Fur Fabric Question

[pdbooch]

Hey all,
Does anyone know a fur fabric that is compairable to antron fleece in terms
of its dyeability? For example, I'm interested in a fur fabric like Fozzie or Oscar the Grouch.
Any help is appreciated
Thanks
Patrick



http://homepage.mac.com/pdbooch/pup...hotoAlbum4.html

 

[ToasterBoy]

Fur stuff

I think I used a different fur fabric tan "oscar" style for my dog puppet, but I did find a TON of stuff on eBay simply by searching "Fur Fabric". It was all really cheap too! So maybe eBay can be helpful.

Your link to your web page doesn't work. :-(

Rock On!

GRANT

 

[fragglerockr]

Fur...

Hmm...fur is tricky. Most fur, so far as I know, will probably not take dye well. I've never tired this but I'm assuming this is so since a lot of fur is made from acrylic/synthetic fibers.

I would recommend searching for local textile/wholesale fabric plants and stores in your area. I have found lots of stuff there. You'd be suprised. I even found a dead on match for the color of Boober's fur at Joanne Fabrics. I kick myself now for not buying it. How cool would that have been a Boober Fraggle Puppet!

Also you might check online..I think there is a place called National Fiber Technologies. They manufacture the fur on the Chewbacca suits for Disney/Lucasfilm for the walkaround characters at the park. I know to do a whole fur suit of this caliber is about $2k or more. I know you would need a lot less but may make you do a large order.

Hope this info helps,

Lee

 

[Buck-Beaver]

Fake fur generally can't be dyed. It's usually made from synthetic fibers which won't take dye (only natural fibers like cotton can be dyed). Some sort of industrial dyes will work but it's not a process you can do at home. I am sure there are exceptions to this, but that's generally how it works.

When we have to have a custom-dyed shag fur we use mohair or angora hides (about $150 - $200 Cdn per 3/4 yard). The best supplier we have found is Orappa Creek in Alberta Canada. They deal with a lot of puppet builders, doll makers and artists and they are very nice folks. Their contact info is:

Orappa Creek
RR1
Pickardville AB
T0G 1W0 Canada
1-877-5MOHAIR
http://www.orappacreek.com
orappa@telusplanet.com
*Ask for Helen or Don Gladson

The more expensive route would be one of the aforementioned custom fur manufacturers like National Fiber Technologies. Their info is as follows:

National Hair Technologies, LTD
300 Canal Street
Lawrence, MA 01840
1 800 842-2751


Other US fur manufacturers I know of that *might* do custom work are:

Monterey Mills
(800) 432-9959 or (608)-754-2866
PO BOX 271
1725 E. Delavan Dr.
Janesville, WI 53547

TexTenn
1 800 251-3027
ask for Katy Seifert

Big 4 Pile (212) 354-4155

Model Textiles - (973) 779-0276


If you don't have tons of money to spend I'd suggest searching ebay (Toasterboy is right - there's tons on ebay), the net and local fabric stores for furs. Rarely have we ever needed a fur that we couldn't find (but sometimes it takes alot of searching). Another low cost option might be to experiment with wool.

Good luck!

 

[bernie]

fur fabric

I make small hand puppets for kids and I've had a lot of luck working with berber. It is usually in with the regular "polar" fleece in fabric stores and comes in a lot of colors (but again is not dyeable because it is synthetic). It has good texture, easy to handle and usually a little cheaper than regular fur.