content: 0:00 thread type (cotton, polyester, heavy duty) 1:42 the first stitch 2:38 avoid fur poking out 3:05 clips and sewing needles 3:40 the basting stitch 4:54 the whip stitch 6:42 whip stitch applications 7:02 the blanket stitch 8:12 the backstitch 10:02 comparison: blanket stitch and backstitch 10:24 the ladder stitch 12:04 ladder stitch applications 6:09 and 9:28 closing the stitches
Oh my gosh, I know this video is four hecking years old, but as someone who's too much of a coward to use the sewing machine, this was genuinely so helpful!
I swear, you are like the wholesome mother of the furry community. From the step by step tutorials, the music you use.. hell you're even teaching us kids how to hand sew! Even down to the way your suits look in the end, you and your work give off this soft, warm wholesome vibe that I don't get from anyone else. I'm not exactly sure how to explain the way your work looks to me, but in comparison it would be like most big suit makers are like buying pastries from a large grocery store while yours are like coming home to a freshly baked spiced cake. It just gives off such a comfortable homey feeling and the fact that you pour so much love into taking us by the hand and walking us through your process in each of your videos makes me feel so safe, like "yes, I c a n do this!" And you're tight by our sides supporting us. I'm not sure if that makes any sense to you lol, but thank you for being the mom in the community and showing us that we can most definitely achieve our fursuit goals.
Hello! I'm a younger fur! And I've been wanting to make a fursuit for a while now! I've been saving up money for proper materials and all that! I know how to sew and I've been looking up lots of tutorials for making fursuits lol! I'm just wondering what type of foam do you use for the base? Also any advice for New fursuit makers! Tysm your tutorials have been a huge help in me succeeding my goal! Ilysm and I srsly probably wouldn't be making a fursuit if it wasn't for you! Thank you! Your an inspiration! :3
Download the joanes app. They frequently have sales and good coupons. I just bough 4 yards of foam at half price during the 50% off sale... saved about 50$ by using a 1.99$ shipping coupon as well
@@FunBun7hey! I know this was 2 years ago but I'm just checking to see how it went. I'm currently trying to make my first fursuit head and wondering how yours came out and how it's going
I'm actually going to be making my first suit soon, hopefully in a few months once I have the money saved after some important matters are paid off first.
This was exactly the tutorial I needed. I’m someone whose only sewing experience is doing straight stitches for repairs and sewing on patches, so this was super helpful. My brain feels so big now
this is the most helpful sewing tutorial i’ve ever watched!! i’m not a furry (i just enjoy watching people make their fursuits haha) but i am a drag artist who really wants to learn how to sew, so thank you so much!
wow, that means a lot to me!! thank you!! I definitely didn't cover all the hand stitches here but I tried to get a good number of them that cover a general range of uses :3
Thank you for this, I just bought a secondhand suit from a friend and need to make some modifications... and have VERY LITTLE experience sewing! This was a very clear and easy visual guide and I'm looking forward to working on my new suit!
Thank you thank you so much!!! Before watching, I didn’t know much at all about sewing; thanks to you, I’ll be able to make my first set of hand paws:))
2-3 years of me being a furry and I was never able to find a good tutorial until now! I suffer from not being a fast learner and most tutorials I see today are always super quick and aren't very specific. Most of the time I need REALLY clear details or else I'll mess up. I hate when some tutorials go by super quick and just pass through everything. So thank you!
this is such a helpful tutorial, i learned a lot! so glad i found your channel before i started to fur the head im working on, seeing this made me realize i would've made a loooot of mistakes without this advice lmao
hi freckled cat creations!! I'm currently working on my second fursuit head, and your videos have helped so so so much!! I will always come back to your tutorials, and AAAAA you're amazing!! keep up with the amazing work ^^
been binge watching your tutorials for the last day or so since I discovered your channel, absolutely amazing! So thorough yet not overwhelming and easy to understand, you're making me very motivated to try making fursuits again 😭
Glad you like them! I really try to make the explanations not too overwhelming - a key part of that is to explain WHY on some stuff. if you know why you need to do something a certain way, it helps it not be as intimidating i feel like!
I'm a young fur who's gonna make their fursuit soon (I'm a skully) and my god. All the other sewing videos I watched just left me confused and abandoned but you. Your video was extremely helpful and made sooo much sense! I now know how to sew because of you! Hehe. Thank you so so much for making this video
I am honestly so happy you made this video, for I know little to nothing about sewing. I am getting into cosplaying and I wanted to make a Super Saiyan Goku 4 top and had no idea where to start. I feel so much more confident in taking this challenge on, especially since I don't have a sewing machine. Thank you so much!
When i started working on my first fursuit, i didn't know how to sew and had to get my mom to teach me the basics, but i only knew the most simple straight stitch. I didn't have a sewing machine so I had to make the whole partial using just hand sewing with that straight stitch, and it barely had any issues. On top of that, the only thread I used was upholstry thread. By some miracle I made it though that, and now that I found your video I was just like: "This was here THE WHOLE TIME?!"
Thank you so much for such an in depth tutorial! I'm finally finishing up my first fursuit head, and I used a blanket stitch so my seams are very lumpy haha, but this video is super helpful for the next time I make one!
So glad it was informatice!!! I think part of the lumpiness could be fixed by sewing even closer to the edge, maybe your seam allowance was a bit too big. But good luck next time!!! If you sew it with a backstitch, then you could go back in with scissors and carefully trim down the edge of the seam allowance if you notice any bumpy areas! That's what I'm currently doing on a head now. (If you use a blanket stitch then the stiches would stop you from being able to trim the edge but backstitch will let you!)
Im currently working on furring my second ever full head and this is so useful, especially the notes for which stitches work best, thank you so much for sharing this!!!
This was super helpful!!! I sewed a tongue for my first fursuit today and even though it was my first time sewing it looked a lot better than I thought it would :)
Hey thanks for the videos, I really didn't know what kinda stitch to use and yeah, backstitch with the thread doubled has been working great, have made a couple of simple fleece tongues and even a single handpaw using it. Yeeeah kinda jumped head first into the toughest part to sew lmao, but it actually went super well and the glove fits on well too. Gonna be making a fullsuit yeah, don't got a machine (and I doubt I'd use it enough to justify getting one) so heyyy a slow and chill hand-sewing time it will be, finishing the paw mentioned gave me a bunch of confidence lol, whereas a couple weeks back I was suuuuper anxious about how the sewing would go.
I have seen/talked to someone who completely hand stitched their digitigrade fullsuit! And it held up really good! Don't let anyone tell you you can't hand stitch a whole body. It takes a while, but as long as you place your stitches close enough, it's not very weak.
Thanks for being here! I would never have been able to figure out how to do half of my crafts without you. My parents never have time to teach me. They both work pretty much all week. Sometimes they have free time, but that's either spent entirely on my younger siblings, or hiding from us. Maybe sometimes they'll talk to me for about ten minutes, and then we're done for the day. So you're almost like a third parental figure to me. ^v^ Its honestly probably my fault, though. I don't like how loud mom can yell at me sometimes, so I retreat to my crafting. That's how it usually is. I'm often doing things wrong. Sorry, I'll be quiet now. 😅
I wish I found this sooner!! I've been doing the blanket stitch for literally EVERYTHING. No wonder it looked so bulky around the lips and inside ears!!!
I completely hand sewed my first fullsuit, planti, im WAY more active and rough on my suit than most, and I've had 0 popped seams thus far, and I used a cotton thread! I didnt know at the time, its what I had. I had a sewing machine, but it had only one setting which was fast no matter what you did, so, I hand sewed everything. I got my own machine for Christmas a few years back, GAME CHANGER
@@freckledcatcreations haha thanks so much!! (Just as a side note you helped me learn a lot about suit making and helped my first suit look absolutely amazing, and all of your stuff has really inspired me to make this my job) He has a spiral and spots as well and somehow no pops😅 ill probably reinforce him one of these days.
Thank you so much for making this tutorial! All the info here is so incredibly helpful. I’ve been following your swishy tail tutorial for my first tail and I can’t wait to finish it!
This was extremely helpful! I am planning my first suit head and this was the perfect video to teach me how to sew and what the best methods are! thank you :D
finally found out what stitch i've been doing LOL. i've been doing a blanket stitch for everything and had no idea! worked out well for my head even though i am using that thread that breaks easily.. i hope it will survive. XD
I really appreciate how beginner-friendly this tutorial is! I have a quick question about the backstitch - as you mention in the video, the seam can be laid flat unlike the blanket stitch seam. How do you keep the seam flat when you're gluing the fur onto the head?
So like, im a young fur and i enjoy making fursuits (im currently waiting to get my fur for my 3rd suit!) And knowing how to do different types of sewing will really help with the head cuz uh.. my very first furring looks a bit lumpy from the seams.. but anyways, you really inspire me to make suits, this vid is super helpful cuz all i knew was blanket and whip 😅
Glad it's helpful! Good websites to get fur from include: Howl Fabrics, BigZ Fabrics, Fursuitsupplies, Fabric.com (some are good, some are bad), Mendels, and FabricEmpire.
@@lisaheart4414 no problem! so i'm planning on doing a video on that later down the road, but basically you should order samples and then look at them closely - brush the fur around, see if you can see the backing if you part the fur. (that's bad). how does the back side feel? is it soft and flexible? good. if it's hard and doesnt really curve/bend well, then it's bad. and you can even try to rip the piece in your hands - if it breaks easily DONT use it.
I'm just watching this cause there is a spot on my bodysuit which has a popped seam. So I don't need to ship my bodysuit all of the time to and from my maker as the shipping will cost a lot.
And also, my sona is a cheetah with each individual spot sewn in. My maker said that I should be aware of popped semes :p Then it is good to learn some hand sewing. Thinking about trying making my own suit in the future as well :3
this tutorial has helped my hand sewing soo much, thank you!! are you thinking about making a machine sewing tutorial in the future?? i've seen a couple makers describe using specific settings on the machine, but not really explaining why or how...
I have really thought about doing this! I was worried it wouldnt fully be useful since every machine is a little different, BUT to be honest I do own/use the machine that MOST makers do use (the singer heavy duty) so a tutorial/tutorials on the machine might actually be very useful.
@@freckledcatcreations I'd love a sewing machine tutorial! Your hand-sewing tutorial is really helpful. I'm just starting to get into fursuit making (with admittedly no prior experience in sewing) and I learned a lot through watching this. I think a sewing machine tutorial from you would really help me not be as intimidated by machine sewing.
This is a super in depth and informative video, thank you! Would you be able to release a video about using a sewing machine? I had a sewing machine but I couldn't use it for ages because I didn't know how to properly thread it, tension the bobbin, put the bobbin in etc. Thank you
So glad you liked it!! And honestly I was thinking about making a sewing machine video too. Of course all machines will have different features, and slightly different ways of threading , and such, but there's still a ton I could go over that will help. Ill totally put that on my list!! And try to get to it sooner rather than later :3
Ft me working on my fullsuit, completely handsewing it all because my sewing machine irritates me too much. (Back stitching the body and some of the head)
OOOH a fellow backstitcher!!! i feel like most of the furry fandom doesnt know that stitch as well and most people do blanket. * high five * machines can be irritating lol. I commend your patience in hand sewing the body!!!!! hope it all comes out great!
@@freckledcatcreations thank u so much! N yea, its honestly my favorite stitch, might take a bit but its very strong and holds well. Blanket stitches end up just being whip stitches cuz my brain gives up half way through lol.
heya! I'm in the process of making my first fursuit head and I was wondering whether or not to shave the face fur before sewing or after putting it onto the head, I've seen most people doing it afterwards but I'm afraid of messing up and wasting fabric :(
I personally think if you do it only afterwards, it's hard to get the clippers into the tight areas like the mouth corners! I like to pre-shave the pieces before sewing them together, then once the fur's sewn and glued on, I do a final shave to tidy things up.
When you said it's much more expensive to replace ruined fur is true. I'm very picky. And I gotta save up a bunch of money for new fur that I actually like lol
I suggest using any strong hand stitch that works for you! I know most makers use the blanket and honestly, not many people KNOW about the backstitch. the reason they strictly say blanket stitch is because they may not know any better! a lot of fursuit makers only know the few sewing tricks they need for fursuits, and not the whole sewing knowledge out there (like easing, darts, pleats, all that stuff) I use the backstitch because it works best for me :3
Oh, I thought I did sorry! You do the same as the others - run your needle under a previous stitch, pull some of the thread through but not all of it, cut the needle out of the thread, pull one thread back through. tie a knot now that there is one thread on either side of the previous stitch!
That almost sounds like... maybe a chain stitch (in embroidery)? sometimes when stitching I accidentally pass my needle between the two threads of the previous stitch too lol! I think it just makes it even more locked in!
@@freckledcatcreations haha! It is rather hard to explain in text threading techniques, I get that! XD I mostly stitch everything by hand when I make plushies cuz I don't own a machine. But hand sewing became very meditative for me that I don't even WANT a machine, even when I get to making my suit. I know I sound like a lunatic suggesting 100% hand sewing and entire suit 😅 But doing more research on what it is, the default stitch i tend to do is actually a split stitch!! The chain stitch is rather similar tho🤔
the straight stitch isn't very strong, so you shouldnt do that for a head! you'll be able to see the thread in the seams when you flip it over. its not super strong. also, if you're able to draw your own wickerbeast, you should be able to follow my Head Pattern tutorial I made recently to make your own wickerbeast head! I dont have time to make videos on things that arent commissions, and i dont have any wickerbeast commissioners right now, so you'll have to try it yourself!
Hey! I'm working on my first fursuit head, and I was wondering for someone who's never sewn a day in their life what would be the best/easiest one to learn. It doesn't have to be extremely strong, just has to be able to hold 😅
@@freckledcatcreations tysm! I've seen a TON a videos on this topic, and this is by far the most helpful. You really helped me and so many more people with this
Hi! I want to make a fursuit sometime soon and I will most likely use your tutorials. I love your work so much. And one question, I kind of live in Poland and I won't really get materials here. What online store would you recommend to buy fur and other stuff ? Thanks
Thanks so much, I'm really glad it looks calm! That's what I hoped! Dang, Poland huh... Shipping would be much cheaper if it came from Poland, but if you have to do international then oh well! I get foam from Joanns.com and some people use foamByMail.com ... fur from BigZFabric, HowlFabric, fursuitsupplies, and fabric.com!
Yeah, they're probably too small to effectively sew with a machine! And if the dots are real tiny, like freckles, or hairline stripes, you could try the needle felting method! I'll be doing a video demonstration at some point, but you can search up Matrices' tutorial on it - that's where I'm getting it from
thank you for that! what stitch is better for balaclavas? i don't have a sewing machine at home. i did my first balaclava with ladder stitch because it's easier for me and also looks great :0
If you don't expect to stretch your balaclava a lot (like it's not super tight on your head) then a backstitch is fine, but if you're wanting to make it much smalle r than your head so you have to stretch it to put it on, and have it be super tight, then sew with a zigzag stitch! if you search on the internet you might find ways to hand sew a zigzag. having a zigzaggy line of stitching helps the material stretch a lot without breaking the stitches!
I would advise not to! ladder stitching will NEVER be as strong as sewing it from the back. There's only so close you can put your ladder stitches , its hard to grab small bits of fabric from the front. definitely sew from the back wherever you can!
I'm terrified of running a sewing machine for some reason. And every time I have used one the fur would get stuck or the string wouldn't go through and I've broken the tip of a needle while trying to get it back out.
oh man, i understand the nerves! i'm always worried about something getting stuck and then the machine just breaking beyond repair lol. they can only handle up to a certain thickness of fabric layers so if it's too thick you'd have to hand sew i guess!
there are a few places that usually need seams, like around the ears, separating the front and back of the head, a seam where the nose hits the face, a seam in the mouth corners - it's hard to show you over youtube comments, but if you watch a lot of the characters I make you'll see some seams that are consistent. and if you had a spare $1 you could join my patreon discord and i can give you some one-on-one help with pics easily!
Question ! what parts SHOULD be handstitched? i'm making my first suit and i'm about to get fur and I'm curious. (i havent finished the video yet so i apologize if it is in it)
I honestly like hand sewing paws and heads since the seams / areas sometimes are super tight and fiddly! feet and tails and arms can mostly be machine sewn.
blanket stitch has an extra step that almost "ties a knot" between each stitch. it's the difference between a VERY weak stitch (whip) and a very strong stitch (blanket).
Its hard for me right now to be honest. My sewing machine has only worked once in the many times I have tried to use it. Now I have converted to trying to hand sew and it does not make things any easier. I've looked up videos on the sewing machine, granted it is fairly new, but it always jams up in some way. I have no idea what is going on with it, any tips would be great.
Oh no!!! that sucks omg. i wish there were helpful vids for you. i have no idea what kinda machine you have so icant help, and if I dont personally have that machine theres only somuch i can advise! thread jams sometimes can be fixed by re threading the bobbin and/or top thread.
@@freckledcatcreations okay thank you for letting me know! I just got it to work the other day but now it's acting up. I'm going to try and invest In a better machine tho.
that's what this video is about lol! these are the best stitches for suit heads. I tell you what applications its best used for. i personally mostly use the backstitch
you DEFINITELY can make a whole head without a machine!! i would buy a premade balaclava for the lining , since hand sewing that might not be good enough, but for the rest - i actually hand sew all of my head parts!
So I just got done doing some test swatches, and this could obviously not hold true for everyone and is just what I've found in my own experiments, but my hand sewn samples at the same stitch length as my machine sewn samples were stronger in all cases except for the simple running stitch. I tugged on each sample for 3 min after popping a stitch with my seam ripper. The machine's straight lockstitch couldn't hold a candle to the hand backstitch or a double running stitch. I am actually extremely shocked by this, but thinking back on the diagrams I've seen on how sewing machines work and ripping out seams myself it makes sense. One compromise to it and the whole machine sewn line line can go really fast. There's much to take into account, like your stitch length, thread, and fabric etc. and with that in mind I'm going to keep testing it out. But what I have gotten out of this is the backstitch is very mighty! Mightier than my machine at least. Slow but strong. So there's a benefit to hand sewing, it's not second rate if you take small stitches and mind your tension. Outside of it being really calming that is lol.
what I do is bring the needle underneath one of the previous stitches, dont pull the thread all the way through. cut the thread off the needle. bring ONE of the two thread strands back out from under the previous stitch. so you have one thread on one side, one on the other. then when you tie them together, they're holding onto the previous stitch and it shouldn't come apart or pop through the fabric!
Omg this is exactly what I needed!!! Still waiting for my fur to come in the mail, but I’m very excited to start furring!! I am very new to sewing and currently have a broken sewing machine so I am planning on hand sewing the entire head! Thank you so much for this tutorial!!
Ahh good luck, hope this teaches all that you need to know (feel free to ask me more questions if you get stuck)!! You can TOTALLY hand sew the entire head!
content:
0:00 thread type (cotton, polyester, heavy duty)
1:42 the first stitch
2:38 avoid fur poking out
3:05 clips and sewing needles
3:40 the basting stitch
4:54 the whip stitch
6:42 whip stitch applications
7:02 the blanket stitch
8:12 the backstitch
10:02 comparison: blanket stitch and backstitch
10:24 the ladder stitch
12:04 ladder stitch applications
6:09 and 9:28 closing the stitches
OOH thank you!!!!!!!! You're officially my first pinned comment X3 thanks for being very helpful!
Oh my gosh, I know this video is four hecking years old, but as someone who's too much of a coward to use the sewing machine, this was genuinely so helpful!
I’m glad I’m not the only one stumbling across old treasures like this and finding them useful!!
behold, the internet.
I swear, you are like the wholesome mother of the furry community. From the step by step tutorials, the music you use.. hell you're even teaching us kids how to hand sew! Even down to the way your suits look in the end, you and your work give off this soft, warm wholesome vibe that I don't get from anyone else. I'm not exactly sure how to explain the way your work looks to me, but in comparison it would be like most big suit makers are like buying pastries from a large grocery store while yours are like coming home to a freshly baked spiced cake. It just gives off such a comfortable homey feeling and the fact that you pour so much love into taking us by the hand and walking us through your process in each of your videos makes me feel so safe, like "yes, I c a n do this!" And you're tight by our sides supporting us. I'm not sure if that makes any sense to you lol, but thank you for being the mom in the community and showing us that we can most definitely achieve our fursuit goals.
wait THATS SO WELL WORDED YOURE RIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! that's the vibe i want to give off!!!!! this made my day thank you so much T_T
@@freckledcatcreations A H I'm so glad you get what I mean! Thank you so much for inspiring us!
These are so good! I'd love to get a fursuit from you one day
aw, thank you!!
I’m not even remotely into fur suits but this is so much fun to watch. You’re really talented!
Aw thank you!!!! I try really hard! And honestly my favorite video on youtube to watch is seeing other artists make things. it's so inspirational!
Hello! I'm a younger fur! And I've been wanting to make a fursuit for a while now! I've been saving up money for proper materials and all that! I know how to sew and I've been looking up lots of tutorials for making fursuits lol! I'm just wondering what type of foam do you use for the base? Also any advice for New fursuit makers! Tysm your tutorials have been a huge help in me succeeding my goal! Ilysm and I srsly probably wouldn't be making a fursuit if it wasn't for you! Thank you! Your an inspiration! :3
So happy my stuff helps you!!! I use upholstery foam! It's found at joanns, walmart, etc. I don't think the density matters - but I use high density.
@@freckledcatcreations tysm! This helps!! Yay! :)
Download the joanes app. They frequently have sales and good coupons. I just bough 4 yards of foam at half price during the 50% off sale... saved about 50$ by using a 1.99$ shipping coupon as well
@@alyssasowell774 This!!!!!! always use coupons if you're goin to joanns!!!!
@@FunBun7hey! I know this was 2 years ago but I'm just checking to see how it went. I'm currently trying to make my first fursuit head and wondering how yours came out and how it's going
I love how easy you teach it. I never understood how to sew but now it looks like riding a bike
I'm actually going to be making my first suit soon, hopefully in a few months once I have the money saved after some important matters are paid off first.
Good luck!!!!
@@freckledcatcreations Thank you! The fursona I'm going to be making into a suit is very special to me, so I'm pretty excited as well as nervous lol.
This was exactly the tutorial I needed. I’m someone whose only sewing experience is doing straight stitches for repairs and sewing on patches, so this was super helpful. My brain feels so big now
so happy to help!
this is the most helpful sewing tutorial i’ve ever watched!! i’m not a furry (i just enjoy watching people make their fursuits haha) but i am a drag artist who really wants to learn how to sew, so thank you so much!
wow, that means a lot to me!! thank you!! I definitely didn't cover all the hand stitches here but I tried to get a good number of them that cover a general range of uses :3
Thank you for this, I just bought a secondhand suit from a friend and need to make some modifications... and have VERY LITTLE experience sewing! This was a very clear and easy visual guide and I'm looking forward to working on my new suit!
Thank you thank you so much!!! Before watching, I didn’t know much at all about sewing; thanks to you, I’ll be able to make my first set of hand paws:))
OMG WHEN I SAW THIS ON MY RECCOMENDED I DASHED TO ITTT
2-3 years of me being a furry and I was never able to find a good tutorial until now! I suffer from not being a fast learner and most tutorials I see today are always super quick and aren't very specific. Most of the time I need REALLY clear details or else I'll mess up. I hate when some tutorials go by super quick and just pass through everything. So thank you!
I NEED A FREAKING SEWING MACHINE
ALSO 16TH
they really make things faster and easier!!!!!! tho for little seams like on the face, its easier to hand sew usually haha
this is such a helpful tutorial, i learned a lot! so glad i found your channel before i started to fur the head im working on, seeing this made me realize i would've made a loooot of mistakes without this advice lmao
Aw i'm glad it helped you!!!!!
hi freckled cat creations!! I'm currently working on my second fursuit head, and your videos have helped so so so much!! I will always come back to your tutorials, and AAAAA you're amazing!! keep up with the amazing work ^^
I'm so glad!
been binge watching your tutorials for the last day or so since I discovered your channel, absolutely amazing! So thorough yet not overwhelming and easy to understand, you're making me very motivated to try making fursuits again 😭
Glad you like them! I really try to make the explanations not too overwhelming - a key part of that is to explain WHY on some stuff. if you know why you need to do something a certain way, it helps it not be as intimidating i feel like!
I'm a young fur who's gonna make their fursuit soon (I'm a skully) and my god. All the other sewing videos I watched just left me confused and abandoned but you. Your video was extremely helpful and made sooo much sense! I now know how to sew because of you! Hehe. Thank you so so much for making this video
that's what i love to hear omg! i'm so glad this helped you!!!
I am honestly so happy you made this video, for I know little to nothing about sewing. I am getting into cosplaying and I wanted to make a Super Saiyan Goku 4 top and had no idea where to start. I feel so much more confident in taking this challenge on, especially since I don't have a sewing machine. Thank you so much!
You can do it!!!!
@@freckledcatcreations I did it and it turned out great! Thank you for helping me get there :)
This one and your other videos are tremendously useful when learning how to make fursuits, thanks a lot for all the help !!!
No problem!
You are a ABSOLUTE LIFE SAVER
When i started working on my first fursuit, i didn't know how to sew and had to get my mom to teach me the basics, but i only knew the most simple straight stitch. I didn't have a sewing machine so I had to make the whole partial using just hand sewing with that straight stitch, and it barely had any issues. On top of that, the only thread I used was upholstry thread. By some miracle I made it though that, and now that I found your video I was just like: "This was here THE WHOLE TIME?!"
I'm glad you finally found it!!!
Thank you so much for such an in depth tutorial! I'm finally finishing up my first fursuit head, and I used a blanket stitch so my seams are very lumpy haha, but this video is super helpful for the next time I make one!
So glad it was informatice!!! I think part of the lumpiness could be fixed by sewing even closer to the edge, maybe your seam allowance was a bit too big. But good luck next time!!! If you sew it with a backstitch, then you could go back in with scissors and carefully trim down the edge of the seam allowance if you notice any bumpy areas! That's what I'm currently doing on a head now. (If you use a blanket stitch then the stiches would stop you from being able to trim the edge but backstitch will let you!)
This is so useful! i will be using these stitches to help with my first fully handsewn suit head, thank you! :)
Good luck!!! totally doable!!
Im currently working on furring my second ever full head and this is so useful, especially the notes for which stitches work best, thank you so much for sharing this!!!
Glad it was helpful!
im late to this tutorial but i really appreciate you explaining what each stitch is good for. its extremely helpful
You’re welcome 😊
This was super helpful!!! I sewed a tongue for my first fursuit today and even though it was my first time sewing it looked a lot better than I thought it would :)
aw im glad to hear that!!
Hey thanks for the videos, I really didn't know what kinda stitch to use and yeah, backstitch with the thread doubled has been working great, have made a couple of simple fleece tongues and even a single handpaw using it. Yeeeah kinda jumped head first into the toughest part to sew lmao, but it actually went super well and the glove fits on well too. Gonna be making a fullsuit yeah, don't got a machine (and I doubt I'd use it enough to justify getting one) so heyyy a slow and chill hand-sewing time it will be, finishing the paw mentioned gave me a bunch of confidence lol, whereas a couple weeks back I was suuuuper anxious about how the sewing would go.
I have seen/talked to someone who completely hand stitched their digitigrade fullsuit! And it held up really good! Don't let anyone tell you you can't hand stitch a whole body. It takes a while, but as long as you place your stitches close enough, it's not very weak.
Thanks for being here! I would never have been able to figure out how to do half of my crafts without you. My parents never have time to teach me. They both work pretty much all week. Sometimes they have free time, but that's either spent entirely on my younger siblings, or hiding from us. Maybe sometimes they'll talk to me for about ten minutes, and then we're done for the day. So you're almost like a third parental figure to me. ^v^ Its honestly probably my fault, though. I don't like how loud mom can yell at me sometimes, so I retreat to my crafting. That's how it usually is. I'm often doing things wrong. Sorry, I'll be quiet now. 😅
AWW OMG THAT'S SO SWEET!!!!! thank you so much! i'm so happy to help!
I wish I found this sooner!! I've been doing the blanket stitch for literally EVERYTHING. No wonder it looked so bulky around the lips and inside ears!!!
ooh!!! rats! i hope it helps your future fursuits tho!!!
@@freckledcatcreations Thank you!! I'm making a fullsuit for my next project and I'm definitely going to be leeching off of your tutorials haha
I swear I learned more in UA-cam that in school 😂😂😂💀
facts
I completely hand sewed my first fullsuit, planti, im WAY more active and rough on my suit than most, and I've had 0 popped seams thus far, and I used a cotton thread! I didnt know at the time, its what I had. I had a sewing machine, but it had only one setting which was fast no matter what you did, so, I hand sewed everything. I got my own machine for Christmas a few years back, GAME CHANGER
YOOOOO mad props to you !!!! I'm so glad to hear you havent had any pops !!!
@@freckledcatcreations haha thanks so much!! (Just as a side note you helped me learn a lot about suit making and helped my first suit look absolutely amazing, and all of your stuff has really inspired me to make this my job) He has a spiral and spots as well and somehow no pops😅 ill probably reinforce him one of these days.
@@jensenabramson6234 that's so flattering; i'm so so happy my stuff has been helpful to you!!!
Thank you for this I’m learning how to hand sew this really helped and I just taped my fursuit head
This was the most helpful video ever ^^
Thank you so much for making this tutorial! All the info here is so incredibly helpful. I’ve been following your swishy tail tutorial for my first tail and I can’t wait to finish it!
You are so welcome!!! hope the tail turns out great !!!
THIS SAVED ME YSMMM
This was extremely helpful! I am planning my first suit head and this was the perfect video to teach me how to sew and what the best methods are! thank you :D
So glad it helped, good luck on your first head!!!
Thank you so much for these guides
You're very welcome!
about to torture myself making some digi legs by hand cause my sewing machine hates me
Good Luck
finally found out what stitch i've been doing LOL. i've been doing a blanket stitch for everything and had no idea! worked out well for my head even though i am using that thread that breaks easily.. i hope it will survive. XD
I really appreciate how beginner-friendly this tutorial is! I have a quick question about the backstitch - as you mention in the video, the seam can be laid flat unlike the blanket stitch seam. How do you keep the seam flat when you're gluing the fur onto the head?
Oh I had no Idea about the backstitch! I used to use it on earlier paw pads as I didn’t think it would be so strong, Ill defintly be using that more!
I've actually heard that it's the strongest hand stitch? but don't quote me on that!
Thanks!
Thanks
So like, im a young fur and i enjoy making fursuits (im currently waiting to get my fur for my 3rd suit!) And knowing how to do different types of sewing will really help with the head cuz uh.. my very first furring looks a bit lumpy from the seams.. but anyways, you really inspire me to make suits, this vid is super helpful cuz all i knew was blanket and whip 😅
omg hardly anyone seems to know about the backstitch, but i love it a lot! i hope all this info helps you
Where did you get the furr from? This is very helpful
Glad it's helpful! Good websites to get fur from include: Howl Fabrics, BigZ Fabrics, Fursuitsupplies, Fabric.com (some are good, some are bad), Mendels, and FabricEmpire.
Ok thank you so much i love your videos uwu
@@lisaheart4414 youre welcome, and thanks so much!!
I'm so sorry one more question how can you tell if the furr is good to use? I'm sorry im young and want to make paws for fun 😅
@@lisaheart4414 no problem! so i'm planning on doing a video on that later down the road, but basically you should order samples and then look at them closely - brush the fur around, see if you can see the backing if you part the fur. (that's bad). how does the back side feel? is it soft and flexible? good. if it's hard and doesnt really curve/bend well, then it's bad. and you can even try to rip the piece in your hands - if it breaks easily DONT use it.
I'm just watching this cause there is a spot on my bodysuit which has a popped seam. So I don't need to ship my bodysuit all of the time to and from my maker as the shipping will cost a lot.
I think everyone should know how to do small fixes like that!! saves so much money!
@@freckledcatcreations that's so true! I just recently fixed it now ☺️
And also, my sona is a cheetah with each individual spot sewn in. My maker said that I should be aware of popped semes :p
Then it is good to learn some hand sewing. Thinking about trying making my own suit in the future as well :3
Here I am with my furry account.
this tutorial has helped my hand sewing soo much, thank you!! are you thinking about making a machine sewing tutorial in the future?? i've seen a couple makers describe using specific settings on the machine, but not really explaining why or how...
I have really thought about doing this! I was worried it wouldnt fully be useful since every machine is a little different, BUT to be honest I do own/use the machine that MOST makers do use (the singer heavy duty) so a tutorial/tutorials on the machine might actually be very useful.
@@freckledcatcreations I'd love a sewing machine tutorial! Your hand-sewing tutorial is really helpful. I'm just starting to get into fursuit making (with admittedly no prior experience in sewing) and I learned a lot through watching this. I think a sewing machine tutorial from you would really help me not be as intimidated by machine sewing.
This was extremely useful!!! Thank you so much!!!
Gracias, me salvaste la vida👌✨💕
!!! De nada !!!!!
your content is very helpful thanks a lot
Glad you think so!
This is a super in depth and informative video, thank you! Would you be able to release a video about using a sewing machine? I had a sewing machine but I couldn't use it for ages because I didn't know how to properly thread it, tension the bobbin, put the bobbin in etc. Thank you
So glad you liked it!! And honestly I was thinking about making a sewing machine video too. Of course all machines will have different features, and slightly different ways of threading , and such, but there's still a ton I could go over that will help. Ill totally put that on my list!! And try to get to it sooner rather than later :3
@@freckledcatcreations thank you so much :D
Ft me working on my fullsuit, completely handsewing it all because my sewing machine irritates me too much.
(Back stitching the body and some of the head)
OOOH a fellow backstitcher!!! i feel like most of the furry fandom doesnt know that stitch as well and most people do blanket. * high five * machines can be irritating lol. I commend your patience in hand sewing the body!!!!! hope it all comes out great!
@@freckledcatcreations thank u so much! N yea, its honestly my favorite stitch, might take a bit but its very strong and holds well. Blanket stitches end up just being whip stitches cuz my brain gives up half way through lol.
heya! I'm in the process of making my first fursuit head and I was wondering whether or not to shave the face fur before sewing or after putting it onto the head, I've seen most people doing it afterwards but I'm afraid of messing up and wasting fabric :(
I personally think if you do it only afterwards, it's hard to get the clippers into the tight areas like the mouth corners! I like to pre-shave the pieces before sewing them together, then once the fur's sewn and glued on, I do a final shave to tidy things up.
Amazing tutorial, thank you so much!! :D
Thanks alot
When you said it's much more expensive to replace ruined fur is true. I'm very picky. And I gotta save up a bunch of money for new fur that I actually like lol
oh no, i hate to hear yours ripped! ):
@@freckledcatcreations it didn't rip. I just didn't like the trim of it. I used scissors and I didn't like the fur colors to begin with ^^
The easiest stitch that is strong is the blanket stitch, and ladder stitch.
well i wouldnt call the ladder stitch strong at all! but the blanket stitch and back stitch are the two strongest hand stitches :3
Very helpful, thank you!!
You're welcome!
would you suggest always using the backstitch? Thats what I go for but a lot of experienced fursuiters say they strictly on use blanket stitch
I suggest using any strong hand stitch that works for you! I know most makers use the blanket and honestly, not many people KNOW about the backstitch. the reason they strictly say blanket stitch is because they may not know any better! a lot of fursuit makers only know the few sewing tricks they need for fursuits, and not the whole sewing knowledge out there (like easing, darts, pleats, all that stuff) I use the backstitch because it works best for me :3
Nice. This'll be great help! Thanks!
Glad it was helpful!
Thanks a lot i really wanted those paws for a fursuit but i dont have the money to buy them neither a seweing machine thanks a lot!
Glad I could help!
Sorry to ask, but how do you close a blanket stitch? That was never really discussed in the video, so i kinda got lost..
Oh, I thought I did sorry! You do the same as the others - run your needle under a previous stitch, pull some of the thread through but not all of it, cut the needle out of the thread, pull one thread back through. tie a knot now that there is one thread on either side of the previous stitch!
@@freckledcatcreations Ah, thats what i figured! Ty for clarifying :)
I wanna know...
I do a stitch.
Where is similar to a back stitch. But I pass the needle between the two (doubled) threads. Is that something?
That almost sounds like... maybe a chain stitch (in embroidery)? sometimes when stitching I accidentally pass my needle between the two threads of the previous stitch too lol! I think it just makes it even more locked in!
@@freckledcatcreations haha! It is rather hard to explain in text threading techniques, I get that! XD
I mostly stitch everything by hand when I make plushies cuz I don't own a machine. But hand sewing became very meditative for me that I don't even WANT a machine, even when I get to making my suit. I know I sound like a lunatic suggesting 100% hand sewing and entire suit 😅
But doing more research on what it is, the default stitch i tend to do is actually a split stitch!! The chain stitch is rather similar tho🤔
@@Peri_Cat ooh! A split stitch! Very cool!!
amazing uwu you are master
Simp
Is it alright to use a straight stitch for an entire fursuit head? Also can you do a Wickerbeast head tutorial?
the straight stitch isn't very strong, so you shouldnt do that for a head! you'll be able to see the thread in the seams when you flip it over. its not super strong. also, if you're able to draw your own wickerbeast, you should be able to follow my Head Pattern tutorial I made recently to make your own wickerbeast head! I dont have time to make videos on things that arent commissions, and i dont have any wickerbeast commissioners right now, so you'll have to try it yourself!
Hey! I'm working on my first fursuit head, and I was wondering for someone who's never sewn a day in their life what would be the best/easiest one to learn. It doesn't have to be extremely strong, just has to be able to hold 😅
I would recommend the ones in this video, I tried to break them down for you simply! backstitch is super easy to me
@@freckledcatcreations tysm! I've seen a TON a videos on this topic, and this is by far the most helpful. You really helped me and so many more people with this
THANKYOU SO MUCH. For all of these tutorials :] They are really helping me grow as a fursuit maker! You really are awesome for doing g this ^^
You're so welcome!!
This was so useful!!!!!
Glad it was helpful!
Omg this is so useful! Thanks you so much for explaining [:
Tysm for this! Anyone who’s made a hood for raptor masks, which stitching do you recommend?
the same as anything else tbh!
Hi! I want to make a fursuit sometime soon and I will most likely use your tutorials. I love your work so much. And one question, I kind of live in Poland and I won't really get materials here. What online store would you recommend to buy fur and other stuff ? Thanks
That's also a little weird to say but I really love your logo I mean like it looks so calm ;w;
Thanks so much, I'm really glad it looks calm! That's what I hoped! Dang, Poland huh... Shipping would be much cheaper if it came from Poland, but if you have to do international then oh well! I get foam from Joanns.com and some people use foamByMail.com ... fur from BigZFabric, HowlFabric, fursuitsupplies, and fabric.com!
As well as spandex from SpandexWorld, and minky fabric from theminkyboutique
i'm from poland too!
Thank you so much for this
You're so welcome!
Would you recommend hand sewing small markings like tiny dots/hearts?
Yeah, they're probably too small to effectively sew with a machine! And if the dots are real tiny, like freckles, or hairline stripes, you could try the needle felting method! I'll be doing a video demonstration at some point, but you can search up Matrices' tutorial on it - that's where I'm getting it from
@@freckledcatcreations Gotcha! Thank you so much!
thank you for that! what stitch is better for balaclavas? i don't have a sewing machine at home. i did my first balaclava with ladder stitch because it's easier for me and also looks great :0
If you don't expect to stretch your balaclava a lot (like it's not super tight on your head) then a backstitch is fine, but if you're wanting to make it much smalle r than your head so you have to stretch it to put it on, and have it be super tight, then sew with a zigzag stitch! if you search on the internet you might find ways to hand sew a zigzag. having a zigzaggy line of stitching helps the material stretch a lot without breaking the stitches!
Could you use a ladder stitch for the whole thing?
I would advise not to! ladder stitching will NEVER be as strong as sewing it from the back. There's only so close you can put your ladder stitches , its hard to grab small bits of fabric from the front. definitely sew from the back wherever you can!
I'm terrified of running a sewing machine for some reason. And every time I have used one the fur would get stuck or the string wouldn't go through and I've broken the tip of a needle while trying to get it back out.
oh man, i understand the nerves! i'm always worried about something getting stuck and then the machine just breaking beyond repair lol. they can only handle up to a certain thickness of fabric layers so if it's too thick you'd have to hand sew i guess!
What sewing technique do you recommend for a tail? I’m a younger scaly who is just starting. I haven’t made any fur suits or partials yet
to make a tail or hands or feet, i would recommend using a blanket or back stitch! nice and strong!
How did you get the thread to stay on the needle I can’t seem to do it
you have to put it through the hole at the end of the needle! and make a knot at the end!
Hey, I need help. Say your making a fursuit that only contains one color, where do you put the basic seams?
there are a few places that usually need seams, like around the ears, separating the front and back of the head, a seam where the nose hits the face, a seam in the mouth corners - it's hard to show you over youtube comments, but if you watch a lot of the characters I make you'll see some seams that are consistent. and if you had a spare $1 you could join my patreon discord and i can give you some one-on-one help with pics easily!
I’m sorry, I didn’t fully understand. You used the regular thread or the poliester thread?
polyester thread! I would think that's the normal kind of thread you find in most stores. idk if theyre even making weak cotton thread anymore tbh.
Question ! what parts SHOULD be handstitched? i'm making my first suit and i'm about to get fur and I'm curious. (i havent finished the video yet so i apologize if it is in it)
I honestly like hand sewing paws and heads since the seams / areas sometimes are super tight and fiddly! feet and tails and arms can mostly be machine sewn.
alright, thank you !
What brand of scissors are those that you have on your desk?
Fiskars! they have a spring mechanism so they spring back open! found em at joanns.
What sewing techniques are best for hair tufts?
I'd say a blanket or back stitch, same as the rest of the head!
@@freckledcatcreations thank you so much for the advice/super fast reply!
@@deloreslidell4496 you're very welcome! I love getting comments so I was excited to reply X3
What's the difference between the whip stitch and the blanket stitch? They look the same to me ;-;
blanket is the exact same as whip except its a bit more sturdy and neat.
blanket stitch has an extra step that almost "ties a knot" between each stitch. it's the difference between a VERY weak stitch (whip) and a very strong stitch (blanket).
All I have is regular thread
should that be fine?
if your regular thread is cotton, no, but if it is polyester yes! try breaking it in your hands
Its hard for me right now to be honest. My sewing machine has only worked once in the many times I have tried to use it. Now I have converted to trying to hand sew and it does not make things any easier. I've looked up videos on the sewing machine, granted it is fairly new, but it always jams up in some way. I have no idea what is going on with it, any tips would be great.
Oh no!!! that sucks omg. i wish there were helpful vids for you. i have no idea what kinda machine you have so icant help, and if I dont personally have that machine theres only somuch i can advise! thread jams sometimes can be fixed by re threading the bobbin and/or top thread.
@@freckledcatcreations okay thank you for letting me know! I just got it to work the other day but now it's acting up. I'm going to try and invest In a better machine tho.
@@phenixlive749 try the singer heavy duty !! thats what i and a ton of other makers have! and its p cheap!
Whats the best stitch for sewing a fursuit head ?
that's what this video is about lol! these are the best stitches for suit heads. I tell you what applications its best used for. i personally mostly use the backstitch
I really want to make a furry head but I dont have a sewing matchine could I still make a hesd without it
you DEFINITELY can make a whole head without a machine!! i would buy a premade balaclava for the lining , since hand sewing that might not be good enough, but for the rest - i actually hand sew all of my head parts!
Wait is hand stitching better or sewing machine stronger wise
Sewing machine is very much stronger!
So I just got done doing some test swatches, and this could obviously not hold true for everyone and is just what I've found in my own experiments, but my hand sewn samples at the same stitch length as my machine sewn samples were stronger in all cases except for the simple running stitch. I tugged on each sample for 3 min after popping a stitch with my seam ripper. The machine's straight lockstitch couldn't hold a candle to the hand backstitch or a double running stitch. I am actually extremely shocked by this, but thinking back on the diagrams I've seen on how sewing machines work and ripping out seams myself it makes sense. One compromise to it and the whole machine sewn line line can go really fast. There's much to take into account, like your stitch length, thread, and fabric etc. and with that in mind I'm going to keep testing it out. But what I have gotten out of this is the backstitch is very mighty! Mightier than my machine at least. Slow but strong. So there's a benefit to hand sewing, it's not second rate if you take small stitches and mind your tension. Outside of it being really calming that is lol.
@@fitchery9315 YESSSS thank you for the research and testing!!!! I believe in BACKSTITCH SUPREMACY!!!
Hey! also if you can give me the most reccomended sewing technique for sewing pieces of fur together for heads; it'll be such a help!
hey! ive only used one so i can only tell you what i use! the sewing machine i have is a Singer Heavy Duty !
@@freckledcatcreations thank you!
What Stitch is best to use on tailS??
hmmmm..... if youre hand sewing, either a blanket or back stitch!
@@freckledcatcreations oki Tysm!!
How do you tie off the ladder stitch?
what I do is bring the needle underneath one of the previous stitches, dont pull the thread all the way through. cut the thread off the needle. bring ONE of the two thread strands back out from under the previous stitch. so you have one thread on one side, one on the other. then when you tie them together, they're holding onto the previous stitch and it shouldn't come apart or pop through the fabric!
@@freckledcatcreations thank you!!
I'm so confused on the whip stich..
Man i ONLY know how to back stitch 💧
backstitch gang!!!
I'M EARLY :D
😂 I would us a fur suit 3D printer to make your own fur suit and buy supplies
Omg this is exactly what I needed!!! Still waiting for my fur to come in the mail, but I’m very excited to start furring!! I am very new to sewing and currently have a broken sewing machine so I am planning on hand sewing the entire head! Thank you so much for this tutorial!!
Ahh good luck, hope this teaches all that you need to know (feel free to ask me more questions if you get stuck)!! You can TOTALLY hand sew the entire head!