Using fur for crafts

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SilverBlaze85

SilverBlaze85

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.... okay, so I kinda feel like an odd person asking this, with my little bunny Ollie having her binkies on the floor, but meh.

I'm seriously contemplating using rabbit pelts to make teddy bears. The company I WAS using for faux fur has had their quality seriously slip, to the point where the fabric starts shredding almost instantly. I know some teddy bear companies used to use rabbit fur, but does anyone still do? Does anyone have hands-on experience with using pelts to make bears?

On a similar note: Does anyone have advice for a newbie on pelts? I use a heavy-duty sewing machine, and I'll assume I want to use a leather needle. I saw on another site someone said that they use little dabs of glue to glue a piece muslin to the back of the pelt, so that the muslin takes the stress from the seams. Anyone have experience with that? Good idea? Bad idea?

Any and absolutely all advice will be most treasured, I assure you! ^_^ The bear I'm making will be for an adult female, so it won't be heavily abused at all. I just think it could look really nice, and be so silky soft!

:bunnyhop:
 
Hello SilverBlaze and welcome to RabbitTalk. :hi:

Rabbit hides are very thin and fragile and therefore would be hard to use for making teddy bears. I've used old mink or curly lamb coats and old mohair coats (from thrift shops) to make bears. Mohair is by far the easiest to work with. I have always lined real fur pieces with muslin, as you were advised. It isn't much extra work once you get the hang of it and it makes fur bears much stronger. Making teddy bears is a lot of work, as you know... I really can't see doing it with materials that won't hold up. Rabbit fur is lovely and soft, but the leather is not very durable.

One of my mohair teddy bears from an old coat:
dearoldbear2.jpg
 
Well, thank you, DumansArk! :oops:

I have dabbled in a lot of things over the years. I like to work from scratch, so that means designing the bears and making my own patterns as well as sewing them.
 
Wow, Maggie! I am impressed- I've always wanted to make stuffed animals, but don't really know how to sew. I'd like to learn though! Maybe someday...
 
Beautiful work Maggie. I like the personality of your bear. Unique and not at all cookie cutter the way you did the ears lower gives her a friendly look. :)
I did not know about the rabbit fur not being good for sewing.
 
Thanks, Currituckbun. :) Almost all my bears are one of a kind, though they all seem to end up with that quirky lop-sided smile.

Rabbit fur is fine for use where there is no stress on the seams, but when stuffing a teddy bear it takes a lot of pushing to get the stuffing in there and the rabbit skin is very likely to split. Mink or lamb skins are so much thicker and more resilient - and even then, lining them with muslin is a good idea.
 
Welcome to RT SilverBlaze! I'm sure you'll enjoy it here with the Bunny-Obsessed!

Maggie, could SilverBlaze make a little coat or fur muff for the bears out of rabbit fur?

We are absolutely overrun with catnip- it is popping up everywhere! So I was hoping to make catnip toys with scraps of rabbit pelt- sounds like they would get torn to bits pretty quickly though.
 
As a small child I used to collect the rabbit tails after my dad dressed the wild rabbits he caught and keep them in a shoe box, ah memories lol they would make good cat toys Mamasheepdog.
 
Bramble, we've given tails to the cats... and they EAT them! They need to be only an occasional treat, or the kitties are liable to be yakkin up hairballs all over the house!
 
How do you attach the muslin to the pelt?

But even with the muslin, the pelts won't work for high-stress seams, huh. Too bad. What luxurious bears bunny pelts would make!

I love your bear, Maggie! <3
 
Thanks, Miss M. I used to make a lot of them. Now, not so much.

Certainly rabbit fur could be used for teddy bear accessories: muffs, shoulder capes, hats, booties... They would look so cute, especially on short-haired bears. :)

When I used muslin, I think I just used a glue stick to hold it against the skin. Once it is sewn, the stitches hold it in place. It's been a while (maybe ten years?) since I made a fur bear.
 
I am SO SORRY!!! /o\ Real life got entirely too up-in-my-face. *grovels*

Good to know about the rabbit fur. That's kinda sad, but good to know now!! The problems I've had making this one particular bear is more than the previous 20-something bears prior!! >.< I got some velvet at the store, and I'mma gonna see how that works; if it doesn't then I'll look into mohair. Thank you so very very very very much for the advice!!

I did get one piece of pelt, just because it's sooooo soft and silky and I couldn't say no anymore, and it's amazing how often the dog is in my room now, snuffling everywhere trying to find it! XD
 

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