Spot Cleaning & Preventative Care

Some items cannot typically be washed in a washing machine, such as the mask and footpaws. There are ways to prevent those items from getting dirty, such as using the footpaws indoors, protecting the feet with fursuit sandals, wearing a balaclava hood (a light fabric hood that covers your head & hair) under the mask, socks with the footpaws, or keeping the respective items away from sources of potential stains. Try to avoid taking the mask and/or footpaws out in the rain or in muddy conditions. If those items DO get dirty, there are a few products that have worked well for spot cleaning.

• Folex is a nice product used for carpet & stuffed animal cleaning, but also works well on fur fabric. It can be purchased at Home Depot, and is safe to leave un-rinsed.

• Spray Folex on to the stain and a little of the nearby area, use your fingertips to scrub the spot. Take a dry cloth and pressure to absorb most of the liquid. It may take a few tries to get heavier dirt out.

• Spot Shot is another carpet cleaning product; it can be purchased at Walmart, or other stores. It has successfully been used on footpaws on really tough stains.

• Spray it on and let it sit for a second, then wipe it off with a damp cloth. Use a dry cloth and pressure to absorb most of the liquid Repeat if needed, careful to not let it soak too deeply.

• A damp cloth and liquid soap also works just as well for most cases. Try not to let water soak all the way through and use the soap sparingly.

Washing

            To wash a bodysuit, and most tails and handpaws, it is OK to use a washing machine on cold water cycle (only) with regular laundry detergent. Polyfil-type stuffing is washable, however remove any foam padding if you can. Small areas of foam padding can be washed as long as they get thoroughly dried. Turn the bodysuit inside-out zipped up, washing it fur-side inside will prevent the fur fibers from getting kinked. Handpaws are best machine-washed in a mesh bag, to prevent the handclaws or paw pads from getting stuck or lost in the washer if they became detached.

As a fabric softener for faux fur, use hair conditioner (Yes--the kind you find in the shampoo aisle!). Find a product like V05 or Suave (or other inexpensive brands) since it doesn’t have the “other stuff” fancier conditioners usually try to include. It works very well for keeping the faux fur fibers soft, preventing them from getting kinked in the washing process. Most bodysuits are safe to wash on “normal” cycle in a washing machine, since faux fur is such a heavy fabric. If there is a particularly tough stain, you can pre-treat it with Folex or a regular laundry pre-treating product (test a small area or a scrap piece of fur if you are trying something new) and then wash it.

If you don’t have a washing machine available, or have special features on your costume like airbrushing, delicate details, or special pads on your paws, you can wash it in the bathtub or a basin with cold to lukewarm water (a comfortable temperature for your hands). Soak it inside-out with regular laundry detergent, swishing it around and scrubbing the dirtiest areas. Next rinse most of the soap out, turning it right-sides-out and soaking with conditioner. Then do a final rinse, until all the soap & conditioner is out and the water runs clear.

Drying

            To dry the bodysuit and handpaws, you can use an “Air Fluff (no heat)” setting on a dryer (To test the cycle, you can run a scrap of fur through if you are not sure if there is no heat, check the scrap after the cycle for any melted fibers). Dry the bodysuit inside-out on “Air Fluff” until the backing is mostly dry to the touch (some dampness can be left), and then turn it right-side-out, so the fur has a chance to fluff up. Dry until the fur is mostly dry to the touch, it usually still comes out just slightly damp though. The handpaws also are best dried in a mesh bag. Once the bodysuit and handpaws are out of the dryer, hang them, and use a comb or slicker brush (type of pet grooming brush) to make the fur lay properly, and not dry clumped.

If your dryer does not have a no-heat setting or you do not have one available. You can carefully squeeze as much of the water out as possible, then lay the items flat or hang to dry in a warm room with low humidity. A fan blowing on it helps move the humid air away from it to help the evaporation process. Turning the items inside-out and right-sides-out periodically will help make sure it dries evenly and thoroughly. Be sure to brush or comb the fur as it dries to make sure it does not dry kinked. It may take a day or more to dry manually this way.

Faux Fur Care

Sometimes the areas that rub together such as between the fingers on the handpaws, underarms, and inner-leg area, may get matted-looking over time. A slicker brush can help to untangle these high-wear areas. If you notice any wear like this try to untangle it with a slicker brush or straight-toothed comb before you wash the costume. The washing process may help loosen the tangles further, especially if you apply conditioner directly to the affected area.

If you have a particularly tough wear spot that still looks bad, you can use a hairdryer on low heat setting, blow the warm air just on the affected spot, and use the slicker brush to untangle it. Sometimes this warmth helps relax the fibers so they can go back to their original shape, but be very careful not to put too much heat, too much can curl or change the texture the fur fibers (less heat is typically better than more).

There also has been luck with using steam to relax fur fibers that have become kinked from wear or from long-term storage, again being careful to not put too much heat from the steam, since too much can curl and damage the fibers. Let the steam flow through the backing and through the fur to help relax the fibers, brushing with a slicker brush to arrange the fur.

Claws

If any claws happen to become detached while out and about or during the washing process, it is best to use “e6000” brand adhesive to reattach them. Let it cure for at least an hour for the best adhesion. It is available in the craft dept. of Wal-Mart, or at craft stores. You can also use hot glue in a pinch, but e6000 will last the longest and be most washable.  

If you need replacement claws be sure to try to contact your costume’s maker, the original maker may be able to provide extra claws or recommend their source. Otherwise, a common product for claws is Fimo or Sculpy polymer (oven bake) clay. It is found at most craft stores in the United States.

• Knead the clay until soft, and then using another claw as a reference, roll it into a rounded cone. Bend the pointy tip so it has a slight curve, and tap or press the opposite end to become flattened. Using a paperclip or pointy object, score the back of the claw until the surface is rough (this will make more surface area for the adhesive to stick).
   

• Bake according to package directions for about 15-20 minutes.
   

• Attach by placing a dab of e6000 on the end of the claw and pressing into the fingertip, pulling the fur up and over the claw.

Between-wash Care

Between washes, to keep your costume nice and looking its best, it should be brushed out before each outing. To protect your bodysuit, it is best to always wear with Under Armor or similar full-covering athletic wear. Under Armor (or other similar brands) help keep the wearer cooler in the costume than compared to regular cotton t-shirt and underclothes, plus it helps protect the costume fabric from deodorants and other products that tend to build up over time, making it easier to keep clean and last longer.  

After wearing, brush the costume lightly with a comb or slicker brush to keep the fibers from kinking, then turn the costume inside-out and spray it lightly with Febreeze (fabric refresher), EnBac (hospital-grade disinfectant), Lysol (disinfectant), or other similar fabric refreshing or disinfectant product. Hang it inside-out to air out overnight. (I seek out the antibacterial Febreeze, since it helps reduce odors better than the other Febreeze varieties, and isn’t as bad smelling as EnBac or Lysol sprays.) You can also use isopropyl alcohol (common rubbing alcohol) in a small spray bottle to disinfect as well.

Febreeze or EnBac are never a replacement for actually washing your costume!

Storage

Typically costumes can be stored hanging on a wide supportive hangar, with the tail and any padding zipped up inside and the paws and accessories stored in the head. The costume can also be stored loosely folded in a storage bin. It is not advised to roll or compress any of your costume for long term storage, but it is possible to do so temporarily for travel. A hint for keeping your costume fresh is throwing in dryer sheets between the handpaws before sticking them in the head, just to keep it fresh-smelling. As well as keeping dryer sheets in the storage bin that the costume will be stored in for a fresh-smelling fursuit.

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