3dprintinghelp
- Aug 2, 2022
- 2 min read

Fuzzy Skin in Cura

It sounds weird, right? Fuzzy Skin. It's a great feature to add texture to your prints. It's easy to turn on and can be applied for many different effects. In this example, I am using a cauldron. The plain print is okay, but adding Fuzzy Skin, makes it look like cast iron!

Basic Cauldron with Fuzzy Skin

The File

There are many great Cauldrons out there, but I used the Basic Cauldron by kasey3dsparks found on thingiverse. The image above is the same file, but I tweaked the size for my need.

Cura Fuzzy Skin Setting

After loading the file into Cura, you can tweak the scale and size how you see fit. Before slicing, you want to search for Fuzzy Skin. Note I am using Cura 4.12.1, so your screen may look different.

The Fuzzy Skin setting is found in the Experimental section. After searching for it, you can check the box to show the setting.

Cura Fuzzy Skin setting

NOTE: When I first turned this on, I didn't pay attention to the next check box: Fuzzy Skin Outside Only. In my case, I made sure to check that box. You don't need the inside of your Cauldron to be fuzzy too!

I kept the default settings for Thickness, Density, and Point Distance.

After slicing, here is what you see when checking the preview:

Cura slice preview of Cauldron with Fuzzy Skin on

You can adjust the settings of the Fuzzy Skin, reslice, and then check the preview again to get an idea of what it may look like. The settings may take some trial and error, so printing a test piece may be worth it before printing anything too large or time-consuming.

To give some perspective here is the same Cauldron with Fuzzy Skin off:

Cura slice preview of Cauldron with Fuzzy Skin off

The Difference Fuzzy Skin Makes

What a difference Fuzzy Skin makes! Here is the same Cauldron with and without Fuzzy Skin:

Side-by-Side Comparison of Cauldron with and without Fuzzy Skin

I really enjoyed using Fuzzy Skin for this project, and I can see how it can be useful for other things. Some other examples that use Fuzzy Skin would be spiders or Whinny the Pooh. In fact, raddadsteve (one of the best creators of 3D items IMO) uses Fuzzy Skin as an example in his Pooh print.