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Chowlea Bears Apr 3, 2006

I bought a piece of mohair and the direction of the pile seems to vary on the piece.  When cutting out pattern pieces, is it best to -

a) always go with the direction of the pile regardless of the straight grain of the fabric?

b) always go with the straight grain of the fabric and try and correct the pile direction later?

If the answer is b) - what's the best way to do that please?

Thank you.

Sandra  :redface:

Dilu Apr 3, 2006

I would go with the straight grain, if you get off you will have stretching in areas you might not like.

Mohair finishes vary alot and can have the curls and such going everywhere.

One thing i do with my mohair when I get it is to toss it in the sink with warm water and hair conditioner.  Then I drain it well squeeze out the excess water and shake it to puff up the fur....then I usually hand it in the bathroom to dry, but you can toss itin the dryer too.

more often than not after this it is much easier to see which way the fur is flying.

BUT

even then it doesn't matter, you can spray the fur and tape it to dry the way you want!

Very forgiving, mohair is!

hugs

dilu

Daphne Apr 3, 2006

After working with Mohair for 6 years I've found that it's quickest and easiest to go with the direction of the nap/pile. But be very certain of the direction.... the direction the 'roots' (part closest to the backing) may be different than the direction of the ends.

If you are working with a tightly woven backing such as Schulte you won't have stretching to worry about. I've found that other brands of mohair aren't woven as tightly and thus I imagine stretching can be of concern.

If you are wanting to conserve material be aware that cutting at an angle on the fabric will 'waste' a bit more material but give you pieces with the nap going in the right direction without having to take time to wash and dry and brush and manipulate the mohair.

If the nap is going just slightly off from the grain of the backing I tend to cut my pieces with the grain except for the head... all the head pieces I cut with the nap, regardless of grain direction, to ensure that the bear doesn't look like he has a comb over or part at the gusset seams.

See.. there is no right or wrong way... just the way that you find best for YOU!!

Donna Apr 3, 2006

One of the workshops I took dealt with this issue.  We were taught to go with the nap.  We were also warned to watch that the nap doesn't change on you half way through the piece.  If you are dealing with a piece that has swirls in the design, go with the straight of the grain and just lay out the head according to the nap direction.  If you are dealing with a piece that has been manufactured incorrectly go with the nap.  Like Daphne says you will loose some fabric but save a lot of headache.  Years ago I found that lots of the tipped fabric was off.  It seems that it has improved over the years.  I had one piece of fabric that the nap went one direction on the left half of the fabric and the other direction on the right half.  That was fun!  Good luck and if it comes out weird just make it a punk bear!
Donna

rkr4cds Apr 4, 2006

We've toured the Schulte factory in Duisburg. All mohair is woven at a 90 degree angle betwqeen 2 pieces of cotton backing; further processing can swirl the nap but the 'roots' are all @ 90 degrees.

It's best to go with the straight grain of the backing. Biasing of cross-grained is what leads to stretching, especially where the sections next to it are straight grained.

The rolling of the fabric onto bolts is what causes the nap to go off-grain.

Hanging up the yardage before cutting, steaming the nap and re-directly it with combs, hands, etc... and allowqing it to dry in place completely will put it all back into place. Keep it hung afterwards rather than folding and laying it flat will preserve the nap direction.

A frustration or pet peve is seeing bear parts, like faces (or limbs, that should match nap in a same or opposing fashion) with the nap all swinging to the right or left. It's just as easy to steam and re-direct nap after it's sewn & stuffed.

Chowlea Bears Apr 4, 2006

Thank you all very much for the help - I'll see what I can do.

Sandra  :redface: