| This picture is a good example Showing Wear! Note the missing guard hairs (Fine hairs) near the closure hooks. It also shows how the under fur has become matted. Condition: Well Worn! |
This picture shows how the same area should look on a lightly worn mink fur coat in Excellent Condition! There are no missing guard hairs and no signs of matted under fur! |
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Below we look at the collar in detail and you can see similar wear as in the picture above!
Although this may not be seen as easily if the person wearing it has long hair, there may be times when you will have to hand your fur over to a cloakroom assistant! |
Below is a wonderful picture showing in detail "Absolutely No Wear"
This is what we call "Excellent Condition" |
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| The cuffs are another area to pay close attention to. In this picture you can see there are no guard hairs left on the edges and the under fur has become matted. |
In contrast, this picture below clearly shows a perfect cuff on the sleeves.
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Now look at the back.
In this picture it is easy to see Zig Zag patterns!
These are where the pelts have been machined together and over time have loosened a little. Although they are visible, they should not fall apart? It is often a sign of poor craftsmanship! |
Below is a picture of a high quality Canadian Mink fur coat.
Even on very close inspection you would struggle to find where the pelts have been joined!
This is a simple Quality Check! |
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The picture below is me being very fussy! It shows a typical furriers ring used for closing the coat on the front and at 10mm, it is very small. This type of wear is very hard to avoid and as long as the rest of the fur is the same as the pictures on the right, the fur can still be classed as Excellent Condition.
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In the the picture below, you can only just make out where the ring is! This coat has only been closed a few times closed!
It is very rare to find a fur coat or jacket with no guard hair wear around these rings! |
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Furriers hooks - clasps on the front to close the coat always wear! This picture shows a very tiny loss of guard hair which can not be avoided.
As the wear in this picture is so small and does not affect the guard hairs on either side. This can still be classed as "Excellent Condition" |
The last visual check is to the hem!
If the hem still has all those tiny guard hairs around it as shown below: It's another tick in the "Excellent Condition" Box! |
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Above we have only covered the visual signs of wear to determine condition and now have to do a little more checking!
One the most important things to check can be done with your nose! Does the fur have any unpleasant odors, musty smells or those dreaded moth balls? Many older furs over 20 years will have a slight musty odor, but if it smells more like a wet dog or is very strong, then it is a bad sign the fur is basically rotting! The only place for it, is the tip!
Finally inspect the fur for any damage. Rips can be hard to see sometimes and check stiffness (It should not feel like dried wash leather!) It should still be supple. Cracking is very similar to rips and look for bald spots or guard hair loss - matting to the elbows and bum area!
Lastly, look at the coat from a distance of about 10 feet away. It is easier to see wear in the seating area!
We inspect meticulously all our own furs listed under our User ID: "TheFurCoatShop"
You
can see all our hand picked furs be clicking on this link: TheFurCoatShop |
