1.0 - Introduction
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This is the fursuit FAQ; FAQ means Frequently Asked Questions. This guide originally started out as a series of questions and answers compiled by Robert C. King. Now, boogi, with some help from YappyFox and others, have been doing a rewrite and have put it into a more readable form with much expanded coverage and added material. All of us involved in the original FAQ and the rewrite hope you find this compilation useful.

Note to the first-time reader and/or fursuiter/costumer - there is a lot to be covered here, and it will all seem overwhelming and confusing. Don't take it all at one time. Rather, start at your own pace, work with other suiters/costumers, ask questions, surf the web, attend a convention, and play with things on your own. Your learning and skills will improve over time.

IMPORTANT NOTE: This FAQ does not cover sexual topics because it is a general guide that takes no position on the matter.
(courtesy of JinxTiger. Thanks for writing this little blurb!)

Why is the FAQ set up the way it is?
The maintainer has many reasons to do it this way. It's not because of laziness. There are visitors who have low or no vision, and cannot quite view the graphics-, flash-, and script-laden pages of many websites out there. Their screen readers will not read the graphics out to them, just the text. You can imagine how frustrating it is for them when they come across a site in all Flash, and no text to guide them through.

The maintainer has received comments from some of those with visual difficulties, both in email and instant messaging. All have said that the FAQ is one of the more easily readable sites out there, and the links to the graphical areas are clearly marked as so.

What does it mean for the future of the FAQ? It will always be readable and accessible to everyone. There is no need to turn the entire FAQ into a graphics-heavy document. Sure, some pics are good, but not when you have so many in a page that it overwhelms the text. ASCII text pictures are ok, and it can help if you have a regular picture linked.

1.1 - Definitions/Lexicons
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A costume is an outfit or a disguise worn on Mardi Gras, Halloween, or similar occasions. A mascot is a person, an animal, an object, or a costumed character believed to bring good luck, especially one kept as the symbol of an organization such as a sports team.

A fursuit is a slang term for a costume. A less acceptable slang term is zoot, but some do not like this term. There are three basic kinds of costume: the scratch or make do style, the fursuit style, and the mascot style of costume.

A make-do style of costume is improvised and uses what ever materials are on hand. For example, a store bought mask, garden gloves, and a rope for a tail would be a make-do costume.

A fursuit style of costume is the kind seen at furry conventions. It is usually custom made as a labor of love and can be very detailed and usually has a true to life head.

A mascot style of costume is the kind usually seen at sports or corporate promotional events. It usually has limited detailing and a oversized head to be easily visible at a convention or at a stadium.

1.2 - History
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Native Americans
Native Americans wore animal costumes of various kinds for millennia for religious dances and other ceremonials. Ceremonies of propitiation to gain favors from gods take on various forms. There are imitative movements such as the rain dance, acts of commemoration that reenact some important happening of the past, impersonations in which the actor becomes for the time being an animal, a tribal hero, a god. The individuals chosen to enact these ceremonies renounce their own personalities temporarily and don garments appropriate to their roles and may take on the persona of the animal, tribal hero, or god.

The eagle dance costume of the Hopi tribe includes wings with which the dancer imitates the swooping motions of the eagle and a headdress that symbolizes that bird. The Hopi eagle dancer wears a mask-headdress of more than human size, of highly unrealistic design, symbolic but not imitative which is actually a sacred symbol.

In the same category is the Shalako mask, which in the Zuni tribal ceremonial represents an ancestral spirit with "god-like potency." For, as Virginia Roediger explains, "As soon as the impersonator dons the mask of the supernatural, she or he is believed to become that spirit. As a consequence she or he is supernatural and must not be approached or touched during the ceremonies and must be uncharmed before she or he again becomes mortal." Body paint also has magic power as it too renders the wearer untouchable and must be washed off ceremonially before he again becomes mortal.

Outsiders unaware of the important ritual meanings in the Pueblo ceremonial are stirred by the aesthetic appeal of the costumes; their vibrant colors, ingenious construction, abstract designs pleasingly applied and such ornaments as sashes, fringes, tassels, and rattling shells that combine in a syncopated accompaniment to the basic rhythm of the measured steps.

Ancient Egypt
From such dances and other primitive religious dramas, scholars infer that similar conventions developed in prehistoric civilizations. Scripts of a few Egyptian religious plays do exist but there is no indication of the costuming. However, many Egyptian figures in stone, in fresco, and on papyrus have the look of theater costume designs.

There are hawk, dog, etc. headed men in loincloths and round beaded collars. Those animal heads could well be the masks of priests impersonating gods. There are female figures that wore headdresses representing the folded wings of birds and whose bodies were wrapped in feather painted sarongs.

Ancient Greece
Egypt was one of the contributors to the religious thought of Greece. Another was Thrace, whence the god Dionysus came. With the worship of Dionysus began lusty Greek drama with satyrs and dancing women. The satyr impersonators imitated nature creatures with hairy legs, bushy tails, and animal-like masks.

There is a vase in the Staatliche Museum in Berlin, Germany showing knights in the chorus of an early Greek comedy riding on men disguised as horses. The horse men have tails, a body covering, and a horse head that leaves the wearers face visible.

The most important feature of the Greek costume was the mask, which indicated the character's age, sex, station, and customary mood. The masks were made of linen, cork, or wood, and were skillfully carved and painted.

Mimic horses, satyrs, bird figures, and other animal imitations were much in evidence. Aristophanes, in The Wasps, The Birds, and The Frogs, calls for all manner of such figures and clothing. Actors performed in skins and wore horses' heads, birdlike visors, and mock wings.

Medieval Developments
Just as Greece had its satyrs and misshapen clowns, the middle ages had its devils. Some recall the old satyrs with shaggy goat legs, cloven hooves, and horns; some developed new drolleries with bat wings and scorpion tails; some were embellished with ornaments on the knees, elbows, and bellies as well as grotesque masks on the face.

The European craft guilds and the societies dedicated to producing the sacred dramas, as well as the leaders of the Italian city-states, strove to present their plays as sumptuously as possible. No construction problems baffled them. The produced instantaneous transformations, talking beasts, and practicable wings for angels as needed. The costume parade included tyrants outfitted in papier-mache heads with scarlet wigs and beards and crowns, turbans and robes that glittered with jewels; demons whose huge grotesque masks and lashing tails put fearful pleasure in the hearts of the beholders; and angles with shining garments and gilded limbs.

Renaissance
The medieval combats at arms developed into shows that had rudimentary plots. These stage conflicts were grim contests in which costume pageantry was furnished by distinguishing colors, crests, plumes, shields and other paraphernalia of heraldry.

Other outdoor spectacles furnished the opportunity for dressing actors in magnificent mythological, sylvan, pastoral, and marine costumes. Outdoor spectacles made free use of masks, almost a necessity when men had to impersonate women. At court balls both men and women wore masks, not for magic or for character identification, but for concealment. From court ballet developed opera, which has seldom lost sight of the original spectacular features, including costume.

Mascots
The word mascot, which denotes something or someone that brings good luck, now enjoys a positive meaning that is a distinct improvement over its prior meanings. Mascot came into English as a borrowing of the French word mascotte, meaning mascot or charm, which is the diminutive of the provincial word, masco, which is a slang term for witch. The English word was coined in 1881 shortly after the French word, itself coined in 1867, was popularized by the opera La Mascotte, performed in December 1880.

There have been various animals used as symbols or mascots. In the military there is the Air Force Academy falcon, the Naval Academy goat, and the Army Academy bulldog. A tiger is the symbol of one brand of cereal, as are other animals, and even leprechauns. One can see at trade shows corporate mascots. Some nations have mascots, in particular the United States eagle.

Most school mascots are costumed performers. However, some colleges have living animals, such as the bull, buffalo, or eagle, instead of or in addition to the performer.

Costumes at Fantasy and SF Conventions

Fursuits

1.3 - Safety
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Some of the more advanced construction techniques involves chemicals which can be hazardous or even deadly if misused.

Always use ventilation when using chemicals or working with fiberglass or latex. There should be a flow of air across the work area which causes fumes to be ejected from a window. If you work with flammable material, it is best to have the fan in another room in front of the window, blowing air in, then work in front of a window in another room so the air flow is across the work area and out the window.

Always wear suitable protection as a respirator, goggles, heavy duty clothing and gloves.

Always read the instructions fully, even removing the label to keep after marking the container with a marker or a label so you know what it contains. Chemicals go bad after a while. It is not advisable to use chemicals that have been sitting around for longer than a year.

One costuming technique involves painting the face, or body. Never use commercial paint from a paint store or home improvement center. Only paints specially formulated for body painting must be used.

Safety is important even after the costume is finished. Costumes are flammable, beware of open flames or lunatics with matches. Costumes are hot, one can get heat prostration in a few minutes on a hot day.

1.4 - Scratch costumes
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A scratch costume is the least expensive style of costume. For this type of costume, one makes do with what ever one has on hand or can easily find at reasonable prices.

The least expensive, and least accurate fursuit, is street clothes with a Halloween mask, gloves, and perhaps a tail from rope or fabric. The paws may be gloves, even gardening gloves. One may get round pieces of felt of various colors with glue backing, to attach to make pads on the gloves. The tail may be a thick scrap of rope, even a length of cowboy lariat, single or folded over and inserted in the waist band. Some costume shops offer ready made tails, a lion style with a tuft at the end, or other styles may be available.

The Halloween mask may just be a plain cover over the eyes or have feathers attached and are usually held on with elastic around the head. A more elaborate mask may also cover the nose or may cover the nose, eyes, and forehead; again it may be held on with elastic around the head. Some costume shops also have rubber muzzles or beaks of various kinds that are held on with spirit gum or an elastic band around the head.

One sees from time to time at dealers tables at furry conventions eared head bands and tails being sold. The ears match the tail in species and coloration. The persons hair may be combed over the head band to hide it. The tail is hung from a belt or attached to pants with safety pin. The headband and tail are about $40.00 to $50.00 each.

Some costume shops have an assortment of full head masks, usually costing in the range of $40.00 to $75.00. Some are made entirely of latex rubber, and some are made with a rubber face and fabric or fur on the rest of the head. Usually the masks are of alien creatures or demonic characters, but there are a few good looking masks such as eagle, hawk, unicorn, reindeer and others. A very good looking wolf head was seen in a catalogue, for about $300.00, but the manufacturer was not noted.

There are also available a variety of accessory packs. For example there are CATS accessory packs in several colors. These have a open face fur covered latex hood, fur covered fabric wrist pieces, and a tail. There are various other accessory packs available, usually all one needs to add are street clothes and gloves, or tights and leotards and gloves.

One person has made an inexpensive full body costume using off the shelf items. A spandex body suit that was footed and had long sleeves and a turtle neck was ordered from a dance shop that sold ballet gear. A costume shop was paid to put a zipper in a seam in the groin area so that the call of nature could be answered. A furry hood and wrist pieces were used from a CATS accessory package. The wrist pieces were used over nylon gloves which could be removed when eating snacks or dinner A separate lion style tail, with tufted tip, was inserted in a pair of cutoffs the person wore. Since the person was a house cat, a red nylon collar and short leash was attached to the neck over the furry hood. The spandex body suit was so cool, that the person actually wore it for 20 hours at a convention even off site under street clothes to a banquet.

1.5 - Fursuits
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A fursuit style of costume is usually a elaborate full body costume constructed over a period of many months. The wearer may make their own costume or have another make it for them. They may be very elaborate and involve several different colors of fur. The head is usually sized to be more true to life.

There are several methods used to construct the head. Papier mache may be built up possibly on a wooden frame, but this usually results in a very heavy head. Foam blocks may be hollowed out and carved, then covered with fur. Plastic or fiberglass strips or wire may be formed into a frame and covered with papier-mache or other material. A hockey mask or other helmet may be used as a foundation to build a head.

The most elaborate heads are ultra custom made to form fit on a persons head. This is done by making a lifecast, or mold of a persons head. Lifecasts can also be made of the body and hands.

Some may apply one or more pieces of latex rubber, called prosthesis, shaped like muzzles or ears, to their head with spirit gum. The edges can be blended to the skin with some kind of putty or clay material. Then makeup can be applied over the prosthesis and face.

The body suit is usually constructed from several different colors and possibly lengths of fur. Usually there is belly fur of a contrasting color, usually light or white, reaching from the throat to near the groin. In come costumes, the zipper or other fastening is run along the seam between the belly fur and the body fur.

Tails are usually fur covered foam and are large and thick. They may be sewn directly to a costume if light weight, but larger and heavier tails require a butt plate. The butt plate is a shaped piece of plastic, leather, or other material held on the body with a belt. The butt plate provides a firm support for a heavy and/or large tail.

Paws and feet are usually elaborately done. Paws may include all five fingers or include just four fingers, or may have just the thumb free with all other fingers in a mitten. There are usually pads of a contrasting color made from leather or fur. Feet may be just covers going over street shoes and held on with elastic, or they may be elaborate anatomically detailed feet. The feet can be plantigrade, resembling human feet, or digitigrade, resembling animal feet.

The costume may be detailed with character clothing, jewelry, weapons, or other objects such as badges, staffs, etc.

One should try to be as original as one can when constructing a costume. Any characters as Chuck E. Cheese, Mickey Mouse, Tazmania, etc. are copyrighted and one could get into serious legal problems for copying the style of the costume too closely. Also copying another fursuiters costume too closely is not advisable either. Would you want your creation, that may have cost hundreds of dollars and taken a year to construct, copied by all and sundry?

1.6 - Mascot Costumes
======================
A mascot style of costume is usually a commercial grade full body costume constructed by a costume shop to meet a budget. They usually have oversized heads and simple body colors so as to be easily visible at stadiums, conventions, or on the street. Also, less expensive costumes are rented to people for parties, Halloween, etc.

Since such costumes are considered to be capital investments, some can be very elaborate and expensive, such as the ones at theme parks. Also they have a more rugged and robust construction using heavy stitching on the fur and fiberglass on the heads. Mascot costumes are usually built oversized so one size would fit anyone from 5'2" to 6'-2, but sagging may occur in smaller people. Shoes are another matter. It is difficult to construct feet that look good, fit well, and are durable. Some costumes have no feet, relying on the wearers shoes, sneakers, etc.

Some of the costume shops also build costumes to sell to other costume shops and to the general public. A costume with fiberglass head, furred body suit with attached gloves simple detailing as a short stubby tail, but usually no feet, may cost $500-1,000.

1.7 - Performing in Costume
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You will have to develop a persona for your character. A persona is role that one assumes or displays in public or society; one's public image or personality, as distinguished from the inner self. For instance a person who is insecure and lacking self confidence may don a wolf fursuit and assume the positive characteristics of the wolf. He may thus become self assured, confident, even aggressive.

A persona is more than this, it includes body language--how one walks and acts and gestures. One may walk with a exaggerated swagger indicative of a virile male character, or swiveling the hips demurely indicative of a feminine character. One may act virile and give aggressive handshakes, one may act demurely and give hugs. Since one should not talk in costume, pantomime and gesturing becomes important to express the performers actions.

If you are hired by a company or theme park to be a costumed performer, you will have a ready made persona and you will have certain responsibilities. You may be shown a video of that character appearing in a feature film or on a TV program. To conceal the wearers identity, mascots are not supposed to talk, so body language is important and you may be taught certain actions. You represent the company and must act level headed at all times. If you don't like kids and adults touching you, poking you, pulling your tail, then you should not be a mascot. You must walk carefully and not make any sudden turns or moves, you may knock down a kid walking to you from the back or sides. You should have a spotter or escort that can come to your aid. You may even wear a headphone or ear piece and the spotter can talk to you via "walkie-talkie." You must remain cool, calm, collected at all times.

In hot weather, you will be given breaks to prevent heat prostration. You will go to a non public area so you can remove your head and cool down and drink something to rehydrate your body. It is best to drink lukewarm water or non-caffeinated sodas or sports drinks; try to avoid really cold drinks as they can shock your system. Try to avoid going from a hot and steamy costume to very cold winter air, that can also shock your system.

1.8 - How to contact the FAQ maintainer
====================================
The email address is rsg zero nine one zero -at- iglou *spam* com (Replace the *spam* with a dot. Let's see the damn spambots parse *THAT!*)

Place [fursuitfaq] as part of the subject line including your own subject. This prevents my spam filter from hitting on your message. For example;
Subject: [fursuitfaq] Question on one section

Enter your message as normal.

1.9 - FAQ Archives/Downloads
==========================

Downloads - All files will archive into their own directories.
faq.zip - the FAQ archive, minus the images. (465K)
images1.zip - section 4 and 7-22 graphics (3.6 megs)
images2.zip - section 6 graphics (3.1 megs)
aloserger.zip - Alopex's sergers and fursuits PDF writeup (4.3 megs)

1.10 - FAQ history
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v6.122004 - Added 10.11, checked and updated all links - December 2004

v6.102004 - Renumbered section 19 with four new subsections, broke up section 10.2 into 10.2.1 and 10.2.2, added on 1.9 and 30.3.4, some links checked and updated in preparation for all links to be checked and updated, updated other sections. - October 2004

v6.072004 - Added on four new subsections (9.5, 30.12, 30.13, and 31.6) and updated other sections. - July 2004

v6.042004 - Checked and updated all links and resources, added some new subsections, updated sections as usual - April 2004

v6.122003 - Added three new subsections, minor updates, and other bits of info. - December 2003

v6.092003 - Checked and updated all links and resources, added a few more subsections. - September 2003

v6.0 - Table of Contents completely redone amd renumbered with new sections and subsections, with better flow. - May 2003

v5.122002 - More new subsections added, prepared some subsections for the inevitable splitoff into their own section. - December 2002

v5.082002 - Graphical sections added for the next phase of the FAQ, updated section 30's listings, added some new subsections, and cleaned up sections 3 and 24. - August 2002

v5.012002 - Added on two new sections, Index and Humor, and some new subsections - January 2002

Rather than using version numbers, dates will be used. 5 is the major revision number, with mmyyyy being the month and year when there are some large updates and additions like new subsections and related.

v5.0 - Table of contents redone to reflect change in sections splitting - August 2001?

v4.0 - Heavily modified up to May 5, 2000. This supersedes all previous FAQs, and has been broken up into sections, as it was previously in one large file. No version list available, as this would be too large, as there are additions made to this FAQ all the time. The old FAQ is offline, and can be requested via email.

v3.0 - boogi took over, doing a first draft of the table of contents, which changed before becoming v4.0. - March 2000

v2.0 - Luis Antunez took over, having made some small modifications here and there, measurement modifications, etc. No modifications done for nearly two years. Last revision up to April 1999.

v1.4 - Last update done by Robert King, draft version, up to August 1997, started around mid-95, shortly after the fursuit list started.