Fur

[HenrySidneyKG]

I've had an issue with using fur in one of my projects in that it is expensive and that I do only wear it 3 or 4 times a year.  If you've made or are making a costume, what did you do to reduce the cost and hassle of using real fur?  If you used faux fur, did it turn out as well as you had hoped or would you do things differently?

Sir Henry

[isabelladangelo]

Cutter coats!  A lot of thrift shops, antique stores, and ebay have what they call "cutter lots".  These tend to be old coats that can't be repaired because of a problem in the fur.  Often there is plenty of good fur left, just a small spot of bad fur that needs to be cut out.  You can get a full length fur coat with one maybe hand sized bad patch for $15 or less easily.  Just cut out the bad part, oil the rest on the back, and you've got yourself some nice fur for a little bit of money.

[jmkhalfmoon]

Great idea!

I'm all about using old mundane items these days to use as supplemental fabrics. 

[Adriana Rose]

I have gotten some really good mink pelts off Ebay.!

I was gonna make flea catchers but they were a perfect wrap and I could not bear to part the little critters!

[operafantomet]

I agree about scrapped fur coats and similar. They're a great resource. You wouldn't catch me using fur elsewise, but re-used stuff for costume wear is something I can defend.

I've always experienced fake fur as more itchy. Also, whereas real fur tends to have all hair in the same direction, fake fur can be "all over the place". I haven't worked much with neither, but that's what I've experienced.

[gem]

I will say that the mundane fashion industry has made enormous strides in the quality and "nearness-to-real" of faux fur in recent years (I remember seeing stories about it when there was a faux-fur fashion trend a couple of years back).  That said, I haven't seen it trickle down to fabric stores--you generally still seem to see the same old clunky costume furs you've always seen. 

[DonaCatalina]

I used fake fur for a sideless surcote lining. I ended up removing it because the more you wear it, the faker it looks. It started clumping up in tangles.

I also agree with the previous post that it is itchier(word?) than real fur by far.

[LadyStitch]

I'm currently repairing an abused fox fur cape. I'm having a devil of a time sewing the skins and not ripping them.

I would think that the real fur would be much MUCH more difficult to work with vs the fake.  Is the convenience of having something that is easier to work with better than the look of real fur? 

[Adriana Rose]

Try doing it by hand, yes it takes forever but its much nicer on the leather under the fur. Also make sure that you have a leather needle for your machiene or for hand work!

[LadyStitch]

I'm doing it by hand with a leather needle, but the fur has been stuffed in an old garage for so long the orginal stitching that holds the skins together is coming undone just from pure neglect. It's a very valuable item since you can't go out and buy a new one (with out getting your head beaten in)  very easily. I'll just keep plugging along carefully stitching it by hand.

[DragonWing]

I have used an old fur coat to add fur trim on a velvet gown years back.
Yes do it by hand, oil the leather part, I used mink oil. It will rejuvenate the leather. A leather needle is worth having or three or four for different grades of leather.

LadyStitch, I had the same problem. Pelts coming apart but I preservered and finished the gown. It was worth the effort.

[Mythrin]

There is a product for abused saddle leather called "Leather Therapy" that is a really nice penetrating oil that I have rejuvenated really abused bridles/halters/saddles etc.  What I like about this stuff is that it penetrates so thoroughly that the leather does not feel oily within a short period of time.  I would guess a very light wipe of this stuff would work wonders on the skin side of a fur.

[Lady Kathleen of Olmsted]

Garage sales, the Salvation Army and Goodwill stores are great places to find leather and fu coats.

When cutting fur, faux or real, it is best to use a fur knife with sharp blades that glide through the skin or poly backings. NEVER use scissors or the fur will shed like crazy and end up looking like a bad shag haircut.

[Orphena]

I wait for the 50% off days at Value Village (thrift store) and go buy up fur coats. I got one that I transformed into a fur surcoat for m'lord for a mere $12!

Taking a fur coat apart is an expereince all by itself, and while I have done the painstaing work of separating all the layers, this time I completely cheated and broke every rule! I CUT the fur - with scissors (work from the back, rather than the front, and follow the stitching line) and hand stitched the fur to the coat, turning over the edge. While it DID shed - it also stopped shedding, and the edge is as sturdy as anywhere else. I also left all the backing material (other than the lining) on the fur, which made it a bit sturdier.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v18/ShariO/Casa%20Loma%202008/aIMG_2142.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v18/ShariO/Casa%20Loma%202008/aIMG_2161.jpg

The front sections of the fur coat (from the center front to the sleeve) was used as the strip that runs along the center fron of the surcoat. This meant that m'lord has a set of pockets on the front edge of his surcoat which are quite hidden (and in which he hid essential items on the day he proposed to me! - see "Milestones" for pics and announcment) The BACK of the fur coat - from the bottom center back up the side seams to about the bottom of the sleeve area - was used for the back of the collar on the surcoat - with a square neck cut out. The remnants - other than the sleeves, were used to line the edge of the arm holes (not visible).

I have also used EXPENSIVE faux fur to make a pair of faun pants, and I must say that working with the faux fur was more of a trial. Because of the long fur, I had to tape it wawy from the seams, and cutting that made far more of a mess than the real fur. The faux fur was also probably triple the price that I paid for the real fur - but the advantage was that it comes in a longer piece - so it all depends on the project you have in mind.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v18/ShariO/Faery%20Fest%2007/IMG_0157.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v18/ShariO/Faery%20Fest%2007/panandmermaid.jpg

[gem]

Orphena, I *love* your lord's fur-lined surcoat!

I *desperately* want to make Milord the outfit to match the Promenade gown (the guy in the center there), but there will never, never, never be a day during fair season that will be cold enough for Milord to wear fur. Alas!

[Taffy Saltwater]

It's never cold enough here in Houston for fur either.  But I love the look of it and that they used it as lining ... I may swoon.

[Orphena]

Well, to be quite honest - the only way m'lord would be albe to wear it for an extended period of time is if it were winter. He wore it only for a few hours in the morning of each day (it was the july 4th weekend, and HOT). His coat is not fully lined in fur - tis only the collar that is fur, and the sleeve holes, but it seems it is fully lined.