Randomly amassed, this collection provides a variety of information regarding fur.

* Selected Fur Manufacturing and Fur Care Terms:

- Drumming refers to a process used for cleaning furs by abrasion. Fur garments are tumbled in a drum together with sawdust soaked in a special solution. The sawdust absorbs dirt and oil and the abrasive action fluffs the fur. Once a year if you use your fur and it need cleaning you should take it to a professional cleaner. Cleaning of Fur Coats

- Flat Furs are furs that have only one type of hair or fur like Seal and Persian Lamb, for example.

- Shearing has a dual purpose: this fur-trimming technique reduces bulk and weight, and enhance the fur pile with designs and patterns. You can use shearing to create a new light weight, smoother garment from an older long-haired coat.

- Grooving is a kind of shearing technique that produces a stripe pattern. The design resembles corduroy with stripes and grooves of various widths and depths. Cording is another way to say grooving.

- Another name for natural lamb fur is shearling. The leather half is typically sueded and worn on the exterior with the fur side turned inward for warmth. The suede leather may be dyed and advanced tanning methods mean that a Shearling coat or jacket is much lighter-weight than it once was.

- Knitted Fur is made of fur yarn. This knittable yarn is manufactured by combining narrow strips of fur with silk or cotton yarn. A plethora of things can be created from crocheting or weaving fur yarn. Surprisingly enough there are some knitted fur products that can actually be washed in the washing machine.

* Fur Facts – Sheared fur is just as warm when worn as unsheared versions. Fur typically consists of two main layers; the underfur or Ground hair -bottom layer-, closest to the skin, made of shorter and denser wool hairs and the Guard hair -top layer made of longer straighter hairs-. Shearing just cuts some of the Guard hair, however the insulating Ground hair accounts for the fur’s warm thickness. The guard hairs include the majority of the fur’s coloration and imbue the assorted furs with their unique traits. Some furs also have a middle layer of hair called Awn hair. Faux Fur Coats

- Long hair furs are not warmer than short hair furs. The warmth of fur is determined by Ground hair.

- Female mink furs are typically lighter in weight, softer, silkier, shinier and more pliable than male mink furs. Female mink is usually used in the styles which have soft tailoring and draping. Male mink is something that is used for different and decreased supple styling. Nonetheless, mink goods that are made from males are not unavoidably cheaper than mink goods made from females.

- The best and most exquisite fur products do not contain any leather. When more leather is used to place the strips of fur together, the value of the garment goes down much more.

* Recent Market Trends in the Fur Industry – The Fur industry no longer experiences the damages of the 1980s through the early 1990s, due to different factors in the economy and a weakened anti-fur campaign. There has been a fast recovery within the fur industry. Antique Fur Coats

An unprecedented increase in demand for fur products by the growing middle class, or nouveaux riches, these are the main factors that have contributed to the renewed growth of the industry. In China and Russia the decline of the Russian fur industry which used to generate about 15% of the USSR’s annual revenue and the western fashion industry’s rediscovery of fur garments.

- The Russian manufactured fur industry today produces 7 times fewer furs than in the 1980’s. With no state support, Russia is now at the bottom of the list of international fur-manufacturers, trailing behind North American and European manufacturers. Russia’s share in fur production worldwide has dropped from the 35% provided by Soviet Russian breeders in the late 1980s to no more than 3 – 4 %. The drastic drop in domestic production coupled with the skyrocketing domestic demand for quality fur products means that Russia today imports about 30% of world-marketed furs.

- China has been purchasing large amounts of wild pelts from North America, after which they turn them into garments and then ship them back to North America and Russia, making China one of the largest importers of furs. Large-scale production in fur farms in China, which receive state support, adversely impact the Russian fur industry. When the Soviet Union collapsed many of the fur farms in Russia went down with it. The Russian fur manufacturers are not able to compete with the western players as they are not finding avenues to reduce their expenses.

- Due to the course of events in Georgia of late the already ailing fur trade in Russia may suffer further. Due to Russia’s intervention in Georgia, the economy suffered billions of dollars being withheld for commerce. The areas that were part of this incident are some of the biggest purchasers of fur worldwide.

- The top three cities where one can purchase fur garments are Dubai, Shanghai and Moscow.

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