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Becoming a Kitsune: Fur Fox Tails

 


A classic look for a kitsune character is a fur tail. They can be very pretty and it's versatile. Whether you go for realism or a more romanticized version of a fox tail, a fur tail looks good.

Methods

Fabric Sock Tail 

Fundamentally, it's a fabric tube filled with stuffing or internal wiring. 

This is by far the fastest way to make a tail, and while it can be a bit tricky to cut and sew fur-like fabric, it's a relatively easy process. It's a versatile method for making a pre-posed tail, a loose tail, or a poseable tail. Depending on the size of your tail and the fabric you use, it can be economical. 

Suggested Fabrics: 

  • Faux Fur - this is a blanket term since faux fur can come with different lengths of fur (called "pile" in fabric terms).
  • Minky - short pile synthetic fur usually used for short haired stuffed animals.
  • Fleece - economical, slightly fuzzy. Good for a cartoon look. 
  • Velvet - Usually has a nice glossy finish, may be a bit pricey
  • Mohair - Usually used for making teddy bears...very expensive, but a natural fiber. 
  • Cotton/Cotton Blend - For a more cartoon look

Foam Core Tail 

This is a way to make the tail a single pose. It's a little more complicated than making a fabric fur sock, but in the end it's still a tube of fabric.  See Kinpatsu Cosplay video here: 

Yarn Tail 

Acrylic yarn tails are fairly easy to make and can be made poseable. Of all methods, this one is by far the most economical. Acrylic yarn is fairly cheap and you can purchase it in large quantities. The color range is fantastic. And adding color changes isn't really that difficult all things considered. It does take time and can be tedious work. But the results are AMAZINGLY life-like. 

You can control the thickness and length of the tail with the size of the braided core and the density of the yarn tufts. Other tools you'll need for this method are a slicker brush and a flat iron for hair. 

Ideal for: Short to Medium length tails, Realistic looking or Fantasy colored tails, 


Here are a few more Tutorials: 

Crochet/Knitted Sock Tail 

This is a relatively new method I'm considering because I just found out about faux fur yarn! The crochet and knitting patterns are easy enough for beginners although, faux fur yarn may be tricky to handle. However, compared to other methods it may be the best option when it comes to material cost, crafting time, and mess. Knitting will produce a slightly lighter weight tail than a crocheted tail. 

Below I've linked tutorials to crochet and knitting patterns for fox tails and yoga bags. 

Method Comparison

Deciding which method is best can be tricky because they all work but have different finished effects. 
   Faux Fur Fabric    Acrylic Yarn   Fur Yarn 
 Material Cost   Medium - Expensive   Economic  Medium
 Weight   Medium - Heavy    Light  Light - Medium
 Mess  Messy  Messy  Relatively Clean
 Ease of Use  Easy-ish  Easy  Intermediate
 Color Range  Very Wide and can be painted/dyed  Very wide and can be dyed  Limited but can be dyed
 Time to Make  Quick  Mildly tedious  Depending on skill, but tedious 

Suggested Methods

(Note: These are just my suggestions based on my opinion, don't take it as law.) 

For realistic looking tail/Natural looking tail 💖 Acrylic Yarn -👍 Faux Fur Yarn -💙 Faux Fur
The idea here is that color variation, the final look of the fur, and any color transition look very natural. If you can get the faux fur yarn in the right shades you have a similar benefit with color transitions, but you are not going to have long pile length. Faux fur again comes in all the colors but the transition is a little trickier. 

Thick Posed Tails: 💪 Faux Fur, 💬Faux Fur Yarn  
I would not even consider an acrylic yarn tail. Anything that has a tube pattern is more likely to be able to hold a shape, pose and thickness.  

Long Tails: 💖Faux Fur -💙 Faux Fur Yarn - 💦Acrylic Yarn
The Fastest method is going to be faux fur. If you're a speedy knitter/crochet hooker, then fur yarn ain't so bad. But the number of tufts you'd have to make for a long acrylic yarn tail is daunting. Doable...but daunting. 

Long Hair Tails: 🙌Faux Fur - 😐Acrylic Yarn 
You can find long pile faux fur fabric easily enough. Making the yarn tail with longer tufts is a little trickier and is never as long as the faux fur fabric. Faux fur yarn only comes in shorter piles. 

Multiple Tails: 😍Faux Fur -😬 Faux Fur Yarn -😰 Acrylic Yarn 
Faux fur tails are just easier to make multiples of efficiently. It can be heavier but it's generally faster to cut and sew than to knit or tie yarn bundles. 

Multi-Color Tails: 🌈Acyrlic Yarn - 🎨 Faux Fur -💛 Faux Fur Yarn
Now for multi-color tails the more color changes you have the more acrylic yarn makes sense. It's likely to come in that color and transitioning to a new color is simple! I put faux fur fabric next simply because it has more colors readily available than faux fur yarn. Transitioning with sewing panels or using paint/dye you can easily transition. 

Alternative Fur-like Looks

Most of this post was about a semi-realistic, soft fur tail. But alternatively, you can use: 
  • Yarn Loops
  • Unbrushed Yarn Tufts
  • Eyelash Yarn 
  • Crochet/Knitted Yarn (normal)
  • Felt
  • Feather Boas
  • Tinsel 
  • Scrap Fabric Tufts
  • Mohair Wefts 
  • Real Fox Tails
  • Real Fox Fur 
(Note: The last two I don't really recommend. Fox tails are pretty small compared to an adult human and well...yeah the whole ethics thing. 🦊💦)

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