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nimbleknot Jul 25, 2007

I am so scared to cut into this mohair. But I am so excited I can't stand it. I bought some ultra-sparse curly matted from Intercal.

Should I use any kind of Fray-check on the edges? It seems like I could most definitely pull away at the backing. And yes, I will be very careful not to cut the hair. I've been practicing on the corner to get closest to the backing.

Swan Valley Bears Jul 25, 2007

Hi there . . . can't wait to see the results of this new mohair.  I use Dritz Fray Check (it's only $1.64 at Walmart, $3 something elsewhere).  I fray check just inside the lines after I draw the pattern on the mohair, before I cut it out.

chrissibrinkley Jul 25, 2007

Don't be scared!!  

I fray check on smaller sized bears, where a little fray can be the end of the bear. (I double stitch on all sizes)  I'm careful to fray check really lightly around the muzzle...'cause that stuff can make the fabric stiff and with littler bears it matters a lot more.  Using a brush rather than right from the bottle makes it a lighter/more exact application in that area. I've done fray check before and after I've cut out pieces.  Both ways have worked fine. (edit: I use the same brand as Patty )

Good Luck and have FUN!!
:hug:
~Chrissi

nimbleknot Jul 25, 2007

I fray check just inside the lines after I draw the pattern on the mohair, before I cut it out.

Good tip, thanks and I will do that. I have Dritz and it's great. What do you use to draw with? I touched a bead of Dritz on ink and it bled.

StarHawk2003 Jul 25, 2007

I fray check just inside the lines after I draw the pattern on the mohair, before I cut it out.

Good tip, thanks and I will do that. I have Dritz and it's great. What do you use to draw with? I touched a bead of Dritz on ink and it bled.

Hi,

I use Gel pens. They don't bleed but of course check on a corner before you do draw on it. I have bright colours and blacks and whites. I used bright for darker coloured bears and Blacks for light coloured bears.

I fraycheck all my bears before I cut them out. I use 50% PVA to 50%water and I paint it on the peices, All over them and over the edges so I know it's Well protected. OF course As CHrissi States It depends on the size of your bear as turning can be hard with the stiffer the fabric.

Good luck,

WE all want to see when you are done.,

Richy~

FenBeary Folk Jul 25, 2007

Great tip on the fraycheck Patty :clap:

Now take a deep breath and go for it   and always remember if it goes wrong buy some more
Thats what I have thought and somehow it works, stops the stress :crackup:

Lisa Jul 25, 2007

Jennifer,
I can understand why you're scared because I was the same way.  I purchased my first mohair at a show in November and didn't cut into it until the next May.  My husband finally said, you paid all this money for this fabric, why aren't you using it.  So I got up my nerve and made my first mohair bear.  After I sewed with it and saw what the bear I had made looked like in mohair as compared to plush felt which is what I used for my prototype, let's just say I never looked back!

Yes, I use Dritz Fraycheck like Patty on backings that look like they may be loosely woven and around all clipped corners.

Can't wait to see your bear!!!

nimbleknot Jul 25, 2007

Haha! I am glad I am not the only chicken to make the first cut.

I did the Fray check test.

All of these colors ran...
Sharpie (all colors)
Ball point pens (black and blue)
#2 pencil

This did not run at all: Pigma Micron Archival Ink.

psichick78 Jul 25, 2007

wow, I never fray check my mohair before cutting. I only fray check the area's I will be ladder stitching. I find doing it the other way a waste of fray check and we all know making a bear can be expensive enough!

nimbleknot Jul 25, 2007

I want to come back and say I did another test. I noticed that the fray check caught some of the hairs and  bled through to the front. So I did a third test where I put the fray check NEXT to my drawn line and it worked better. So I think I will put some on both sides of my lines instead of directly ON my line.

Daphne Jul 25, 2007

You could also trace your pattern then cut just INSIDE your ink line  leaving little to no ink left on the edges of your cut out pieces. I don't use fray check very often.... depends on the kind of mohair I'm using... but when I do use it it's Dritz and I trace all my patterns with an ultra fine sharpie.... never had a problem with bleeding.

I made my very first bear of mohair so never had the 'fear' instilled in me. I only experience it when I'm cutting into mohair I know I can't get any more! I have a piece of long pile eggplant alpaca I'll never cut into because I can't get any more! Silly... I know!

Go for it!!! Have fun! You'll love working with it! :dance:

rkr4cds Jul 25, 2007

I touched a bead of Dritz on ink and it bled.

I noticed that the fray check caught some of the hairs and  bled through to the front.

think I will put some on both sides of my lines instead of directly ON my line.

fraycheck all my bears before I cut them out. I use 50% PVA to 50%water and I paint it on the peices, All over them and over the edges

Ah, all o the above are just some of the disadvantages of Fray Check: it bleeds into the rest of the backing, turns stiff and is more diffucult to control. And why do something twice when once works with half the effort??! Your experiences show more than if I'd pointed some of these things out in a post this early on in the topic.

I swear by Aleene's products - for sealing the cutting lines and avoiding fraying - both 'Stop Fraying' and 'OK To Wash It'. Both of these are 'white' fabric glues; Stop Fraying is just marginally thinner-bodied. I drew with ball point pen, pencil, Pilot's Precise Rolling Ball pen, gel pens (the 'neons' especially on Dark colors!) - whatever works for the backing, because these sealing glues do not change or affect the marked lines.

After drawing out the pattern templates, I used a 412 craft syringe, the one with the curved tip, and applied a very narrow bead right on top of the drawn/cutting lines. To eliminate the excess glue and to really drive it into the backing. I pressed the lines of glue with paper towels. Most of it was absorbed into the towel, but enough was left so that after drying, it was impossible to fray out the edges of the backings.

I've had pieces go through the washer & dryer in pockets and they had no changes to them.

The hardest part was waiting; the pieces should be TOTALLY dry before cutting out, so I had to remember to draw out patterns the night before. And I'm SUCH a patient person!!!

nimbleknot Jul 25, 2007

Thanks. I will get some Aleene's before the next bear. I used Dritz because I had it on hand. The bead was thin and quite consistent. I've used Dritz for quite sometime and it's never clogged. But I don't like the bleeding effect at all. I had to be very very careful not to touch my lines.

Another question...wondering if I should do double seams? My bear will be about 10 inches tall. I am going to hand stitch the initial seams and wondered if I could/should machine sew the second seam?

rkr4cds Jul 25, 2007

I should think that you could base your double seaming or not on the strength of the backing (looser 'weave' - yes,) the type of thread you use and how much stress is going to be impacting the seams from the hardness of your stuffing style. In this respect, which edge seaming materials you use wouldn't matter.

I must've missed you telling us you were machining the seams of a larger bear, Jennifer: Fray Check turns the fabric stiffer but that only affters the attempts to push a hand-sewing needle through it in the very small/mimi size, whee we don't actually put an actual measurable seam allowance in each piece

I forgot this other part I'd quoted from above: painting the whole back with liquid 'stabilizer' of any type. I think size would matter in this case. As I've made One & Only one of a standard-sized bear, I can't speak to those materials, but early on I thought to save myself a whole lot of time & trouble by coating the back of both a mohair and the synthetic w/guard hairs. It wasn't the seaming that presented difficulties but the fact that there was no longer any 'give' or biasing effect left in the fabric.
I was just advancing to the point of being able to impact the whole shape and character of a bear with judicious stuffing... and these pcs were like boards nailed together.
Never again...

nimbleknot Jul 26, 2007

It wasn't the seaming that presented difficulties but the fact that there was no longer any 'give' or biasing effect left in the fabric.

There is a give on the bias. Is that good or bad? I would think I would want that for face sculpting, no?

rkr4cds Jul 26, 2007

Well, that's what I get for multi-tasking TOO many things at once!
I should have continued to say that in a 3" size, there isn't a wjole lot of biasing when the backing has been coated with any permanent stiiffening agent.

'g nite folks. I'm off to teach in WI tomorrow and will be taking a 2-day NFing course on Sat & Sun with/from Sharon Costello. See you all next week.
And don't have too much fun w/o me!