What to look for when buying swatches and choosing fur.
There are lots of great resources to buy fur available online! It can be difficult to hunt fabric stores for faux fur, especially outside of fall/halloween/winter seasons. So online shopping is a way to build fursuit and costumes with fur any time of the year!
The trick to it is buying a swatch first so you know what you are getting! A swatch is a small sample of the fur fabric that the company selling the fabric will mail to you for a small fee. Swatches are usually around $1 - $5 each, don’t skimp on the swatches! For each color you plan, its smart to get a few swatches to compare. They are invaluable in terms of knowing what the color looks like in different lighting conditions, how it feels, how it moves, and how it shaves. Asking other artists opinions just isn’t the same!
About ½ of the way down this page there is a list of fabric suppliers: https://pupdates.matrices.net/post/163394770088/fursuit-and-crafting-resources
I keep this supplier list updated as I find more!
Most Online fabric stores make it obvious how to get their samples, but some less-so. You may need to use their search, or simply ask!
Some sites have swatch collections you can purchase as well, such as Big Z, it offers “color cards” which includes all the colors that type of fabric comes in!
If you are collecting samples offline (from a physical fabric store) the store might not allow swatches to be cut and you may need to buy an entire strip of the minimum cut of that fabric. Ask what the smallest amount to be cut is, it might be a few inches! Your swatch will be a strip instead, but you can cut it to a manageable size later and share the extra swatches with friends.
How do I examine a swatch?
When you buy fur, its not about “the softest” – it is literally what works best with the project you are creating. And everyone’s projects are different with different goals!
Some furs are sparse and flowy with mesh backings and those are incredibly awesome for all over a body/chest to help the wearer stay cool, while they are totally terrible for shaving. Others may be extremely thick and plush, but awful for wearing because of how heavy they are. Some feel “crispy” in your hand, but have a realistic look and are extremely durable and will look good for a long time. Some are different textures, but they are the colors you need.
Its all a careful balance of the search for the texture you want, or the color match you are after. For sure the fursuit maker’s struggle.
I like to mix textures and fur lengths because it adds interest to a costume’s design. Once I receive an order of swatches in, I examine them, take them into the sunlight and indoors light. I also match them up with existing swatches in my collection. As well as see how stretchy they are or aren’t. Then I break out my electric shaver, and see how it shaves. Sometimes it reveals a different colored undercoat, a spotted or patterned backing, or a sparse arrangement of fur, those aren’t ideal for shaving unless it works with your particular project. Definitely use a slicker brush on the shaved and unshaved portions to make sure the fur stays in the backing under normal maintenance.
Determine how much stretch the fabric swatch has. This will tell you if you need to make a dart or if it will fill out on its own just by being stuffed or stretched into shape over foam. Hold a swatch of fabric you plan to use like on the Left, it can be at any angle that would match your project you are patterning. Make sure the fabric is relaxed.
Now pinch it between your fingers and stretch it apart, like on the Right. That measurement between your two fingers is the amount of stretch your fabric does or doesn’t have.
The distance you can measure is how much leeway you have to stretch your pattern to fit. If your swatch doesn’t stretch at all, or doesn’t have a stretch from the angle you are planning to put it at, you can then add a dart to your pattern.
Regarding backings, some are stretchy, some are not. Some have a smooth texture, some are different than others, and that is all completely OK. You are going to want to be wearing underarmor or athletic underclothes while wearing fullbody fur costumes like fursuits anyways, so if a backing is “scratchy” that doesn’t make that fur un-useful in any given project.
You will find a lot of the common furs made by a manufacturer called “Shannon Fabrics” they distribute it to all of the resellers. A lot of those furs are the same colors and textures, but sold under different color and texture names. Its up to the individual website on how they brand and sell them. For example “Luxury Shag” and “Punky Muppet” are the same thing.
When you are ready to buy, measure your patterns so you know how much you need. It is very easy to be tempted to overbuy, and I try to discourage it because it can be difficult to store and re-sell fur remnants. (Photographing, measuring, pricing and listing. Taking payment, then boxing and mailing. Its a very involved process) You may still end up with a bit extra (for repairs or mistakes) because online fabric stores often sell in whole or half yard increments only. More information on “How much fur do I need?” here!
Here is a summary of what you can do with a swatch of faux fur:
Think about your project goals. Is your project based in natural colors or fantasy colors? What works best for the project you are creating?
Take it into the sun and indoors to see it in different lighting conditions.
Match them against other swatches you have to compare texture, density, or length.
Check stretch (this can immensely help you when plan darts in your pattern)
Check what it looks like trimmed or shaved.
Use a slicker brush and brush it to see if it stays under normal maintenance.
See if it unravels or runs easily when you pick at the edges.
Shake it! See how that fur moves and lays.
Test it! Cut that swatch in half and use one part of it for a washing test or other test! Keep half as a “control” and test the other half!
How should I label my swatches?
When your samples arrive, they often come with the invoice that tells you what you ordered. But it is extremely easy for this invoice to get tossed or separated and the swatches kept instead, that info now lost. So labeling your swatches clearly and as soon as you get them becomes more important than ever. Here are ways you can label your swatches and information to include.
Label the month and the year you acquired it “July 2019″ -- this is important!! As dye lots can and will change over time, knowing what time period your fabric’s dye lot was created from can help. If your swatch is more than a year old, you want to know so you can get a new swatch in case the color changed!
Label the color and type that it was named where you ordered it. Examples “Mint Rabbit” “White Arctic fox” “Emerald Long Ecoshag”
Label the website name it came from. Examples “Imstuffedfur” “Mendels” “Big Z”
Label the project or character’s name you plan to use it with or have used it on in the past. This is optional, but can help sometimes it’s easier to remember “Matrices Grey” or “Bonk Mint.” Naming by project sticks more strongly in memory, especially when you come back to use that fur, or think about that swatch again!
When it comes to actually sticking a label on your swatches, you can do so by writing on the swatch in pen, stapling a small paper label to your swatch with this info, or writing it on a label sticker and sticking it to the backing!
How should I store or organize my swatches?
Storing swatches can sometimes be an afterthought. But if you plan on making lots of projects with fur, storing and organizing swatches becomes more important as more of them are collected.
Here’s some creative ideas and solutions that are useful, especially if you are low on space but want to stay organized.
Attach them to cardstock with staples or double-sided tape.
Use a binder with plastic sleeve inserts to tuck them in so they can be put away on a shelf.
Use a cork board and pin them up on the board so they can be stored hanging up.
Put a small hole in each swatch, and use a metal ring or carabiner to string them together so they can be stored in a drawer or hanging up.
Clip them together with clothespins to hang them up.
Have fun with collecting, examining, and organizing swatches for your projects! Hope this helps! Happy crafting!
