auzmink Posted January 7, 2011 Share Posted January 7, 2011 Dear Denziens, For a while I have wanted to not only sit and trawl photos, look at e-bay auctions etc, but felt the need to want to actually make something using fur. I have looked through several good books, including 'How to sew leather and fur' as well as others. I have seen the YouTube films on making a 'coon skin cap', etc, etc, etc. I have looked for local college courses on leather making. I have written letters to Furriers in the UK about doing some paid attendances with them all to be met by a silence. I am aware that making garments in fur is an 'art', requiring many years of an apprenticeship etc, and that many furriers guard their art. However, I did put an idea to the moderators that I now put out for general discussion: If we ran a short course on making a basic fur article such as a hat / glove etc, would anyone be interested? Could we persuade a furrier to actually partake and lead us through the steps slowly? Given that we could use a professional person, should the articles be on a small subscription basis to cover costs, video making, time etc? Who would pay? Do we have enough interested persons to make it a viable propsition? My thoughts relate to choice of skins, needles, type of threads, type of stitch (this would be a hand sewn article so we get over the need to buy a machine), pattern and finishing the article. This is at a very basic thoughtful stage, and the Moderators were not even sure we could host it here....so this is a very early planning stage....over to you....... Auzmink Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samurman Posted January 9, 2011 Share Posted January 9, 2011 Fantastic idea! Count me in! These days, with all the technological advances, the internet and such, so many things can be accomplished through distance learning. A friend of mine has been studying Chinese calligraphy with a teacher 700 kilometers away. Each week, she has an assignment to complete, which she then mails out to her teacher, who then corrects her assignment and sends it back. She has become quite advanced, studying this way. Of course, mailing fur pieces back and forth may not be practical, but I would love to watch instructional videos and complete some assignments. It would be fun! A few years ago, I acquired a large number of vintage furs at a very low price. I was thinking of taking all of them apart, and trying to sew the pieces to make a blanket or something like that, but in the end I could not find the time and abandoned it halfway. But I managed to take several coney rabbit jackets, a mink coat, and a red fox stroller apart. It was really fascinating to study the endless number of pieces from the back, trying to understand from which part of a fur pelt these pieces came from and why they were brought together in that particular way. It was solving a furry puzzle! Anyhow, in about a few months, I may be able to restart my project again, and I am thinking of taking some videos and pictures along the way. Who knows, I may end up sharing them with you:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxkid Posted January 19, 2011 Share Posted January 19, 2011 Yes, I get the impression the furriers are some sort of secretive sect sometimes, sort of like the freemasons of fur Count me in as well. Hence my post some months back about a fur sewing machine. (My summer time mission I think) While the landscape for mens furs has improved over the years, I'm sort of furstrated by the lack of designs and would love to have the enjoyment of making my own personal items. I don't have $1000's to pour into at a furrier, much as I'd love to be able to do this to save some effort and contribute towards preserving this rare artistic trade. I do have time (or can make it) to study. Given that many furriers have closed and their numbers are diwindling, I think it could be a worthwhile pursuit. In terms of distributing the material, maybe some mechanism to protect the owner's content would be needed. With video it could be done by watermarking the user name of the person who's brought the video in the corner so it would be known who leaked if it was leaked. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auzmink Posted January 19, 2011 Author Share Posted January 19, 2011 Hmmmm... 95 views and only 2 replies.....doesn't seem like I am steam-rollered with enthusiasm. This is after 1 week. Perhaps I have got it wrong. Perhaps most people are simply happy to buy off e-bay or wherever and have no desire to use fur as a material for more everyday things for themselves like cushion covers etc. Is this correct... Auzmink. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ew19975 Posted January 19, 2011 Share Posted January 19, 2011 Auz, I think your idea has merit. I have had occasional thoughts of getting some craft grade items from ebay and try to make items for the cats (then expand from there, maybe). The idea has become a bit more frequent now that my wife got a sewing machine for quilting (might be able to handle a bit of fur/leather with the right needle- have to look at the instructions). This may become a trial and error thing... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
furup Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 I tried making a fur cocoon several years back managed with a sewing machine sew some together. I successfully converted a coat into a squared off piece. But I never finished it, and lost what i had when I was evected . What i know is as home sewers we can never take a pelt and tuen it into a "fully let out pelt" this is cutting 1/4" wide strips then sewing them sometime with a filler together again I have seen on ebay the machines used for this sweing. this is the many small strips seen on the leather side of the pelt. I have a pelt that shows this I could take a webcam picture of it and post it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auzmink Posted January 25, 2011 Author Share Posted January 25, 2011 Agreed, as a total beginner I feel no need to try and 'let-out' pelts. Simple articles like say a massage glove, or simple hat might be on my radar, and a hand sewing object within reasonable grasp. I am going to start with an old mink jacket and trying to perhaps do a mobile phone case.....just simple things not requiring too much technical ability. I would love an expert to give us his / her 10% but I get a feeling this is totally an 'out there' experience for us beginners. I cannot even find a local leather sewing course to try and hone some skills! Ho hum, will start simple project A soon and if it gets completed I will post photos and ideas... Auzmink Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxkid Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 Agreed with auzmink, I've seen some craft or cheap fox coats that I think should be cut up and used to make something basic like a big scarf, or huge full fur tropper hat, given the full fur fox trooper hats are a good $300 at least. I'm sure it's possible to make a couple of those from a $200 fox coat. Or maybe get some old rabbits and make them into fur lined bozers. Something very practical in the winter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReFur Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 With furs like fox and coyote the hide is thin and oxidized long before the fur itself shows age. Once it gets to a certain point it will break apart when you attempt to stitch it. The hide literally turns into a thick powdery paper-like substance. You might have better luck buying tanned hides. One of the reasons there is little written down on working with used furs, is because the experts know this is not worth their time. I do not mean to discourage you, just to encourage you to use materials which will offer you some chance of success. Best of luck. Linda Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auzmink Posted January 30, 2011 Author Share Posted January 30, 2011 Linda....I concur, but I will be able to pattern and try with some older stuff to do a better job second time around.. Auzmink Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
furslave Posted February 7, 2011 Share Posted February 7, 2011 From what i know, to be able to sew fur you need a special tool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
furup Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 From what i know, to be able to sew fur you need a special tool. since i have sewen fur i did it on a sewing machine with a leather needle. it had no problrm with the leather of fur. I was making a fox sleeping bag using coats purchased on ebay. What I did do is I purchased nylon webing at a sewing supplier site 2" wide. i used it to fill in small gaps and as a strong backbone for the joints between the pelts. I think 1" wide might work for smaller garments. Or even leather strips instead of nylon. a lottimes I used a zig=zag stitch to get width in the stitch. my sewing lasted not the pelts. Furup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
furslave Posted February 10, 2011 Share Posted February 10, 2011 Interresting thought, a fur slleping bag, hmmm, i'd like that very much! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReFur Posted February 10, 2011 Share Posted February 10, 2011 You don't need a special tool. But, you should use a special waxed thread. A pair of needle nose pliers to pull the needle through is helpful. A thimble to spare your fingers is recommended. Regular good scissors will work. Seam tape to keep the pelts from stretching out of shape is helpful, too. There is a special sticky fabric lining which can be used to reinforce weak hides. Many of these can be purchased on eBay I believe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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