It starts with a yoga mat and 5mm Sintra sheets. Draw the tail form like you want it to be seen from the side.
I have two slight curves with a round tip. Then cut the tail and make gaps inbetween. That’s where you make the tail flexible.
Now make duplicates of your Sintra pieces, because you’ll sandwich the yoga mat between 2 pieces later.
Place the tail on that yoga mat and cut it along your tail shape.
Chicago screws, a cutter, screwdriver and hole puncher are your main tools.
Start with punching holes into your duble Sintra pieces and sandwich them together with chicago screws like this.
Do the same with all the other pieces until you’re done with the tail.
To make the tail a bit less flexible, add Worbla pieces or other thin plastic pieces between those sandwiches.
This is the adjustment part where no tutorial can help you, because you just need to try, adjust, adjust again until you’re satisfied. Don’t make the tail too flexible, but also not too unflexible. Find the right balance.
After your adjustment of the tail flexibility, you’ll prepare the tail cover. Take the softest foam you can find in a DIY-store.
Place your tail on the foam and cut around your whole tail piece. Don’t cut too close to your tail skeleton, though.
The foam will be holed out to function like a socket for the tail skeleton.
Seen right here, the cut away foam parts to fit your tail nicely into the socket. Prepare a mirrored version of this tail, because you’ll cover both side with this.
When you’ve done the 2 covers, only glue one side to your tail skeleton. Will explain later, why.
One side’s not glued to your skeleton and you can check the flexibility again. The foam takes away a bit flexibility, so make sure you still have a bit of movement here.
The tail needs a sturdy belt and this method above worked for me. To bend Sintra without breaking, heat the part with a heat gun and slightly bend it until you’re satisfied. Re-heat it if necessary. Punch everything together with chicago screws.
You can use the belt as an actual belt on your pants, or hide them in the pants, like I did. The belt was put through the inside of the waist to hide it.
Now you only need to cover your tail with fake fur or if you have some sort of lizard, you can cover it with spandex or whatnot. The technique stays the same, but the shape of the tail can be different.
