind.

Where did you get the foam?

And what kind of fur did you buy?

Thank you so much! ^.^

[Eirishman12]

I'm thinking of making these from Comic Con next year. I got a sweet wolf hat in '08 from Comic Con, and this year I got an awesome handmade tail. So I can have these for next year, then expand from there. I downloaded the book, so I gotta see how long it will take me. Thanks so much, I can't wait to make them!

[nickwatsonuitbelgie]

nice leg at 4:25

[finalconsecration]

Awesome. Next Halloween I'm making these stilts as goat legs for a Satan/Dis costume. Maybe use the wings too.

[phillyrocker1]

damn ur friend has a hairy leg

[gryphern]

The word you're looking for is "hirsute."

[phillyrocker1]

hirsute??????

[gryphern]

Yes, hirsute.  Wonderful word for describing someone with an unnatural amount o f hair--guaranteed to get you a 100 extra points on the SAT test!

[phillyrocker1]

yay i learned a new word  today thanxxx

[shadowclaw78]

do you think moving the shoe up an inch or two would hamper any manuvering or ability to walk confortably?

[gryphern]

Not if you make the angle steeper too, to keep weight centered over the part that contacts the floor. Just keep in mind that higher stilts can lead to worse falls.

[emperorvoid]

What did you use for the fur?

~Void~

[gryphern]

Off the bolt fake fur from JoAnn fabrics-- I think it was mainly made of acrylic fibers. Literally a huge sheet of fake fur on a mesh backing that they sell in gigantic rolls, and sell by length.

[werewolfJP]

cool but its fake

[gryphern]

Just like popular music.

[lycanwolf2]

how do u make a body for it??

[gryphern]

Salvation army shirt for three US dollars. Put hot glue on pieces of old cushion foam. Stick foam into shirt to create lumps and bumps at right paces. Stick fur scraps on chest, back, wherever. Making the body was just gluing together scraps, for us. But there's a bunch of ways to approach the project of a body.

[Bl00dWo1f]

Hey have you ever worked with white fur? how would you do this with the white fur?

[gryphern]

What would make you think white versus colored fake is different?

[Bl00dWo1f]

It's just the coloring, like to add white paint to brown fur, what colored paints would i have to use if im going to use white fur?

[gryphern]

The main difference is that you can stain white by applying very thin (like painted diluted with water, or even ink or liquid fabric dye) coloring to achieve different shades of color. You can apply color with a mouth atomizer (google it) sponge, comb--anything, as long as you apply it thin enough so that it doesn't become like glue.

[Bl00dWo1f]

Thank you!

[twins10232006]

This could have been a really great tutorial, but you didn't show how you actually furred any of the stilts lol. I thought that was the whole point. Instead, you jumped ahead and then back-tracked. You guys do such a good job on your projects, it would be really nice to see the tutorial "as you are doing it" as well. Just a thought for the future. It was a shame to miss out on how this was acutally done

[6Night6Shade6]

um i haves a few questions...

What are the measurements of the wood and stuff. also how much fur did you use total for the whole costume?

[Dandura]

exacto knife?

[gryphern]

Sure! I uses the "crappiest common denominator" to avoid scaring off folks who don't have access to a good tool set, but still want to be creative.

[wolflover2000]

werew do you get fake fur from ??

[gryphern]

I bought the fur "off the bolt," meaning from a big roll, at the North American chain JoAnn Fabrics. I think bought 2 yards for this project.

[spotman30]

the only thing you need is:to make the tail but most people forget... great costume!*****

[BayumGirl123]

So.. could you get it at say, Wal-Mart?

[gryphern]

Sometimes Wal-Mart will carry fake fur, usually have craft squares instead of rolls of craft fur which won't work as well since the stilts take a bunch of fabric. Phone ahead before visiting a store to find out. Try Google Maps and look up "fabric" or "craft store" near you!

[sk8rmoe]

how much noise do this make??? if they make i bit of noise is there a way to make them quieter

??? thnks ahead of time

[gryphern]

Depends on how heavy the stilt is. These ones were clunky, no padding between toe piece and base of the stilt (a strip of fun foam helps that,) they also lacked padding on the toe piece (again, foam can work.) But with those additions they are quiet enough no to sound fake. Check out the "finished costume" video to hear stilts ~without~ sound muffling padding on brick in an enclosed courtyard (super echo.)

[carlitaelhada]

never mind is me!!!!!

[carlitaelhada]

Great video! Is it only me or the volume goes up and down in between cuts? I can't hear you ... :-(

[prideed21233]

will u make me just some feet lik shoes no stilts plz

[gryphern]

We do make projects for other people. When you make a deal with an artist to create something for you it's called a commission. If you're interested in a commissioned piece send a message!

[Demorg]

Your vids about the stilts are fantastic! i'm trying to build a pair myself, though it's for a faun costume instead od a werewolf. The tips and stuff that you give are super-helpful in building a plan for the project! You do amazing work! The final result is awesome!

[gryphern]

I'd love to see the finished stilts, each time someone makes a pair and gives me feedback I'm able to answer new questions and learn what I could have done better. Good luck!

[BarneySaysHi]

I'm definately gonna try to build those stilts! It will make my suit even taller than I am now, and I'm 6'10". And it will give me a good reason to film again.

[someguycalledbob]

could you use a sponge intead of furniture foam?

[gryphern]

Yes. Won't be a resilient, but should work. You'd want a really dense big car washing sponge to work from, one with very small holes in the sponge and is thick and squeezable even when it's dry (as opposed to a sponge that is hard unless it is wet.)

[aichan25]

i've been looking EVERYWHERE for a digitgrade wolf leg tutorial! you are my savior

[gryphern]

We've got four videos about the stilts, and the blueprints for them are in the description of "Digitigrade Werewolf Legs/Stilts" They're useful!

[Rufus555]

It looks awsome! A bit square though :S If you round off the boards with an electric saw, will it get a more natural look?

[gryphern]

Totally! We used the most basic stuff possible for the demos that way anyone can do them, if you have better equipment you'll end up with a better outcome!!

[DreadedKnight]

You are a god of craftmaking! I'm glad I found this yesterday, because I've been wanting to make a digigrade stilt for a while, so this is just excellent! This year's project for me, a werewolf, next years, A DRAGON!

[Gingagirl]

oh god make me wanna barf! XP youre dead! :P

[gryphern]

I got a kind apology from gingagirl in my youtube mail, "...i thought it was real fur at fur so i got pissed of at the same time but u said fake fur when i already had writed!"

[grimzors]

this is just what i was looking for! awesome!

i wanna get started on making mt pair before halloween! i hope i get it right :(

[gryphern]

It's not hard to do, just make sure you pre-drill your screw holes with a smaller sized drill bit than the screw to avoid splitting your board. Everything else you can rip off and repair if you mess up!

[blackcat2086]

It's true! I tried to plow right into things and nearly split the board. Definitely go slow and take the time to pre-drill your holes before screwing it together. It is pretty flexible though, I had to redo the toes a few times before I got them to look right with the fur. Definitely shave down the fur before you even try to fit it to the toes...makes it a lot easier.

[termin8or123]

I want to see more!!!

[geohemmert]

thank you!!!!

[ElFuzzyFilms]

can't wait to see the full costume!!

[gryphern]

There ya go, it's online!

[Dragontrap]

You may want to invest in an xacto knife

[gryphern]

Yeah, using better tools will usually achieve better results! But I do own an X-acto set, the reason I'm using real basic stuff is that this project shows how to make a really cool costume with the tools a normal high school kid would have at home, having to buy new equipment can turn people off to projects. Like for working with the foam for other projects I have a cutting set, with shape cutting puck, knives, replacement blades, and a cutting board--

[gryphern]

but that equipment is more expensive than this entire project. It's been really nice to get e-mail from kids who are using these video as examples for their first big project and are succeeding since everything's simple.

[Dragontrap]

Well that does make sense XD. And it's great that you guys have made it super simple for those who can't really afford to make high dollar costumes, I was just suggesting an xacto knife because it looked like the scissors were having a kinda tough time with the foam.

I have enjoyed all of your vids and I hope you decide to make more ^^.