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Feb 9, 2012

Faux Fur Fabric Haul and MORE!



OK, readers, what would you say if I told you I went to the Salvation Army yesterday ("Family Day" -- 50% off most clothes) and found a terrific blue faux fur peacoat in my size for $4.99? 

Put on your sunglasses, and behold!

Psychedelic plush lining!





I looooove this coat; and you know how I feel about a bargain.  Now lest you think this means I won't be making my own faux fur coat, think again.  I'm going to use this one for inspiration and construction guidance.  This coat was very simply put together, which gives me confidence.



Did I mention it even has the union label?



Now with this blue coat as a backup, and on a bit of a faux fur frenzy, I returned to the Garment District.  I couldn't face the incense (and the chaos) at It's a Material World, and I remembered that the other place with an excellent selection of faux fur was the dreaded Nahir, at 242 West 39th Street.  I've mentioned Nahir (which some think should be called Nadir due to its surly owner and questionable prices) before, but I've had success here in the past.  Since I was on the south side of 39th Street, I checked some of the other fabric stores there that I generally don't go into, and I couldn't find faux fur for less than $20/yd, sometimes even more.  I'm talking about heavyweight, quality stuff, not cheap craft fur.

I spent at least half an hour in Nahir.  Their fur was $15/yd but when I told them I needed to walk around the block and think, they immediately lowered their price to $12 (This is a good strategy, imo).  I made my purchase and that was that. 

Now let me say that some of the fake fur at Nahir is gorgeous -- deep plushy, luxurious-looking minks, leopards, lynx, Persian lamb etc., in all kinds of fantasy colors.  But I wanted something a little....tacky.  

Voila!
 

This fur is a cross between sheared rabbit and a ratty old bathrobe and I love it.  It has a deep pile and a pink undercoat.  The best part of all is that the wrong side is bonded to what looks like ultrasuede rather than just your standard knit. That gives me a lot of options, like doing the sleeves suede-side out, for example. 



For the collar, and perhaps the cuffs, I went for something more exotic.  I don't know my ocelot from my snow leopard, but this fur, also with a pink cast, looked suitably over the top.





So here's my basic palette:





In my dreams I pull off something like this, but I may just keep it simple first time out.



This is the basic look I'm going for.



Last night I cut out my pattern, McCall's 2979, and today I'll experiment with seams, right sides, wrongs sides, etc.  As I mentioned yesterday, I want this done by next Tuesday, so Cathy can wear it to a Valentine's Day party.

I'm good to go, friends.

Any thoughts about which side of the -- let's call it sheared rabbit -- should be outside and which inside?  Do you think my choice is "pimpy" (I hate that term but I think you get what I mean) enough?  I hope so.

Ready, Set, Faux!

33 comments:

  1. Cathy is the luckiest girl in the world!

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  2. If your choices are "pimpy" then i must be a dyed in the wool ho LOL coz i LOVE them.

    I'm going with the furry side of the sheared rabbit on the outside. Had you not found that fabulous spotty fur i would have said go with the suede for the outer of the body of the coat and the furry part on the outside for the collars and cuff. But...that spotty fury is divine and i think to get that fabulously tacky look you should go fur on the outer all the way :)

    My OH is away for work overnight...i took this opportunity to buy an op-shop sewing machine cabinet for $15 for a class 15 Japanese clone sewing machine head that was without a case; despite the fact there's not really enough room in my sewing room for another cabinet. I've already been outed to OH; damn that facebook LOL But Peter, i intend to blame you (i figured you probably wouldn't mind..would you) since you've totally corrupted me regarding vintage sewing machines. LOL

    I'm SO excited about your fur coat project!

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  3. I am drooling already. My two sticky, sweet, sickening indulgences are pink and leopard. I wear a lot of leopard but not much pink and certainly not together, although, in my fantasies, I'm draped from head to toe in the two.

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  4. Peter. I'm staying at my mom's right now and I have her hooked on your blog. She can't wait each day to see what you have to offer. She thinks the coat is going to be 'fabulous' and so do I. Thank God you did not pick a fur with the scent of incense...choke...gag.

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  5. Fur out, suede in. But uh, awesome.

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  6. "pimpy"? You say that like it's a bad thing.

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  7. this is going to be amazing. i cannot wait to see it!

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  8. I had serious doubts about this project before, but now I'm on board! Can't wait to see the results!

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  9. I have a friend who has a vintage coat in almost exactly the same fake fur, a cream pile with a pink 'undertow'. She looks fabulous in it and always gets compliments. And so will Cathy!

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  10. OMG. pink fur. " But I wanted something a little....tacky. " may be the awesomest sentence on fake fur shopping in the garment district ever ;)

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  11. Love your choices. And simple can't wait to hear about sewing with fur and of course, to see the final product! Sew like the wind!!

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  12. Fur outside, that's going to be awesome. And can we pleeeease dub your blue number Cookie Monster Couture?

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  13. THAT'S where I've seen that color! LOL

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  14. I love your fabric choices and agree that the fur side must be the right side. This is going to be divine - Cathy is one lucky cousin is all I've got to say. I love to find USA union labels in clothing. I remember that "look for the union label" jingle from earlier days. I do find that there are a lot more of those tags at thrift stores, but I'm fine with that. I bought two beautiful vintage wool raincoats at Value Village last year for less than $25 for the pair. They're classic and wonderful. Can't wait to see the gorgeous coat. I love your courage to tackle challenging sewing projects with short deadlines. Try to get some sleep in the next few days, too.

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  15. Did the leopard come from Chic Fabrics? I think I bought the same one and made a dress for my daughter! She just wore it yesterday. When she was putting together her outfit, she said, "I want to be as fluffy as possible," which I saw as an admirable goal. Here's the dress:
    http://couturearts.wordpress.com/2010/11/10/kidswear/

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    1. That looks like the stuff, but it's from Nahir. I've seen it in a few places. It has a lot of pink in it.

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  16. I'm definitely following this with interest and amusement! I love your choices.

    I had a blue fur coat with brass buttons in fourth grade (mid 70's)- It was my favorite!

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  17. Yeah, I try not to think about what smell the incense might be masking.

    I LOVE your faux fur selection! Seriously, tacky is the way to go with this kind of coat!

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  18. The colors together are on the very lux and luscious side of tacky. I can't wait to see the coat.

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  19. This is making my day more fabulous already! I can't wait for the finished product :)

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  20. Congrats on your thrift store find. Love, love, love your choices for the Liza/Cathy outfit! They look amazing with the glitz fabric. I agree with fur side out/suede side in. Once again, I am going to be so freakin’ jealous of Cathy. Btw, Cathy’s gonna look far better in this coat than in mine ;)

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  21. Ooh yay! This is gonna be good!

    Ps. There is an historic bag of Nag Champa i forgot about in the kitchen junk drawer-I'll never think of it in the same way again!

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  22. Excited by all the developments with this ensemble -- I can't wait for the slide show!

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  23. I am very interested to see how your coat turns Peter but more interested to know if you watched O'Mast and if you now have the bug to make a tailored suit - I ordered the DVD online after reading about here on your blog, loved it (have watched it twice) and am really hoping you are going to do a sew along :)

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    1. I liked the video a lot, Sue. As far as a suit sew-along...um...uh..er...not this month!

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  24. I love your fabric choices. Next time I'm in NYC I'm going to have to go find all of these stores -- here in Charlotte, NC the garment "district" consists of Joann Fabrics, Hancock Fabrics, and a barn of a store called Mary Jo's Cloth Store, suitably situated in the very armpit of the South. I can't wait to see this project come together!

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  25. I love your fabric choices and I can't wait to see the coat as it progresses, and I also adore your blue Salvo bargain. I'd never wear either- it just doesn't get cold enough where I live- but if I was cold that's what I would want!

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  26. Wonderfully tacky fabric choices, now if you're going for pimpy, this is not the time to go halfway - it needs the shaved rabbit to the outside.

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  27. This is so creative! You might think about using the suede side for the belt, or having a reversible belt, one side suede and one side fur.

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  28. Woo Hoo...so pimpy!!! Can't wait to see the finished coat. What, may I ask, hat will you choose to top it off?

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