Guide to Teddy Bear Supplies - Fabrics for Fur
Learn About Mohair and Other Fabric Options for Teddy Bear Making
Sep 7, 2009
The fabric you choose for a teddy bear’s fur has a huge impact on the way the finished bear looks and cuddles. Today’s bear makers have a dizzying variety of different fabrics to choose from. This quick guide describes the most popular options.
Mohair Teddy Bear Fabric, the Favorite for Traditional Bears
By far the most popular teddy bear fur among makers and collectors of teddy bears, mohair is a tightly woven, non-stretchable fabric whose pile is made from the fleece of angora goats. The fleece is processed and woven onto a backing usually made of cotton. Mohair/cotton and mohair/silk blends are also available.
Mohair comes in a wide variety of different colors (including more than 20 different shades of gold and brown), different finishes, and pile lengths that mimic the look of different kinds of bear fur. Some mohair can be hand dyed to achieve unique color blends. The depth of mohair pile ranges from 1/8” (4 mm) to 1½” (38 mm). As a rule, deeper pile fabric works best for larger bears. Miniature bears are made with shorter pile mohair.
Mohair is more expensive than synthetic fur fabrics, but contemporary designers trying to recreate the style of teddy bears made in the early 1900s prefer it for its authentic look. While mohair fabric is woven today in Germany, South Africa, Canada, and other countries, German mohair is the traditional favorite, and sets the quality standard for other fabrics.
Today, there are so many different specialty mohair fabrics that it’s impossible to list them all. Here are some of the most popular styles of teddy bear mohair:
- Straight pile mohair looks something like plush carpet. In shorter pile lengths, its straight, thickly woven pile is a popular choice for making miniature bears.
- Distressed mohair is steamed to give the pile an irregular whorled and worn effect that looks like the fur of an antique bear.
- Curly pile mohair is a soft, furry fabric steam-processed to curl the fibers in all directions.
- Extra-dense mohair has more fiber strands per square inch than other mohair.
- Sparse-pile mohair simulates the look of fur that has been worn bald in spots.
- Tipped mohair is dyed a darker color at the tips of the pile. It is available in straight or curly varieties.
- Mohair upholstery fabric comes in velvet textures and is very durable, but less furry looking than some of the mohair designed specifically for teddy bear making.
Other Fabrics for Teddy Bear Making
Today’s teddy bear makers have a huge selection of other fabrics to choose from in addition to mohair.
- Alpaca fabric is similar to mohair, but its pile is made from alpaca wool instead of angora goat wool. It makes a soft and strokable fur.
- Cotton, rayon, wool, silk, and synthetic teddy bear furs are also widely available.The more expensive and higher quality versions will have a woven back which doesn't stretch. Cheaper versions have a knitted backing which may stretch and distort when worked with. It's important not to overstuff a bear made of stretchier synthetic fabrics.
- Wool felt doesn’t have the wonderful fluffiness of fabrics that mimic fur, but it is soft and very easy to work with. Felt doesn’t ravel at the edges and comes in a rainbow of rich colors. Wool/acrylic felt blends can be found at chain fabric stores. 100% wool felt is more expensive, and is easier to find online.
- Recycled wool fabrics. Worn or out-of-date sweaters, blankets, and jackets can be felted into a soft, thick, non-raveling fabric for bear making. Recycled fabrics are by far the cheapest fabrics for making teddy bears, but they don’t have the furry consistency of mohair and synthetics woven specifically for teddy bears. To make felt fabric from old woolens, wash the wool in hot water in the washing machine, then dry in a hot dryer. Felting only works on fabrics with high wool content.
- Recycled fur. Some teddy bear artists use rabbit skins or recycled fur coats found at thrift stores to make bears with real fur.
Where to Start with Teddy Bear Fabrics
Fur fabric is only one of a number of supplies you need to make a complete teddy bear. The easiest way to make your first bear is to buy a bear-making kit that includes everything needed to make the bear, including fabric for the teddy bear’s fur. This gives you a chance to work with one kind of fur fabric and enjoy snuggling with the finished bear in the shortest possible time.
Learn more about teddy bear making: teddy bear stuffing materials.in Sewing and Needlework at Suite 101.
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