ISSUE 261
Hi everyone! Thank you for joining us for yet another enthralling edition of Furry Weekly! We’re very happy to have you tune in. This is issue #261!
As always, we’ll start with a few announcements, so if you just want to see the content we’ve got lined up, just skip past this next section!
ANNOUNCEMENTS
RECRUITING
As usual, we want to start by reminding you about some positions we have open. We need help to keep making this project the best it can be, so take a look at the positions below and see if anything catches your eye:
- Furry of the Week Host
- Radical Raffles Host
- Available Artists Host
- DIY Project of the Week Host
- Front End Website Developer
If you’d like to help out or if you want more info, please contact Yeshua, or Carkas. If you want a description of the roles above, visit this document! If you have any suggestions for other roles or things we could bring into Furry Weekly, please reach out as well. We’d love to hear your ideas! We still need lots of help in general, so please do consider joining us or sharing with other friends in the fandom if you can! We’d really appreciate it!
DISCORD SERVER
We want to tell you about a Discord server we recently became active in. It's called The Furry Social! The Furry Social is a new upcoming Discord where artists, commissioners and furries of all kinds can hang out and express themselves! Discover new content and share your own!
This is not an official Furry Weekly server, but we do work with folks there! So if you're looking for a furry Discord server to interact in, whether you're looking to just hang out, show off your creations, or browse and find new people to follow, check out The Furry Social!
There are also a couple of Furry Weekly channels where we can chat about the magazine, and you could even submit some of your content there! Nevertheless, be sure to join the server if it interests you! You can join it by clicking the link below! Just make sure you have Discord open!
The Furry Social Discord
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That’s our usual announcements done, so let’s get into the issue now! It’s a near-full issue yet again, so we hope you all enjoy it! As always, give us a shout on our social media and tell us what you like the most! We’re @FurryWeekly on both Twitter and Instagram!
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
[✔] Furry of the Week
[❌] Animal of the Week
[✔] Art Corner
[✔] Writing Showcase
[✔] Art 101
[❌] Species Spotlight
[✔] Writing 101
[✔] Fursuit Fanatics
[✔] Photography 101
[✔] Fursuit Designing Tips
[✔] Radical Raffles
[✔] Available Artists
[✔] Character Interview
[✔] Convention Calendar
[✔] Furry Quote
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FURRY OF THE WEEK
Howdy! My name’s Fizzy and I'm here to bring y'all another fantastic edition of Furry of the Week! This week we have TWO special guests!
A big welcome to CrackDV and Huxy the Husky!
So back in January 2023, Crack and Huxy both visited a family at an arrangement for Ukrainian refugees where they held their Christmas Eve, as in Ukraine, Christmas was being held back on January 6th! Many others were there too along with this family! Huxy met the kid and his family before Crack did, so Huxy knew his condition. This little kid was just sitting in his wheelchair, nearly emotionless, over everything that was going on. Things were all new, as from moving all the way to Denmark!
When Huxy greeted them, this young kid and his siblings, they all smiled. After all the hardships, everyone, Crack, Huxy, and this boy’s family, it felt magical. His family was so happy to see their kids smiling again. They felt it was fantastic. For some time, the boy seemed emotionless from missing his father back in Ukraine, and moving away from his home to Denmark. Crack said to me that when the kids smiled, that single moment, he opened up! He had such a big smile, and it just brightened up the room! You can check out the video they posted here to see how it all went down.
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ART CORNER
Hello, everyone! I’m Multifurse and welcome to Art Corner! I’ve got some great art to share with y’all this week, so let’s get started!
First up this week is a fantastic grayscale full body by froggie_sprouts!
I love a good grayscale piece! Pieces that are entirely in grayscale are rare to come across unless the art is traditionally done through mediums like graphite or charcoal, so to see a digital full body that’s been entirely rendered in grayscale is really refreshing! The pose here is really nice; this isn’t a typical full body pose. Instead, the character is actively leaning forward, one foot out and taking most of the weight. I really appreciate how the artist arranged the character’s feet; it really looks like they’re supporting a lot of their weight on that front foot. This piece being rendered in grayscale doesn’t detract from it at all; the different values of gray allow us to see the different markings on the character and the differentiation between patterns on their clothing. The shading is also remarkable and very smooth. The shadows are fluid and well-placed, and the brush strokes add some delightful texture. Well done, Froggie, keep it up!
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Next up this week is a pair of ¾ bodies by jasper08th!
Aw this one is so cute! I love pieces that plop animated characters into a photographic background, the juxtaposition of cartoony characters to a real setting is always fun to see. So let’s talk about those characters, why don’t we? First of all, I really like the style. It’s a bit more simple by comparison to some other pieces we’ve seen in Art Corner, but I still really like it. It lends itself well to expressions with big eyes and a variety of shapes that the mouths can take. I also really like the clothing chosen for each character and how it’s used to display different body types. The rat has a rounder body type and it is very clearly shown off with her outfit, and the lion has a bit of a stronger, blockier build. I really do like how this piece turned out. Great work, ToonDoggo!
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The last piece from me this week is a precious icon by sugardriftdraws!
Okay, this is absolutely adorable— This little bun has the brightest eyes imaginable and the cutest expression on their face! What’s not to love about that! I really like the brush that Ray chose to line the piece with; the textured outlines really add a lot of visual interest to this piece. I also really like the colored inner lines; the black lines work really well for the outlines, but I like the use of the deeper gold lines for the interior lines. They blend well into the rest of the piece and add some separation where it’s needed, like the inner ear from the outer ear, the structure of the cheeks and chin, and the additional fluff. These lines add that extra structure without being too stark in contrast to the rest of the piece. I don’t think this icon would have had as much of a smooth look had those interior lines been black. Overall, this icon is precious! Excellent work, Ray!
Now I’d like to pass it off to my co-host, Mochi! Thanks for joining, see ya next week! Multifurse, out!
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Thank you, Multifurse! I’m Mochi. I have some pretty neat art pieces to share with you today, so without further ado, let’s begin!
Firstly, a gorgeous piece by FoxWhirlpool!
One of the elements that drew me into this piece was the brush texture. It reminds me of a crayon, and it’s unique. I think it’s adorable the way the character is lying on the pillow, snoozing away with their tail in the air.. I wonder what they are dreaming about? Fox absolutely blew me away with their shading, and the way they illuminate the character beautifully from the lightsource- the lamp. Gorgeous, soft, buttery light. They have their lighting and shading technique down! Overall, this is an adorable piece by a small artist who deserves more attention. Did I mention that Fox is a younger fur? Keep shooting for the stars, Fox! You’re doing very well. I can’t wait to see more of your work in the future!
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Up next, we have this fantastic piece by Glitchy!
Glitchy captures the essence of summer beautifully in this piece, from the watermelon to the gorgeous cherry blossoms in the background. I really appreciate the expressions of both of the characters, one enthusiastically happy to have received a generous offering of watermelon, the other a sheer contrast with a cute little smirk on their face. I personally love watermelon, and would love a piece myself! We talked briefly about the background, so let’s talk a little bit about the foreground. Glitchy did an amazing job creating a realistic ground area and bench for the characters. I always enjoy seeing your art in my feed, Glitchy! Keep up the amazing work.
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For my final piece, let’s switch it up a bit. I’ve been showcasing digital art, but let’s check out this cool traditional piece by PaperSlapping!
Firstly, wow! This is a super neat piece. The form of the character, how the muscles are drawn, and keen facial features/structure and hands make this a very interesting work of art. I think the cross-hatching adds dimension. I’m so happy to see a traditional art piece be submitted. Overall, this is a super cool addition to this week’s Art Corner! Thank you, PaperSlapping, and keep up the great work!
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That’s all for this week! Many thanks to our artists, Froggie, ToonDoggo, Ray, FoxWhirlpool, GlitchyFox, and PaperSlapping for allowing us to feature their works this week! If you liked what you saw, check out their pages and drop a follow if you feel so inclined!
If you’d like a chance to be featured in Art Corner, make a post using the tags #FurryWeekly and #ArtCorner so we can find you, or message us directly on our socials!
Thanks for joining us, and see you next time!
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WRITING SHOWCASE
Hello, everybody! My name is Dozu, and I have for you today a freakshow of a story to read!
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"Freakshow"
Before I start, a word from our author: “My initial idea was that basically, it's a RPG styled world where Snapdragon (The MC) and his father, Tank, go through everyday life with arguments a lot of the time. Snap then gets tired of this and goes to a Witch's hut and buys the freedom of a young pup named Rex cuz anarchy, and Rex gets attached to Snap and now Snap has a son, they go through the misadventures of the apocalypse and fight monsters on the way. They then see Tank over and over as a recurring antagonist, and they fight him over and over. With tumbles on the way, more friends joining the party, and even character death, the story will appear in your heart over and over, just like Tank.”
Summary: Snap is having recurring nightmares about the time when nuclear bombs were thrown and detonated on his land. As a result, his friend Tank went blind and Snap himself gained the ability to shapeshift.
Highlights: the characters’ emotions are complex and very well described in the story. All the environments and places they visit are equally well displayed, great work!
For improvement: This story sadly suffers from “Block of Text” syndrome, where the paragraphs are nonexistent and the dialogues are all buried within the text. This is an easy fix though with some editing! Add some spaces between paragraphs and separate the dialogues to be their own paragraphs and presto! Perfectly formatted text.
Question time! Answer in a post and tag @FurryWeekly and @DoggyDozu if it’s on Twitter!
Do you think a nuclear fallout is possible within our lifetimes?
if you saw a puppy left on the street would you pick them up or leave them be where they are?
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That will be all for today folks. I hope you have enjoyed my pick!
Let’s give our authors a round of applause for their hard work! Remember to include the tags #FurryWeekly and #WritingShowcase in your posts if you want us to see your own writing on any platform! See you all next time, and now I'll sashay away.
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ART 101
Welcome back everyone to Art 101! After two lessons of some artistic philosophy, we will now get into some technical details of art. So this week we will be covering visual art fundamentals.
Now what is that? Well, all forms of art have some fundamental principles. Something that everything else is built on. While there are a lot of specific details for what makes a certain piece of art good, there are almost always certain fundamental principles that are at work behind the scenes. These principles are the skeleton that holds all of the artistic muscles together. These aren't exactly scientific in nature, so different artists include different numbers and types of art fundamentals, but almost all artists agree that getting stronger at the art fundamentals is vital for improving at art. Now then…
There are six different Art fundamentals: Form, Color, Light, Perspective, Anatomy and Composition
Form
Form means the shapes and volumes of things. At a basic level, all characters, objects or environments can be broken down into shapes. Shapes like Cubes, Triangles, Spheres. Even incredibly complicated things like humans can be broken down into geometric shapes.
The benefit of breaking down everything like this is that you gain a greater sense of place, volume and realism by utilizing these. If a drawing feels “flat,” then it's likely because the artist does not understand form.
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Light
Light and shadows can be used to create contrast in an image, to create volume and depth. Mastery of this fundamental lets you enhance and control the other aspects of art.
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Color
Color is the understanding and mastery of the different aspects of colors. It’s being able to mix and match different colors, create moods and striking images.
There are three different aspects of color one needs to understand.
HUE: where the color is on the color wheel: if it's yellow or blue, purple or orange.
SATURATION: the intensity of the color. A blue of low saturation and one of high saturation can feel extremely different.
VALUE: how light or dark the color is. Dark blue versus light blue for example.
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Perspective
Perspective is how you create a sense of depth and space in the image. This art fundamental is vital for letting you create environments and scenes that feel like places you could live in.
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Anatomy
Anatomy is the deep understanding of how different bodies are structured. This is the bone structure, the muscles and the fat. Different species of animals have different anatomy.
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Composition
Composition is the flow and structure of the artwork. This is how you arrange and combine the different elements. Composition is used to guide the viewer's eye to where you want them to look.
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These principles are very rarely the only one at work in any piece of art, as they all affect each other to create something greater than the sum of its parts. But it can be incredibly helpful to focus on one at a time. In the beginning, you might feel that you are struggling more, but as you improve, you won’t have to think as hard about the different aspects all the time and will feel greater freedom and ability.
There isn't any homework this week, but don’t let that stop you from creating art! Use the tags #FurryWeekly and #Art101 on social media if you wanna send us something!
The quote this week is from a different discipline than visual art, but I find it profound nonetheless:
Written by Fika Monster, April 2023
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WRITING 101
A peaceful silence fills the new basement apartment. It’s a simple but home-y place—a desk with glowing computer monitors sits right in the middle of the room while a corner is devoted to a host of new and old game consoles. A television stand’s shelves host video games and peripherals of all kinds. It’s almost aesthetically pleasing… but all of the controllers on top need display stands to make the arrangement look intentional.
The Camera slowly skirts down the stairs. There should be a hawk at the computer, writing away for this week’s magazine submission. There’s even a document on the screen showing a near-completed draft. Maybe he took a break?
The machine quickly glances around. He’s definitely not here. There should be a backpack at the foot of the angled steps… some keys and a wallet… but none are present.
It scoots closer to the computer monitor. Usually the author would share his work before publishing, but he’s obviously out. Perhaps a quick peek wouldn’t hurt…?
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Hello friends, and welcome to Furry Weekly’s Writing 101! I’m Bryce Griffin, here to get all you writers out there the inside scoop on literature tips and tricks. Let’s get started!
Tropes in film and literature crop up time and time again because they are popular ways to depict characters, situations, or ideals. They may be beneficial or detrimental tropes, but they nevertheless allow us to pin creative expressions to concrete definitions. Last week, we discussed a trope called The Moral Event Horizon—the action so heinous that it makes an antagonist irredeemably evil. This week, we’ll look at The Moral Event Horizon’s polar opposite trope: The Hero’s Frontier Step.
Consider last week’s discussion on The Moral Event Horizon. An antagonist can fall into this black hole of evil and leave themself no hope of redemption. The Hero’s Frontier Step is a similar threshold for the protagonist. Interestingly, the nuance that comes with how a “good guy” is defined, including anti-heroes and changed villains, changes how this first step to greatness defines the character in question.
The first step is typically what transforms a character with a good heart into a true hero of the story. However, this Frontier Step doesn’t automatically make the character that took the step pure and noble. Perhaps it’s a cutthroat merchant, long on the path to wealth and power, who discovers that feeding the homeless reaps rewards greater than its weight in gold. Or it could be an enemy spy that double-crosses their employer because, deep down, they know that their espionage missions would harm countless innocent people around the world.
First steps like these set up great potential for truly interesting and complicated characters. Tempt the reader with threats of dubious actions from a morally-gray character. Whose side are they really on? Are they just biding their time, waiting for the right time to backstab our hero? Then, at the perfect time, give the shady son-of-a-gun a chance to take the high road or the low road. The Frontier Step can be a beautiful moment in character development, especially when faced with the opportunity to make the protagonist’s life miserable. But whichever road you choose, make sure it is earned!
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Want us to take a look at your work? Got a general question for Writing 101? Just shoot me a message on Discord! I’ll be happy to answer any writing questions you may have, or even critique your work.
Thanks for joining me in Furry Weekly’s Writing 101. I hope you enjoy the rest of the magazine!
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A sudden creak at the top of the stairs jolts the Camera out of its concentration. The latch clicks and the door eases open before a flood of light douses the entire apartment.
“Is someone down here?”
Creak… creak… creak…
A well-dressed hawk shuffles into view. His button-down shirt and black pants are slightly wrinkled. A thick fleece jacket is draped over his arm. His golden eyes are slightly glazed over, clearly from tiredness and expended focus navigating Virginia traffic.
“Oh,” says Tad, smiling. “Hi. You must have finished recharging your battery.”
The camera offers a nod.
“I must have forgotten to shut down my computer last night. Did you read it all?”
Another nod. Tad smiles and approaches, looking at his own handiwork.
“What do you think of it so far?”
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FURSUIT FANATICS
Hihi, everyone! You’ve found the Fursuit Fanatics segment of Furry Weekly and I’m your host, tahlmorra, as we meet and learn about another unique fursuit and their furry. I hope everyone had a good Easter, Happy Passover or maybe just an enjoyable day off for those who don’t celebrate. It is in the spirit of holidays departing that we meet our next guest. Although we may not have had Peter Rabbit hopping in to hide eggs last issue, we have the good fortune of another bunny hopping into our spotlight today. Please welcome Liu, the Robot Rabbit!
Both Liu and his suiter share the same name, as well as the same He/Him pronouns and they come to us from the great state of Texas, US. Liu is a hybrid (robot rabbit/dog) and is mostly a fairly uniform shade of white, terminating in gray fingers, toes, and ear-tips with a shock of tousled gray hair atop his head. He also sports a dynamic red patterning on both hips and thighs that contrasts sharply with the rest of his palette but has no apparent meaning other than random decoration. His paws sport power buttons on his palm and squeakers built-in and he is of a mochi texture.
Liu is a first suit and first version made by Atelier Amanojaku of Japan. While nothing by way of major changes is planned at present, Liu says he is planning to install a fan at some point because ventilation is “pretty non-existent” in the suit head. Also, Liu has some facial piercings that he hasn’t yet figured out how to install.
Liu says that the suit has yet to be outside since it was received, interestingly. He has concerns about his local townsfolk, whom he describes as “not very friendly” and also the practical concern of keeping a white suit clean and free from dirt. Referencing the ventilation issue, he points out the very real possibilities of fainting or heatstroke in the Texas sun. As far as in-suit activities go, Liu primarily makes videos for TikTok and YouTube: “pretty basic content like you’d make out of suit.” Since he doesn’t own a car, Liu rarely travels, and Liu – the suit – has yet to attend a con, meet, or event. The suit, however, is only months old so there is plenty of time to make up for that. Arriving this past January, the suit was commissioned roughly two years ago with a payment schedule that ended December 2022.
With respect to the style of his specific fursuit, Liu explains that Kemono suits were the only suits that appealed to him but were far less popular in the United States than they are now, so he needed to search for a Japanese maker to get a suit. The specific maker he found operates by showing a bunch of refs of different characters for the customer to choose from to have it made into a suit. Liu says he simply found a design that suited his personality and purchased it.
Liu believes his journey as a furry likely began at a very early age and was expressed as a love for drawing furries, although he didn’t have that understanding at the time. His grandmother, he says, used to make him animal costumes when he was younger since he really cared for them. It was around the age of 11 or 12 then, that he feels he was introduced to and entered the furry fandom. Getting a fursuit for himself was part of a sort of natural progression that began with drawing furries and led to the desire to own a fursuit up to today where he designs fursonas professionally. Many people, he says, describe themselves as being against furries at the first but later decide they like them after all. “I would say I’ve always been a furry and have never been against the idea,” he said.
Liu considers himself to be pretty quiet and reserved in daily life and says that Liu – the suit – gives him a means to express himself and act in ways he couldn’t do out of suit. “I feel like I have an outlet to express myself without feeling uncomfortable,” he said.
Concerning the misconceptions surrounding furries and fursuiting, Liu feels that it’s the sexual stigma of the fandom which is the most common, though he feels that can and should be addressed with “it’s the same as any costume.” He feels that there’s that type of person who just wants a reason to hate what they don’t understand, and says he doesn’t care to waste time and energy arguing with people who will likely not change their minds. It’s a matter of some people wanting to fit perfectly into society and the rest of us just wanting to have a good time.
When asked about personal preferences and goals, Liu said he’s fond of gaming, horror, and zombie movies. Dislikes are more people-oriented; meaningless chat, high-strung people and people who just pretend to be nice. His main goals center on eventually going to conventions, but says that would be impractical until he sorts out the suit ventilation issues. Also, of course, continued and increased success with his means of livelihood, of which he mentions at the moment he’s not accepting commissions for – with the exception of random, experimental commission slots – in order to focus more attention on creating “adopts.” Links can be found below if you’re interested in exploring his work.
In closing the interview, I asked if there was anything he’d like to express before we were done. “Sure,” he replied, “on the same page as the anti-furry thing, I feel it’s important to be your authentic self and not waste your short time worrying about fitting in, it’ll just make you bitter in the end. And that goes for anything, do what makes you happy.”
Liu can be reached on all the major platforms as indicated below:
-Instagram Main: @toongore
-Instagram Adopts: @toongore.v2
-YouTube: @toongore
-FurAffinity: toongore
-Fursuit TikTok: @mechliuf
-Twitter: silentcerberus
And with that, we come to the end of another week’s installment of Fursuit Fanatics. I hope you enjoyed getting to know Liu, in-suit and out, as much as I did with interviewing him. Remember, if you think you’ve got a suit deserving of more attention, or know someone who does, you can reach us on most major platforms by using the tags #FurryWeekly and #FursuitFanatics. Who knows, you could be the next fur featured in this segment!
I hope everyone has a great day and better week when the next Fursuit Fanatics rolls around. Remember, stay safe, stay well, stay furry!
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PHOTOGRAPHY 101
Hello, friends and photografurs! Welcome to this week's Photography 101! I'm your host, Jaden (Discord @ Jaden711#0663). Almost everyone these days has a smartphone, and almost every smartphone has a camera! Smartphones are the most accessible cameras in the world, and with every new smartphone comes even better cameras and auto-image enhancement.
That's why today we’ll be talking about how great these mini-cameras are!
First, I would like to address the hoax that Android phones have inherently bad quality. While this is true if you’re taking pictures through apps like Instagram due to bad optimization, taking photos directly through your default camera app will not result in a large difference in quality between an Android or Apple phone from the same year. In fact, the Android S23 is tied in camera quality with the iPhone 14! So don't feel like smartphone photography is out of the realm of possibility because of the brand of phone you have. Even if the phone you have is old and does have poor quality compared to newer phones, you can still turn that bad quality into a unique style. Remember, there are no bad cameras, just bad styling.
Let's take a look at our first photo taken with a Samsung A52, a phone that is by no means the best on the market, but still can hold up on its own.
The focus on this photo is a bit off on the very front of the flower, which is one of the documented downsides to this phone, but even with that downside, this still isn't a bad photo! The bokeh is beautiful, the subject is very clear, the colors pop and there's no noise. Noise in photography refers to the TV static effect you may get in dark scenes or with a camera that's poor in quality and is generally not ideal for most styles.
The next photo we’ll take a look at is from a Z-flip 3. While this is a much newer phone on the market, it's not known for its great camera quality since its photos usually contain lots of noise in anything darker than natural outdoor light.
The first thing you may notice about this photo is how green it is. This was unintentional and wasn't edited, which means this was due to the camera having an error in balancing the tint, which would usually be undesirable. But thankfully, due to the framing and subject, this green tint really works in our favor and adds a unique style to the photo. Second, we really notice the noise this phone camera has, especially to the right of the photo, but again this works really well in our favor and adds a special style and flavor to our photo that otherwise could have left our photo feeling incomplete or confused in its style.
All this goes to show that bad-quality cameras can be used effectively if you know how to use these imperfections to your advantage. Don't be ashamed or pushed away from photography because all you have is your smartphone. Phones can still take amazing photos and don't let anyone tell you otherwise!
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That concludes this week's segment! If you have any questions or would like constructive criticism on your photos, don't be afraid to shoot me (Discord @ Jaden711#0663) a message!
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FURSUIT DESIGNING TIPS
Welcome back to Fursuit Designing Tips! Olivier here, and so, we are now getting into the territory we want to be.
Making fursuits…Or, designing them more!
You see, you can think your wildest thoughts and at the first designing state I challenge you to go WILD. I have talked about storage, styles and tools before, so you hopefully sort of know what you will be getting yourself into.
If you are skilled enough in art, draw yourself a line art base for the species you want to use for your suit. If not, then go venture into the great open plains of the internet to get yourself a free to use line art base.
I will not be going on about fair use and copyright laws, but just make sure you are allowed to use what you end up using as your reference sheet.
Now, comfy? Looking at the line art in front of you with a pounding head of ideas and stress on where to start? That's completely normal, don't panic. Breathe and let creativity flow. Grab colours you want to use, make markings and large fields of the same colours, add features unlike the creature or keep your design as close to nature as you can.
Some tips I have to keep in mind are:
-If your character is masculine, make lines more square
-If your character is feminine, make lines more round.
-Features that add uniqueness don't always have to be markings in fur; think about props and accessories too! Maybe your baboon is never far without their favourite cup of tea? Or does your dolphin enjoy reading?
-If your design is a character that represents you, or that you will be using as more than just a fun suit, think how their personality shines through.
-Look at the difference between male and female creatures and at different genetic mutations! There are a lot of cool "mistakes" in nature that can add uniqueness to your character!
Some first designs of mine when starting on costumes were pretty funky compared to the end results, that's why it's a first design! Be free and draw whatever you feel like! Over the years of making costumes I've come to a realisation of my skills and what I can and can not do, so subconsciously I push this through in my design.
Some examples of first designs below.
This above is the line art of Graveyard Dirt, my dead cat character that started with a vague idea and no real plan; the design is pretty "standard" cat looking aside of the skull face and bone tail.
I wanted it to be not… scary, which is funny to say about a dead cat, but I think in the end I did pretty well on them.
This (were-)wolf is the suit I'm currently working on and will be working on with you guys for a bit! I made two designs for it, using the same base sketch. You can see colours chaine a lot in the overall "aesthetic" of a character.
I've heard alot of people say the black wolf looks strong and mean, and the brown wolf looks softer and friendly. People refer to the black wolf as "he" faster and to the brown as "she."
My end design ended up straying from these designs and is becoming more of an "I let it make decisions for me" type project just like Graveyard Dirt… but working according to plan is a great skill to have and we are gonna try and follow that plan!
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The reason this article is going to be split in two, is because I want to invite you all to send me your designs on Instagram @olivierthespacegoat.
That way I can see the plans you all have, help with some blockades in the design process and pick out some examples to discuss with everyone here!
So get yourself a base for your species and ideas, and get to designing! And next week we will continue where we ended up!
Also, if you have any specific topics about fursuit making and fursuit designing, please feel free to let me know as well, whether by contacting me directly, or commenting on Furry Weekly’s social media!
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RADICAL RAFFLES
Hello, everyone! My name’s Danielle, and I’m here to bring you the most interesting raffles. We have a couple plushie giveaways this week! Let’s take a look at them.
First, we have an art raffle by user Aspidartist!
How to Enter:
-Follow and retweet.
-Comment with your or your friend’s character you’d like Asp to draw.
Prize:
-Colored full body (any species; including anthros)
Deadline:
-This raffle ends on June 1st. There’s lots of time left to enter!
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Cuddle up with a plushie giveaway by user kawaiihana!
How to Enter:
-Like and retweet.
-Comment your favorite Pokemon.
Prize:
-Custom plushie
Deadline:
-This giveaway ends on April 30th. There’s about two weeks left to enter!
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Feel the cuteness with a handmade Pokemon plush giveaway by user Slothie Studios!
How to Enter:
-Follow and comment on which Pokemon plush you would pick.
-Tag a friend for an extra entry!
Prize:
-Your choice of a Rowlett, Wooloo, or Mareep plush (regular, shiny, or in any other colors). A second winner will be drawn if Slothie Studios reaches 6,500 followers!
Deadline:
-This giveaway ends on April 20th. There’s about a week left to enter!
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Celebrate with a 200 followers raffle by Osiris!
How to Enter:
-Follow and like the post. New followers are welcome!
-Save and share the post on your story.
-Comment a suit you’d like to see Osiris make in the future.
-Tag your friends for extra entries (up to five).
Prizes:
-1st place: custom fursuit paws
-2nd place: custom digital badge
-3rd place: shaded icon
-The winner will have to pay for shipping.
Deadline:
-This raffle will end when Osiris reaches 500 followers. As of April 12th, Osiris has 225 followers. There’s still lots of time left to enter!
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Celebrate with a 100+ followers raffle by user virtual_gh0ul!
How to Enter:
-Follow and share the post on your story. New followers are welcome!
-Comment when done.
-Tag two people in your comment for an extra entry!
Prizes:
-1st place: shaded full body
-2nd place: shaded half body
-3rd place: icon
Deadline:
-This raffle ends on May 1st. There’s a few weeks left to enter!
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Next up, we have a base raffle by user TheGreatShiroOwl!
How to Enter:
-Watch Shiro and favorite the post.
-Comment what type of owl you like.
-Create a journal post about the raffle for an extra entry! Please be sure to link that journal in your comment.
Prize:
-The winner gets a free base of their choosing from Shiro’s shop.
Deadline:
-This raffle ends on Tuesday, April 18th. There’s only a few days left to enter!
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Last but not least, let’s celebrate with a birthday raffle by user Noktivus!
How to Enter:
-Follow, like, and retweet.
-Post a safe for work (SFW) reference.
Prize:
-Colored sketch
Deadline:
-This raffle ends on Noktivus’s birthday, which is April 22nd, at 8 pm BST. There’s about a week left to enter! Feel free to wish Noktivus a happy early birthday as well.
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Those are all the raffles I have for you this week. There's always more out there, and we'll make sure to find them and bring them to you every week!
Make sure you use the tags #RadicalRaffles and #FurryWeekly so we can find your raffle more easily.
Thank you for taking a look at this week’s raffles. Stay tuned because more radical raffles are coming your way!
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AVAILABLE ARTISTS
Hello, everyone! My name’s Danielle, and I’m here to bring you the latest and greatest artists to commission.
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We start with Maddoxile, a digital freelance artist who specializes in furry art. You can choose between digital illustrations, emojis and stickers, and reference sheet commission options. Digital illustrations come with headshots, busts, half bodies, and full bodies that have sketch, line art, and flat color styles. There’s something to enjoy with all of these!
You can find their prices and terms of service on their Google Doc as well as their other social media on their Carrd. Stay tuned for adoptables, your character heres (YCHs), and bases in the future by Maddoxile! If you have any questions or are interested in a commission, feel free to message them.
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Next, we have SpiritSai, also known as Kim, who is a self-taught fantasy artist from Canada. Kim specializes in fantasy creatures such as dragons as well as furries and fanart of Pokemon. They currently only offer free style (artistic freedom) commissions, but they are well worth the price. The details are absolutely amazing!
You can find Kim’s terms of service and other forms of social media on their website. Feel free to check out Kim’s livestreams on Twitch during the weekdays. She does them on occasion, so feel free to pop by and hang out! If you have any questions or are interested in a commission, feel free to message Kim.
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Last but not least, we have virtual_gh0ul, also known as Wirt or Jasper, who is a digital furry artist from the UK. They specialize in headshot, bust, half body, full body, reference sheet, and custom design commission options. If you have a cryptid character, then this is an artist for you!
You can find Wirt’s prices and terms of service on their Carrd. Keep a watch out for traditional commissions such as badges in the future from Wirt! If you have any questions or are interested in a commission, feel free to message them.
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That is all for this edition of Available Artists!
We’re always on the lookout for amazing artists to put on the spotlight. Don’t forget to use the hashtags #AvailableArtists and #FurryWeekly so we can find you. Feel free to message me directly on any of my social media if you have any artists with open commissions you’d like us to feature.
Thank you for reading and checking out these amazing artists!
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CHARACTER INTERVIEW
Hi everyone! Thank you for joining us for the Character Interview segment. I’m Yeshua, back to bring you another intriguing interview with a member of the fandom. There’s lots to get to, so let’s not waste time and just jump straight into it!
YESHUA: This time I'm joined by Atlas! Thanks so much for taking some time to chat with me, it's great to have you on! For those reading about you for the first time, mind introducing yourself?
ATLAS: Thank you Yeshua! I've never been interviewed before, except for jobs, so this is really cool. For the last seven years or so I've been researching and developing new technologies for the furry fandom and posting them on Twitter. I like to explore new ways of making fursuits more lifelike, more expressive, and more comfortable to wear. I've worked on new ways of doing animatronics eyes, fursuit cooling, robotic tails, and more. My handle is @CALVINGINEERING for anyone that wants to see what I've made so far or ask questions.
Other than that, I've been lucky enough to work in the space industry as chief mechanisms designer at a small company in Colorado. It's been an unbelievable dream getting to do what I love during and after work, and I have the furry fandom to thank for that.
YESHUA: I see! And I hope folks see why I am so excited to chat with you, because what you're doing is something we don't really see often in the fandom! I know there are people who have incorporated some technology into fursuits, but it sounds like you're really going all in on it! There's lots I'd love to hear about, so let's see what we can get through! I'd like to start by talking about some specific fursuit projects that involve the technology you're working with. Got anything in particular you could share?
ATLAS: The problem I'm trying hardest to solve right now is fursuit cooling. It's a problem I've been working on since 2019, when I fursuited for the first time. The hotel was small, and so the fursuit parade was mostly outside. After two hours in suit in the Colorado summer sun, I nearly had heat stroke, and many others were feeling lightheaded.
Afterwards, I started interviewing people about the ways they tried to keep cool, and it didn't sound like there was a good solution yet. Ice-pack vests were heavy and made it worse after the initial cold left, PC liquid cooling loops were expensive and required an external radiator, head-fans were by far the favorite, but were minimally effective long-term.
I applied some of my engineering degree and started experimenting with materials that are lightweight but have extremely high specific heats but low thermal conductivity – so they would stay cold for an extremely long-time but not give you freezer burn. In one experiment I got a piece of paraffin wax down to around -200C (-328F) with liquid nitrogen and stuffed it in my pocket. It stayed cold but comfortable for two hours straight. This was NEAT, but hotel room freezers aren't rated for extra-atmospheric temperatures. I did some calculations of slowly expanding compressed gasses, but found it would take several pounds of liquid nitrogen per hour to do the job, and similarly, room service doesn't deliver dewars of liquid gas. Peltier coolers were out the window immediately because they generate more heat than they suck away.
A friend of mine who's a doctor told me about a device called "Arctic Sun" they use to treat hypo and hyperthermia. It targets just regions that would be the most effective: under your arms, around your legs, and on your chest. Just for fun I thought, I'd make the world's cheapest version of this, see what I can learn with a material budget of $50, and show my patrons the math behind it. Using some high-school level thermodynamics, I found it takes around 2.4 pounds of ice per hour to keep a person cool, if they're generating an excess 100 watts of heat, which is reasonable for a frolicking fursuiter.
What is surprising to most people is the bulk of heat is not absorbed by water simply being cold, but by the phase change. The act of the ice melting alone absorbs 80 times as much heat. It's why water never gets hotter than its boiling point, because the steam takes so much energy with it.
The vaporization of water absorbs 535 times as much heat, but unless you're literally boiling inside your fursuit – which may be possible if they leave the heaters on at MFF – the water's not evaporating.
Fortunately, you can lower the boiling point of water by lowering the pressure, so I started looking at vacuum evaporation. You can further lower the pressure by increasing the speed of air – these are Bernoulli's principles.
In feverish excitement, I went to Home Depot ten minutes before they closed and built a proof of concept the same night. I watched excitedly through a thermal camera as the stretched moisture wicking fabric over open-cell foam, with a shop vac sucking air through it, dropped 10, 20, and even 30 degrees lower than ambient. I'd finally figured out how to get a summer breeze inside a fursuit.
I made two wearable prototypes before my current working prototype which consists of very similar construction, but the shop-vac has been replaced with a very small keyboard vacuum cleaner. Here's a picture of it.
I'm currently working on miniaturizing and modularizing it even further. I have a picture of that as well. For reference, it is only one and a quarter inches thick and is more powerful.
I spent most of this morning spec'ing battery packs that would allow a fursuiter to keep cool, dissipating 100W of heat at its maximum flow rate, for two hours at a time.
It's very exciting to see this become a reality!
Oh! Here's my first working wearable prototype!
The shop vac was actually too powerful for this one, and I was shivering in about 15 minutes!
I gave my current prototype a great real-world test last year practicing for the DenFur dance competition. I was pouring with sweat in just 2 minutes 30 seconds. Then I turned on the little vacuum and did it again, this time, feeling like I had fans blowing on me from all sides, even under a sequin jacket. I tested it under an aluminized cotton fire suit too! Same effect! Even in the most insulating piece of clothing I can reasonably own!
Well, that's all I have to say about the fursuit cooling project. It's not my most flashy and exciting project. And it's probably even the most boring project to talk about. It's tough to get people excited about something that you have to feel or experience, so it's ironically unbeknownst to most people that I'm even working on it, even though it's the one I really care most about and believe the most in. It's the first in a suite of future projects designed to make fursuits feel like a second skin. Because you shouldn't feel uncomfortable in a fursuit. You should feel as comfortable as you can possibly be.
YESHUA: Holy heck, this is just so incredibly interesting! You experienced a common problem in the fandom, then used your knowledge to work on a solution, and have even been able to test it! I do have some questions though if you don't mind me asking: I know you tested it while wearing different items, but have you been able to test it while wearing a fursuit?
ATLAS: I actually don't own a full fursuit, but I do have a partial that I pair with different things. In 2019, it was this motorcycle racing suit disguised to look like a space-suit. The racing leathers are far less breathable than fur as I verified with some moto-furs in the headless lounge that year. But even that is more breathable than the firesuit I use as a fursuit simulator. They're meant to insulate firefighters from burning aviation fuel and titanium fires. But it also makes a fantastic ski-outfit.
That's me on the left! I like to joke that my other OC is a baked potato.
YESHUA: First of all, that's a really cool partial and outfit! Now as for testing the cooling vest, if I'm understanding correctly, you tested it on the motorcycle racing suit which is heats you up more than potentially wearing a fursuit? Is that what you mean when you say that material is less breathable than fur?
Or you tested it while wearing the motorcycle racing suit, I should say.
ATLAS: Thank you! That's right. The racing suit insulates more than a fursuit, according to people I talked to that had worn both. I haven't tested it in the racing suit yet, but I have tested it in the firesuit, which insulates even more than the racing suit. I can dance for about an hour in the racing suit, but I can only go 15 minutes in the firesuit.
YESHUA: I see! Just wanted to make sure I understood. So that means that the cooling vest should be pretty effective for keeping fursuiters cool? Specifically those using full suits?
ATLAS: It's designed to work even under the thickest padding. I'm designing it for the person wearing a foot of foam in every direction. But I'm also designing it for tighter fitting suits as well, which is why keeping everything small is also a huge priority. Right now, the thickest component is only 33mm tall, which is just 1.32 inches. Everything is modular too, so you can hide the tiny vacuum module or battery pack(s) wherever makes the most sense for your suit. Because the last thing I want to do is ruin the magic, especially with mysterious bulges. OwO.
I've taken the same approach with robotic tail design as well, moving the motors and battery elsewhere to avoid having a really thick tail base.
YESHUA: That's so impressive! This all sounds great, it truly seems like this is a great solution for keeping fursuiters cool, but I was indeed about to ask, what about the size, weight, and even comfort of the vest? In your experience wearing it, what's the longest you've worn it and how did it feel overall?
ATLAS: The current prototype is made from an under-armor shirt so that it's a little compressive. It's meant to be tight fitting, but it's not restrictive at all. The tubes that run from the fan to the cooling zones are soft silicone and they run along the outside of the vest, so you don't really realize they're there. The cooling zones are made of soft but springy open-cell foam, more porous than a sponge.
The only thing about the prototype I don't like, and this will change, is the bulk of the vacuum module. I have the luxury of being able to 3D print some really exotic materials at home – I'm doing a panel on 3D printing and scanning at DenFur this year – so I made the current more streamlined housing from super lightweight carbon-fiber filled Nylon. The total mass of the vacuum module is only 127g or 4.5oz. I'm leaning towards using two battery packs in tandem, each weighing only 380g each. That way, you can distribute the weight however feels most comfortable. I've played around with the idea of making the cooling zone stand-alone as well, so they can be sewn into any garment or maybe even velcroed to the inside of the fursuit itself.
That could be a great solution because it's a lot easier for other people to make and doesn't need to be so custom.
YESHUA: It really seems like all this time you've devoted to the project has been incredibly productive, because I can tell you know what you're doing! I am curious though, have you been able to have someone else test it while wearing a full suit?
ATLAS: Not yet, but the Colorado Renaissance fair is coming up and I know a few fursuiters that go every year. One of my friends wore a fullsuit last year, and I was amazed how long he lasted. After that, I'm sure he'd be very interested in trying it out.
That would be a good time-frame too. I still need to torture test all the electronics to make sure it's all safe. I need to learn the best ways of doing that though. Although I have some experience running torture tests for space-flight hardware, I haven't yet tested for fantasy-flight hardware. But I imagine there's a bit of overlap.
I used to think that the vacuum of space would be a really good electrical insulator, but I was amazed to find out that orbits on the edge of the atmosphere have to be better insulated than on the ground. Turns out, air is much easier to ionize at low pressure, and that just tapers off as you have fewer and fewer particles of air to actually ionize. I saw this first hand in a small vacuum chamber. It was the most beautiful shade of purple I've ever seen. We basically turned half the chamber into a weirdly shaped neon light, except it was the air we were ionizing. So that experience will be valuable in making sure everything is well insulated.
YESHUA: Very good! I also meant to ask about safety, so you've already answered quite a bit there! With what you've done and in the times you've tested the vest without torture testing it, have you seem anything that concerns you that you'd like to work out? In terms of safety that is.
ATLAS: I'm not sure if it's dangerous yet, but there will need to be physical limits on the amount of power you can run the vacuum module at. Running on a bench-top power supply that can provide a sufficient excess, my over-excitement and curiosity has led to three of the little turbines being burnt out already. It's very disappointing, but not too concerning. Having figured out their real-world limits (~140W) I know I can safely run them much lower. For space-flight hardware, most electronic components are run far lower than their rated maximums. So, I'll only be asking 72W from them. Additionally the commercial battery packs I've used in the past have had very reliable short-circuit protection that should shut them off if the motor still happens to burn out. On batteries, I've also started thinking about guidelines for improving battery safety like guidelines for placement, mounting, connections, etc, and have been looking into LiFePO4 batteries for placement that shouldn't be done with lithium ion batteries.
I have a co-worker that really likes to get batteries to explode. I've seen at least four while working there. It's surprising sometimes how hard it is to get them to go, but when they do, it's definitely sobering to think about what sits in your pocket all day, charging and discharging hundreds of times a year. I've been looking into the statistics, and of the tens of millions of lithium ion batteries in the United States alone, only about 5,000 ignited in 2017 (and a lot of that was probably my co-worker), which explains why it's so hard to get them to erupt even when you want them to.
All that said. I take battery safety very seriously.
YESHUA: Great to see you are indeed thinking seriously about these aspects of safety! That's no doubt incredibly important, and with all the work you've done and how passionate you are about this, I'm sure you'll work it all out! I know you briefly mentioned a time frame earlier for testing the vest with a friend, but do you have any particular goal for when you'd like to be done finalizing this product? And what would be next after that?
ATLAS: Actually I'm not sure if I will make it a product. I've sold products on Etsy, and manufacturing just isn't for me, at least not now. I have too many more projects on my to-do list to justify the time. I've had a go at having a third party manufacturer make things for me. It was just 50 custom glass bottles, and it turned into two years of torture. I'd much rather focus my time and energy into research and just open-source the designs, because there's just so much more to do. I'm hoping that appeals to enough of the fandom that I could one day fund the projects on donations alone, and everyone can make their own versions. There's plenty of skilled makers in the fandom who could turn these ideas into real products so that more people could benefit from them than if it was just me making them.
These are those bottles I mentioned.
The next thing I'd really like to work on after the cooling vest, which I think I can finish by the end of the year, is improving fursuit vision from realistic eyes. I've seen a few people try to make video passthroughs, but I still don't think the technology is compact enough. A few months ago, I got really deep into lens design, and figured out how you could make resin fursuit eyes that you can actually see out of. I made a proof of concept that inspired some confidence, but it was just 3D printed. I also did some simulations on a lens design that would make the pupil truly black, even though it lets a wide angle field of view in.
I've had another idea for a long time to make a monolithic animatronic fursuit head that could be cast from foam rubber or perhaps 3D printed from TPU. I designed a new type of soft robotic mechanism last month and it involved developing a way of holding internal air channels during the casting process. I think that the technique could also be used to cast pneumatic actuators to control facial expressions on a fursuit head directly into the structure.
YESHUA: Aha, I see. I was wondering what your plan was after you felt comfortable with a design! I really hope all that goes well, it seems like it truly has the potential to help fursuiters stay cool, which could ultimately allow them to comfortably fursuit for longer!
Sorry to hear manufacturing wasn't the best experience too, but it's good you recognize that for yourself!
As for the improved vision for realistic eyes and animatronic fursuit head, I'd say they're both very interesting avenues to pursue; they both sound like great ways to enhance certain fursuits!
Heck, I feel like we could talk for hours about all you're doing, this is all so impressive!
ATLAS: I probably could talk for hours honestly. The possibilities for new applications for new technology in fursuiting is extremely exciting, and it's an endless source of new and crazy ideas that inspire newer crazier ideas. Unlike normal engineering, in the fandom, there's seemingly no shortage of puzzles to solve, and I just can't get enough of it honestly. I knew as a kid I wanted to be either an inventor, a magician, or a special effects artist. The fandom lets me be all three, and I'm pretty darn thankful for it.
YESHUA: So we've talked about a few fursuit technology projects that certainly involve your engineering experience, and I'd love to keep chatting about more of those projects! But, there is one other project that caught my eye: acrylic fursona mirrors! I saw you raffled some off; mind sharing a bit about that project?
ATLAS: Sure! Sometimes I need a break from the super long-term projects like the robotail, digi-stilts, cooling vest, to build back confidence and remember what it's like to finish a project again! So I go through phases where I just explore concepts and techniques for a while to see what I can learn. The fursona mirrors are an idea that came to mind when I was exploring the possibilities of silver gilding chemicals. Although, I didn't end up using silver gilding chemicals to make them.
I was thinking about how I could make circuit boards on plastic by selectively applying silver to the plastic. One way would be to use a very complicated mask, kind of like a sticker, and peel it off after the silver was applied.
That would probably require laser cutting the mask and it would be very difficult to peel off, so I thought, why not just blast off the mirror coating and save a step!? I was a little worried that the mirror would just bounce the laser back, but I tried it anyway, and it worked!
Sometimes crazy ideas are worth trying, even if you're pretty sure they won't work. Worst case scenario is you're right, and that's not so bad.
Here's an image of the laser blasting the mirror off. It's way cooler in person.
Most people's fursonas are a reflection of themselves in some way, or at least they can see themselves in their fursonas to some degree, so it automatically seemed like a great way to do badges.
And yeah, I kinda forgot to flip the image on my own badge... yeah... Here's how it looks right after the laser.
I've just been using a cnc router with an LED laser mod, but if I ever figure out where to put a real CO2 laser, I'll open up for commissions. Carving the edges by hand is far too time consuming.
YESHUA: Wow, you just have intriguing story after intriguing story! It's very cool seeing the creativity you have in coming up with ideas as well as an attitude of trying everything! I think the concept of a fursona mirror is not only neat, but making them into badges and thinking about the fact that most fursonas are a reflection of their creator, is just awesome. This is genuinely one of the coolest crafts I've seen in the fandom.
I have a feeling if you open up commissions for them, they will be pretty popular! No doubt one of, if not, the most unique badge one could own in the fandom, hahah.
Anything else you might want to share about these mirrors at all?
ATLAS: Awwwww, thank you! That's so nice of you to say! I guess I'll have to find a place for a laser cutter after all.
YESHUA: You folks reading better keep tabs because I'm telling you, these mirrors are so cool! Thanks for sharing more about them!
And I'm sure we could talk about much more, but I think we got a great insight into what you do in the fandom! If anything, I'm probably just interested in hearing a bit about how you got into the fandom and what interested you about it as well as what interests you about it now.
ATLAS: I think my love of the fandom probably started far before I even knew what it was. I grew up watching anthro movies and cartoons, like Rescuers Down Under, Duck Tales, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, and many more I'm forgetting. Animal characters were almost always more interesting than the human characters, and the way their designs portrayed a lot of who they were subconsciously was very beneficial for me, because I used to have a hard time (sometimes still do) with reading faces and social queues. But I think around ten years old watching Titan AE was the first time I ever thought, "man I wish I was one of those! But what are those called?" That was the first I'd seen anthro characters in sci-fi – unless you count Muppets in Space – before seeing Treasure Planet a bit later. By this point I probably had a fixation, but I just didn't have a name for it yet.
In my early teens, I saw Dark Crystal and David Bowie's Labyrinth, and those two movies alone sold me on the idea of doing practical special effects as a career. The character designs, the set designs, the amazing puppeteering, and the machinery behind those movies are still legendary. I had my heart set on it for a long time.
Even after computer effects took over Hollywood, I was still hopeful that someday they might come back, and it's been amazing to see that come back in recent years.
Oh right! So how did I get acquainted with the furry fandom? I ran into my childhood fixation once again, after years probably, while playing second-life in early high-school, back when the "teen-grid" was still around, thus making my parents ok with it. I spent a lot of time in the sandbox areas building random things and learning how to program for the first time. I was really fixated on different types of goofy land-mines for some reason, just exploring the medium, as one does. That's when I first saw a furry avatar vendor. It was the unfortunately pirated "DeadWolf Productions," and I tried a bunch on for free. I did some research into it and found Fur Affinity. I started watching artists and making friends with some of them, and trying to figure out what it was all about.
What I thought was really cool, and is probably why I'm still with the fandom, is that everyone had unique visual story-telling characters to represent who they were or who they wanted to be. So, making a fursona for yourself is a very introspective and personal thing, and that seems to be really good for people.
YESHUA: It's very interesting hearing that you had an interest in animal characters since such a young age! And especially interesting to hear you had these movies guide what you wanted to do as a career! It's intriguing that a pirated furry avatar vendor led you to FurAffinity, but I'm happy it piqued your interest enough! I agree that making a fursona is a very meaningful action for just about everyone who does it, I feel that's a huge reason why many of us take part! It's great to hear you appreciate this aspect of the fandom.
ATLAS: Another thing I find really cool and unique about the fandom is that it's almost completely untouched by commoditization. There's no multi-billion dollar franchise getting a cut every time we have a convention. There are no mass producers of fursuits raking it in. All of the characters are created and owned by individuals, and anything you can find in the dealer's room is exclusively unique and personal. So, in a world where almost everything seems copy pasted, mass produced, re-booted, or re-posted, it's really nice to have an oasis of genuine creativity like furry fandom.
YESHUA: That is a point I don't see many folks make about the fandom! I guess everyone is just enjoying that too much, and I can see why! The furry fandom is no doubt one of the most creative groups of people I've ever come across.
Well, like I said before, I feel like we could chat even longer, but the interview at least -- must come to an end sometime. Got any closing remarks before we wrap this up?
ATLAS: Yeah I guess you're right. It's been really fun talking about the fandom with you, and I'm really hopeful and excited to see how other makers will continue to advance techniques and integrate technology into their fursuits in the years to come. My goal is to help as much as I can with that, so if anyone has questions or just wants to talk, you can always DM me on Twitter @CALVINGINEERING or find my Patreon, MechanicalMagnificus if they want to help support what I do and see everything as it happens. I live-stream my projects every Saturday and do Q&A. It's not really a tiered system. It's all available for $1. Also, if you're coming to DenFur this August, you can see many more of my projects in person. I'll be hosting several panels as their guest of honor this year, and I'll be hanging out at my table in the Dealers Den answering questions and getting ideas for what to do next.
YESHUA: I'm glad you've enjoyed chatting! I hope folks see the work you've done or catch you at DenFur, and can perhaps feel inspired to make more advancements -- I know there are tons of talented folks in the community.
Thanks again for joining me, it's been a real pleasure having you on, Atlas!
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That’s all for this interview! It was definitely a much more detailed one but I hope you all enjoyed reading about all the cool stuff Atlas is up to! I definitely encourage you all to give him a follow as he keeps working on his several projects.
If you’d like to potentially have the chance to be in the segment, just reach out to me on one of my socials! I’m always looking for folks to chat with, and I’d love to consider more! Or if you have any suggestions for someone you’d like for us to interview, let us know too.
Thanks again for reading, and I’ll see you all next time! Until then, take care!
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CONVENTION CALENDAR
Disclaimer: This segment was originally published on Issue 259, but some of the conventions listed here are either underway or happening later in April. Just be aware that some may have already happened.
Hello again, readers! I’m Shetani, your Convention Calendar segment host for this issue, here to inform you about all the furry conventions and events happening online, around the world, and in your neck of the woods. Let’s jump right into it!
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Keep Tahoe Furry is a brand-new outdoor furry event at the Granlibakken in Tahoe City, California, USA. Though the pandemic has thrown a few wrenches into the works, they’re finally ready to host their first event from Friday March 31 - Tuesday April 3 of this year. KTF bills itself as an alternative furcon without panels, dances, or scheduling, instead offering attendees an opportunity to create their own fun with friends and enjoy Lake Tahoe. Even so, there’s a fursuit sledding and group photo event planned for the last day of the con, and attendees are welcome to host their own small events. KTF is free to attend as long as you’re over 18 years of age, are vaccinated against COVID-19, and follow the venue’s mask guidelines.
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Pawske Party will be held on Thursday April 6 at the Melahuset in Oslo, Norway. This furry dance club event branched off from a yearly furmeet that has grown beyond a private residence and is ready to rock all night long at its own venue! Before the DJs start spinning, enjoy events like the furwalk, group photo, quiz game, dealer’s den, and panels. For those who want to kick off the fun even earlier, a pre-party bowling meet has been arranged for the night before Pawske Party as well as a spa outing the morning after the furdance. Attendees must be 18 years old and show valid photo ID in order to register.
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Stomp your way through prehistory at Fur Squared from Thursday April 6 - Sunday April 9! The con returns to the Sheraton Milwaukee Brookfield Hotel in Brookfield, Wisconsin, USA, and their theme for 2023 is Furassic Park. The schedule is chock full of excitement this year, with events ranging from dinosaur-themed Jeopardy to pin swaps to model railroading meetups and even - I’ll let this description speak for itself - “a cursed sketchbook swap dedicated to Garfield.” As you’re checking out the panels at Fur Squared, be sure not to miss those hosted by the Guests of Honor: vaccine researcher and developer Chise, and musical duo Keyotter and Rhubarb. In lieu of a fursuit parade this year, Fur Squared will have staff photographers available for photoshoots near the headless lounge and roaming around the con floor. Tabletop and video gaming, a dealer’s den, artist alley, and night market are planned as well. Fur Squared attendees must be vaccinated against COVID-19 and wear a mask at all times, including under fursuit heads. As their website states, if your badge is on, your mask is on!
Website | Twitter | Telegram | Mastodon
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The Hilton LAX in Los Angeles, California, USA welcomes the furries back for this year’s Golden State Fur Con between Friday April 7 - Sunday April 9. Bring your sunglasses and floral patterned button-up if you want to participate in the Island Getaway theme for 2023! A charity auction will be held and donations collected over the weekend for Forever Wild Exotic Animal Sanctuary, a non-profit dedicated to preserving the lives of abused, neglected and abandoned exotic animals through rescue, rehabilitation and education. The Guests of Honor are HuskyCo Fursuits and Fursnickety, the artist who designed GSFC’s mascots. Check out the GSFC website for all the schedule details, including a dating game show, tattoo panel, sketchbook swap, and more meet-and-greets than you can shake a coconut at. A dance competition, all ages and 18+ dealer’s dens, artist alley, art show, and photobooth await attendees as well. COVID-19 vaccination proof is required to attend GSFC.
Website | Twitter | Telegram | Facebook | Instagram
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Get ready to have a fantastic time at the aptly-named Fauntastic convention! This year’s theme is “Wild in the Street,” which I’m sure anyone passing by the DoubleTree by Hilton Lyon Eurexpo in Lyon, France between Friday April 7 - Tuesday April 11 would agree with. Planned events include a snack exchange, graffiti workshop, and fashion show, in addition to the standard furry con activities like a dealer’s den, group photos, gaming, karaoke, and dances. Programming is hosted in French and English, with Fauntastic providing translation services for attendees who need them. A unique aspect of Fauntastic is their specially-marked sticker areas on which furries can feel free to self-express by writing, drawing, and of course sticking surfaces to their hearts’ content! If you want to attend Fauntastic, keep in mind that you must be over 18 years old.
Website | Twitter | Telegram | Facebook
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Another new convention, Furcationland, is scheduled for Friday April 14 - Sunday April 16. The Holiday Inn Portland-By The Bay in Portland, Maine, USA plays host to this first-time furcon. The inaugural Guests of Honor are Barton Fox, photographer and videographer, and Lagoona, known for her fursuit dancing and charity work with Short Folks for Hope Foundation. In fact, Furcationland will be raising donations for that very charity through a bucket brigade, charity auction, and A/V power hour during the convention. Other scheduled events include gaming demos, a writing slam, game shows, and comedy improv. Let’s not forget the dealer’s den, dance competition, masquerade, and nightly dances! Furcationland attendees should be prepared to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination and wear a face mask in convention spaces.
Website | Twitter | Telegram | Mastodon | Facebook
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Las Vegas Fur Con kicks off their first event at the Alexis Park All-Suite Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. After being delayed by the pandemic, the first con will take place Friday April 14 - Sunday April 16. Putting a slight spin on a familiar phrase, “The Enfurtainment Capital of the World'' will be the convention’s theme. LVFC boasts a grand total of four Guests of Honor - fashion company owner and artist Wolf (ISANANIKA), Twitch streaming duo Whiskey Dingo and Chester Otter, commission artist Orlando Fox, and musical group Run, Definitely Run! For 2023, LVFC’s chosen charity is Las Vegas Trans Pride, an organization which aids the trans* community of Las Vegas. Programming includes live performances by multiple furry music artists, an adults-only night market and rooftop party, dealer’s den and artist alley, panels, and meetups. Start planning your weekend of fun by browsing the schedule on LVFC’s website! Attendees must be at least 18 years of age, vaccinated against COVID-19 with at least one booster shot, and wear a face mask while in convention space.
Website | Twitter | Discord | Telegram | Mastodon
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Wild Nights is a furry camping convention taking place Thursday April 27 - Tuesday May 2 - in Robbers Cave State Park near Wilburton, Oklahoma, USA. This long-running community staple held their first event in 2009, if you can believe it! 2023’s con, themed Very Superstitious, promises to be a spooktacularly good time. Programming and events have historically included outdoor games such as swimming and basketball, a variety show, fursuit events, and artist sketchbook swaps. The Guests of Honor are musician Matthew Ebel and artist Zola. Take a peek at the “Who’s Coming” list on WN’s website to start networking with the other furries you’ll meet at con! Lodging and meals are included in the registration cost. At press time, 2023’s COVID policies were not announced, so make sure to check the official channels for announcements as they come.
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On the calendar this month is our cover artist Sunni/TheRealWolfArtist having a ball-oon at Texas Furry Fiesta in March!
Wow, I’m amazed at just how many brand new furry conventions are holding their first ever event this April! I think it’s a great sign of our furry community’s continued growth, and how we can gather together to build a local scene while helping out those in our neighborhoods. If you can, why not show your support by attending, volunteering, or donating a registration to one of these furcons to help them get a strong start? Speaking of which, our Art 101 host Fika Monster will be attending Pawske Party, so if you’re going also, be sure to say hi! Remember to get vaxxed and wear your face mask when meeting up with any furs in person.
Got questions or suggestions for Convention Calendar? Feel free to drop me a line on Twitter and the Fediverse, or hit me up at any of the other platforms linked on my website. If there’s an upcoming event you want to ensure we cover here on Furry Weekly, don’t hesitate to let me know. Have fun and stay safe out there!
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FURRY QUOTE
Welcome back friends, happy weekend! Lilli here with this week’s Furry Quote! I hope everyone’s had a great week! I hope you’re ready for this week’s quote, I think it’s a good one.
This week, we’re talking about:
Introspection
This week's quote is fairly simple, but within this simple language is a lot to unpack, so let's get started.
"Who looks outside, dreams." Absent-mindedly staring out a window is often a sure sign of daydreaming. Dreaming is a good thing! While the term "outside" here on the surface may appear to be referring to the literal outside world, it is in fact referring to the world around you and outside of yourself. Everything around you is fuel for the fire in your dreams, evidence that you can do anything. Take some time and look outside of yourself more often!
"Who looks inside, awakes." This most definitely does not literally mean inside. it refers to introspection, something we all need to take some time and do every now and then. The more you look inside yourself, the better you get to know yourself, thus leading to a self-awakening.
When you get to know yourself better, you become better acquainted with your interests and what you need/are looking for in life. Healthy introspection is very helpful in dealing with yourself and others, as well as any problems you face. Learn how you deal with different situations, know when you need to back out. Regardless, look into yourself and get to know yourself better! You may be pleasantly surprised at what you find.
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That’s all for this week! Thank you for joining me to talk about introspection! If you have a topic you’d like me to cover or a quote you’d like them to share, feel free to reach out to me on Instagram or DeviantArt.
See you next time!
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