Comments on: How to Repair Vintage Fur Yourself

By: bernd

bernd — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 22:46:37 +0000

Hi Diane,

I thought to perhaps if the skin is very brittle and one cannot sew, to use a cotton band or similar and glue it on to the skin.

But I am at a loss of which glue one could take. Also glue tends to become harder with time.

I just send this idea to you re : a band or tape of cotton.

If you have received any worthwile answers ( not like mine….) could you please send them to me ?

I have a chinchilla bolero I have bought. It is vintage from the 60 ies.
Although in good condition, the woman who tried it on before I could have a look at it was hasty and ripped a 5 inch tear into the fur…

But I bought it anyway to eventually surprise my wife, as she has always liked to have tp have one.

So here I am with a wonderful chinchilla bolero, and a rip in it.

The fur stores I showed it to will not bother but want to sell me a new one …

I do have champagne taste but beer money I must admit.

Could you help me perhaps ?

I am in Brussels, Belgium

Thank you so very much in advance for anything you could come across

Bernd

By: Diane Lockhart

Diane Lockhart — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 01:17:53 +0000

Hello-
i found somw interesting ideas on your site- this weekend i found an adorable vintage short “swing” mink coat at a flea market.
The body of the coat is beautiful however the arms and collar are badly ripped.
It looks to me like the coat was not stored correctly and creased. I ave done alot of searching and cannot seem to find the best way to attemp to repair it.
The woman that i bough tit from told me to sew it however i think it will tear the hide more. My mother suggested i use some type of glue.i am thinking this would be a better solution.
Do you have any ideas?
Thank you!
Diane

By: Alba

Alba — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 23:47:27 +0000

Thanks guys.

I was worried about the vacuum, which was why I waited to get home to use the Miele. It can be so gentle for dusting and such. I definitely had no problem, but I wouldn’t have used any other vacuum I’d owned :p

For me the whole point is that I did not intend to pay for a furrier to do anything for this coat. It was worth experimenting, to me. My good mink will always go to the furrier, but this was different and money tight.

There is a site, Vintage Sewing, which I like, and I remembered to look there about furs. They have laundering methods, and a lot on fur: http://www.vintagesewing.info/1930s/31-ldc/ldc-14.html

The gasoline thing is frightening, but I am reassured about the powdering. Next time I might try the bran method!

Anyway, I finally checked on the coat today, and it turned out wonderfully (the skins.) I still plan to do a better job of it, but the conditioning made such a difference already.

By: Marina

Marina — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 22:36:54 +0000

Hi Sharon,
I recently bought mink jacket that needed to have the lining replaced. I took it to a tailor and she did a great job with it but ,surprisingly, I also got the jacket back with an inch tear on the neck. It is not a visible area and I am so annoyed with what happened that I am considering to attempt the repair myself. I have no clue of sewing so I would like to get clear and detailed instructions on how to do it if possible. I understand I need to open the lining, sew, glue a leather patch (after sewing, right?) and sew again the lining.
The skin is very thin so, shall I use a normal needle? Are there needles any thinner? What kind of thread? Also, there is a wool filling between skin an lining, if I open this, I will need to sew it back to the leather? Same needle and thread?
This is a job too difficult, right? Does anyone know a good furrier in London?

Thanks in advance for your help,
Marina

By: DivaSharon(Sharon Maxwell-Yamamoto)

DivaSharon(Sharon Maxwell-Yamamoto) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 22:57:31 +0000

I should also mention that I also do not recommend using baby powder on fur…furriers use sawdust soaked in dry cleaning solvent, work it into the fur, then gently vacuum it out. They then use special oils on the skin side to restore suppleness and iron it. This is not something I would try myself. Sewing, yes, cleaning, no.

By: DivaSharon(Sharon Maxwell-Yamamoto)

DivaSharon(Sharon Maxwell-Yamamoto) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 22:48:05 +0000

Just be sure if you vacuum to be careful because if it’s too strong, you will suck up the skins into the hose and possibly tear it. I think mouton is stronger, but I would never do this to something like fox or sable.

By: Traci

Traci — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 22:02:10 +0000

I also had forgotten to mention – I have two old moutons I am preparing to turn into a poncho. Both are filthy – I did a search on the internet on how to clean them and I found a similar response to what you actually did!!

It seems that you can dust the pelts with cornstarch – let it sit a few hours, then shake it lose, wipe with a damp cloth, air dry, and then vacuum.

I haven’t had time to do this yet – but I’ll post when I do.
Granted, mouton is dense and not shiny the way mink, beaver or muskrat is – but if it lifts the dirt that would be amazing!!

By: DivaSharon(Sharon Maxwell-Yamamoto)

DivaSharon(Sharon Maxwell-Yamamoto) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 21:47:34 +0000

Alba, LOVE the description of what you did! That’s the spirit, don’t be afraid to experiment and take a chance and use your common sense! You did great!!!

By: DivaSharon(Sharon Maxwell-Yamamoto)

DivaSharon(Sharon Maxwell-Yamamoto) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 21:44:48 +0000

I agree with Traci!

By: Traci

Traci — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 21:38:12 +0000

I wear mine everywhere!! I wear one to take and pick my child up from his bustop, another to do general shopping in, yet another to go to Church in, and on and on.

I figure, What good are they, cheap or expensive, unless I wear them??

Sometimes people glare at me, most often they ask if they can touch whatever I’m wearing.

I’d wear it and enjoy!!