
How to make your own Duct Tape Dummy
Well you did it, you decided to buy or make your own fursuit! One of the things many fursuit makers will tell you that they need from you is a Duct Tape Dummy (DTD). A DTD is used by the maker as a body double for you, and is incredibly important to making sure the body suit fits and looks correctly. I also use a one to help me shape and sculpt my unique body suits so that I can know exactly what they will look like on the future owner. They are an incredibly useful tool and making them correctly is imperative to having a great fursuit!


What you need
2 Hours of Free Time- Its gonna take you somewhere between one and two hours to get this done, so plan accordingly!
1 Willing Participant- In this case, a big thanks to Metric who was the model for the duct tape dummy tutorial.
1 or Two Assistants- Having extra hands Really helps make this job much more bearable, especially for the model. The model needs to be very comfortable with these people as they will be taping them up, and putting them in what could be very uncomfortable situations.
1 One Size Fits Most Painters Coveralls (Walmart or Home Depot or the like)- This is the clothing that will be destroyed in the process of the DTD. You just want something cheap that you don't need to worry about ruining.
2 Rolls of Medium or High Quality Duct Tape (55 yards each)- The amount of duct tape used is different depending on the size of the model, but who doesn't need extra duct tape! Make sure you get medium or high quality tape. Cheap tape WILL NOT STICK very well and end up ruining the dummy. I also recommend Duck brand, as Scotch brand has a horrid scent that just isn't pleasant to be wrapped up in for an hour
4 rolls of WHITE Duct Tape- My duct tape dummies use 2 layers of tape to insure that they dont unravel on me while I am making the suit (This has happened and requires me getting a second dummy made). I choose white because you will be writing on this top layer, and it is easier to see that you have gotten even coverage when the layers are different colors.
2 Plastic Grocery Bags or 10 feet of Seran Wrap- This is for covering the feet ONLY IF you're doing a dummy that includes feet (Digi or custom body suits for me)
Sharpie- For marking the body suit at the top layer
Scissors- Preferably Medical Safety Scissors!! IF you Can get them, DO, as they will make getting cut out of the suit much easier. You Can use normal scissors, you just run the risk of cutting the model.
Floor Lamps or Something to put your arms on to keep them extended longer- You'll understand why later!
Once you have all the items, it is time to start working!
The first step is clearing out an area. We used our living room for this, but you want to have enough room to easily get around the model.
Have the model get into their coveralls. I recommend wearing some cheap underwear as the only clothing underneath, just for modesty sake. Also, the model should put on some fresh deoderant as this can get sweaty and stinky if you're not careful!
Assemble all of your ingredients and put on some smooth jazz, because you're gonna be here a while!

