Faux fur fabric – four materials from our shop compared

You have a coat, a jacket or just a collar in mind, and the four swatches on screen look almost interchangeable. What separates a classic faux fur fabric from a short or brushed coating knit is weight, roll width and the way each one behaves once the scissors come out. See which of the four suits the piece you have in mind!

Four materials – the essentials:

• Two weight groups: the classic furs sit at 540 and 550 GSM, the alpaca-style knits at 400 and 420 GSM.
• Roll width: 185 cm instead of 155 cm means fewer joins across large pieces.
• Composition comes from the card: three swatches are 100% polyester, the fourth blends nylon with polyester.
• We sell faux fur fabric by the metre: every roll carries its own card with weight, width and composition.

Which types of faux fur are we comparing?

Two black furs with dense, plush pile stand next to two knits with a short or brushed surface, sold here as alpaca-style fabrics. Each of them is a fur fabric meant for outerwear, and three of the four are fluffy polyester fabrics, while the fourth pairs nylon with polyester.

One click into faux fur fabrics brings up the deep-pile rolls and the short-faced ones together, and the figures that separate them sit on each card, ready to check before you count your pattern pieces.

Faux fur and alpaca-style fabrics – four materials side by side

The split follows weight and surface: two rolls carry 540 and 550 GSM with dense, plush pile, the other two sit at 400 and 420 GSM with a short or brushed face. A brushed coating fabric of that second kind reads far closer to an ordinary coating knit.

Four rolls side by side – figures taken from the product cards:

Material	Composition	Weight	Width	Surface (card wording)	Uses listed on the card
Wide faux fur	100% polyester	550 GSM	185 cm	“dense, plush pile”	coats, jackets, decorative trims
Narrower faux fur	100% polyester	540 GSM	155 cm	“dense, plush pile”	coats, jackets, decorative trims
Polyester micro alpaca	100% polyester	400 GSM	150 cm	“short, plush surface”	coats, casual outerwear
Nylon-polyester alpaca-style fabric	65% nylon, 35% polyester	420 GSM	155 cm	“brushed, shaggy, plush”	jumpers, coats, jackets

Wide faux fur

This is the heaviest fabric of the four: 550 GSM across 185 cm, made of 100% polyester. The card describes dense, plush pile and points the material towards coats, jackets and decorative trims. Those extra thirty centimetres count on large pieces, where wide black faux fur can usually take a full back without an added seam.

Narrower faux fur

The wording on this card matches the wider version exactly: the same plush surface and the same 100% polyester. The figures differ – 540 GSM and 155 cm, ten grams per square metre lighter, on a roll thirty centimetres narrower. For collars, hoods and shorter jackets, black faux fur in this width is ample.

Polyester micro alpaca

400 GSM, 150 cm and 100% polyester – the card mentions a short, plush surface and recommends coats and casual outerwear. A short face means less pile to coax out of the seam, and the finished garment looks closer to a standard coat. Polyester micro alpaca earns its place when you want softness without bulk.

Nylon-polyester alpaca-style fabric

This is the only blended roll of the group: 65% nylon and 35% polyester, at 420 GSM and 155 cm wide. The card calls the surface brushed, shaggy and plush, and lists jumpers alongside coats and jackets, which makes nylon-polyester alpaca-style fabric the flexible option when one length serves an outer layer and a heavier knit.

How do you match pile length and texture to a project?

The pile is described in words rather than figures, so the comparison runs through that wording and what it means at the machine. Dense, plush pile buries itself in the seam and has to be teased back out, while a short or brushed face behaves far more predictably.

On a full garment, long pile works in your favour: it fills out the silhouette and delivers the effect people come to fur for. On a collar or a cuff, that same volume swamps the piece and makes a clean edge harder to reach. The smaller the piece, the more often a shorter surface serves it better.

The second clue is the number of seams. A design with many panels and darts loses its lines inside deep pile, because the shapes disappear under the surface. The heaviest of the four comes into its own in a plain shape, and where a design lives off detail, a shorter face is the easier one to handle.

Which faux fur suits a coat, a jacket or a trim?

The listed uses point the way themselves: both black furs and the nylon-polyester knit list coats and jackets, the micro alpaca covers coats and casual outerwear, and decorative trims appear only in the fur descriptions. Black faux fur handles a whole garment and a detail alike. Faux fur for coats is chosen on roll width, because the large pattern pieces decide the outcome there, while faux fur for jackets is chosen on the weight of the finished garment.

How that plays out on real projects:

• A coat with large pieces – 185 cm gives you a chance at a full back and front without joins, while 150-155 cm calls for an extra seam.
• Collars, hoods and cuffs – small pieces come out of leftovers, and a shorter surface makes the edge easier to finish.
• A jumper or heavier knit – of the four cards, only the nylon-polyester one points that way.

How do you cut faux fur?

You settle the pile direction before the first cut, because a pile fabric runs one way and every pattern piece has to follow it. Your hand will tell you faster than your eye: one way the surface lies smooth, and that direction usually runs downwards on the finished garment, while pieces laid the other way read as a different shade.

From roll to cut pieces:

1. Mark the pile direction with an arrow on the back of the fabric, before anything is laid out.
2. The pattern goes on a single layer, every piece facing the same way; that layout needs extra length.
3. Trace the pieces from the back, with tailor’s chalk on the backing.
4. Cut the backing only, using the tips of your scissors, without slicing through the pile.
5. Comb out the edges and shake off loose fibres before any sewing starts.

How do you sew faux fur?

A walking foot changes more than anything else at the machine, because it feeds both layers evenly and stops the top one sliding across the pile. A longer stitch than you would use on a plain knit keeps the seam from waving. A knitted backing can stretch as well, so long seams gain from a strip of stay tape.

Before you join the pieces, push the pile inwards and out of the seam with an awl or a needle – left where it is, it gets caught in the stitching and has to be teased out afterwards. Tension and stitch length you set beforehand, on a scrap of the same roll. The rest comes down to the shape: the fewer darts and panels, the fewer places where deep pile builds up under the foot.

How do you care for fur fabric?

Washing is a question for the label that comes with your fake fur material. Composition, weight and use are what the product description covers. A hot iron on polyester pile risks crushing the surface for good – polyester is thermoplastic. Day to day, airing and a comb through the pile in the direction it lies are enough.

Faux fur – the differences that matter

Two axes genuinely change the finished piece: the character of the surface and the width of the roll. Dense pile builds volume and sits best on large shapes, while a short face travels more easily through a design full of seams. Width answers a separate question: 185 cm can save you a seam across the back of a coat.

Hold those two axes against your own pattern and the choice usually settles itself before you order. A last look at the card pays off too, because the figures that live there are the ones you turn into seams and metres.

Frequently asked questions about faux fur fabric

How much faux fur do you need for a coat?

There is no single figure: the amount follows your pattern, your size and the roll width, and a one-directional layout adds length on top of what the envelope suggests.

How do you cut faux fur without damaging the pile?

You cut from the back with the tips of your scissors, through the backing alone, whereas a rotary cutter slices straight through the pile far more easily.

What needle should you use for fur fabric?

Reach for a universal or ballpoint needle in size 90/14 to 100/16, moving up to 110/18 on the densest roll, and confirm the choice with a test seam on an offcut.

Can faux fur be washed?

The label on your roll gives the washing instructions, because the cards say nothing about it. If the label leaves you unsure, test on an offcut and keep any wash short, cool and spin-free.

How does faux fur differ from alpaca-style fabric?

The difference shows in the finished shape: a classic fur holds its volume, so plain cuts come out fuller. Alpaca-style fabric forgives more at the machine, especially on sleeves and smaller pieces.