Laken

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Fursuit Name: Laken
Database ID: 1222
Added: 2008-11-08
Last updated: 2011-04-03
Nb views: 6052
Species: raven
Gender: Female
Built by: Laken SteelJaw
Description: A realistic raven partial with head, arms and tail.
Owner: Laken   
List fursuits owned by Laken
Created: 2008-10-28
First appearance: Halloween 2008
Cons attended: RMFC2009
Cons planned: -
Toonyness: 0
Partial Fursuit: yes
Special Types: 3D eyes , wireframe head , mesh head , moveable jaw
Available for performing: no
Characteristics: Laken is a mischevious raven who enjoys good pranks, frightening small children and the occasional slice of roadkill. She has a morbid sense of humor and is always loudly opinionated.
Notes: This Raven partial was built on a coat hanger and plastic mesh frame. The beak is made of craft foam (Foamies) coated in tool dip and clear sealer. The 'meat' of the head is done in green foam. The eyes have a mild 3D effect, and the jaw moves. Vision is through the 'bare' spots near the beak. The head is covered in JoAnn's Grizzly Black fur and real pheasant and chicken feathers. The hand claws are created from opera gloves, black craft fur, plastic report covers (for the scutes) and plastic imitation eagle claws. The tail is crafted from a medium-weight smooth fabric, stiffened with interfacing. It attaches to a belt or to the pants with a cell-phone holder clip.

The head is light for it's size, and is relatively breathable. The feathers are proving to be very high-maintenance, and new ones need to be added periodically to keep the suit looking full. A smaller, lighter, and more realistic 2.0 is being planned, along with foot-talons and wing-arms.
Suit Journal:
10/28/08 - The suit is completed just in time for Halloween. Construction of the head took approx. 3 weeks of on and off work, while the arms took about 3 hours. The tail took about a week to complete.

10/31/08 - Laken debuts at her own Halloween party. She appears along side Nicona ShadowWolf and SnowQueen TigerClaw, much to the delight of the Trick-or-Treaters.

11/01/08 - Laken makes an appearance at 'Furries by the Lake', a small gathering of furs at Clear Lake, outside Georgetown Colorado. She took one small child quite by surprise!

11/01/08 - After Furries by the Lake, Laken made an appearance at the AuroraFurs meet in Aurora, Colorado. The guests and staff at the Village Inn seemed to enjoy having a bird in their midst!

11/29/08 - Another appearance at the AuroraFurs meet at Village Inn. This was in celebration of Ian's birthday! Laken was out for about an hour, and it's becoming far easier to operate in suit than it was previously.

08/01/2009 - The jaw on the head broke all the way through on both sides due to an engineering flaw (relying on plastic canvas to be a load-bearing structure). As a result the head was rendered unwearable. Laken's last appearance was at RMFC 2009, where she appeared in the parade and Scandalous Fursuit Competition. The head is now displayed in my studio on top of my shelves, and I still wear the tail on occasion. The arms and claws will likely get recycled into another project.

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