How the fleece is stitched together is the secret of “invisible” seams. You can, of course, treat antron fleece as any other fabric and machine stitch your pattern. You will be able to diminish the appearance of seams to a certain level due to the inherent properties of the fabric. However, for the best results, hand stitching is the way to go. We will describe two stitches that can be used in following posts. There are, of course a variety of stitches that could be used to obtain the same results. The stitches we will describe were chosen for their simplicity and effectiveness.

Keep in mind that both of these stitches should be very close to the edge of the fabric, but not so close that the edge will unravel; the stitches have to be fairly small; and the tension of the stitches has to be reasonably consistent.

The main objective in dying antron fleece (as with most dying projects) is to get even color. We use RIT dyes and have always had success with them. The following tips should help you achieve the desired results.

Hand dye the fleece. Most packages of dye include instructions on how to dye fabrics using a washing machine. As a general rule, we recommend not dying antron fleece according to these instructions. Dying the fleece by hand is the safest way to achieve quality results.

Use a large amount of water. Use a large amount of water compared with the fleece. We recommend using a large plastic storage container in which to dye a normal sized project. It is not necessary to use boiling water. Most folks can use their hottest tap water.

Soak the fleece. Before lowering the fleece into the dye bath, soak it with clean water. Try not to squeeze the water out. Place the fleece quickly into the dye.

Do not twist the fleece. Do not fold or twist the fleece. Just like a tie-dyed t-shirt, if the fleece is folded or twisted, the dye will not take in those areas. You will need to gently agitate the dye bath to ensure even coverage. Do not overwork the fleece, that is allowing it to rub against itself excessively in the dye bath, as this will also cause the fleece to pill. (Pilling is when a fabric becomes rough with or mats into little balls.)

Multiple dips aid in even coverage. Instead of a single “dip” with a strong color, make multiple dips in a more diluted bath of dye, darkening the fleece little by little until the desired color is achieved. More dye can be added to the bath at intervals as well to achieve the desired result. This method works especially well when dying darker colors.

Rinse the fleece. After the fleece has been dyed the desired color, remove it from the dye bath. Rinse under running water until the water squeezed from the fabric is clear. Lay the fleece flat to dry overnight.

Avoid pilling. Pilling may occur if the material is over-worked in the dye bath, or is machine dried. Drying antron fleece in a dryer will without exception cause the fleece to pill, partly from overheating and partly from being overworked. If your fleece has pilled, not all is lost. A solution for de-pilling your fleece will be discussed in a subsequent post.

Since Project Puppet is now accepting submissions for The Glorified Sock Puppet Contest, we thought this may be a good time to share some tips on working with antron fleece. First of all, what is antron fleece and why use it?

What is Antron Fleece?
Antron Fleece is a special fleece fabric used by many professional puppet builders as a “skin” for their finished puppets. In foam hand puppet construction, antron fleece is usually used to cover foam-fabricated shapes such as the puppet’s head or hands. Many Muppets™ and Sesame Street™ characters are constructed in foam with antron fleece coverings.

Why Use Antron Fleece?
Antron fleece is used mainly for its seam hiding capabilities. It’s fuzzy pile makes sewn seams virtually invisible. This adds to the illusion of life of the finished puppet. The audience is not constantly reminded of the construction of the character by highly visible seams, and thus is allowed to concentrate on the character’s personality, actions, and interactions with other puppets and the audience.

Another great quality of antron fleece is its ability to be dyed. Most fleece fabrics that you may find in your local fabric store are 100% polyester. These fabrics cannot be dyed easily. Antron fleece, however, can be easily dyed, even at home, to the color of your choice.

These exceptional qualities of antron fleece make it an invaluable tool for any puppet builder. We’ll consider some basic tips and techniques that will make working with antron fleece easy and effective.

King Bob is ready for costuming! We still need to permanently attach his features and add a few airbrush details, but other than that, he’s ready to rule!

We’ll post pictures (and hopefully video) of the complete King Bob in the very near future. In the meantime, we’ll introduce you to a few more characters created for the Big Magic Book.

It’s here! Project Puppet is proud to announce the release of the first pattern of our new Simple Series - The Glorified Sock Puppet Pattern!

This is really a cool little pattern and very easy to put together. But don’t let the simplicity fool you! A basic “sock” puppet has the ability to capture a tremendous range of emotion and can be a real challenge for the puppeteer’s skills.

Check out our example puppet in the gallery - Ned Needleman!

If you haven’t discovered Swazzle’s Puppet 101 Blog here’s your chance to put it in your list of favorites. Sean Johnson has put together one complete tutorial of the building of Ratchet, a cat character for one of Swazzle’s new puppet shows, B.A.R.K. The Robot Dog, and has started a great tutorial using store-bought foam balls to make talking pea puppets. Yes that’s right, talking peas. Check out the final product at Puppet Greetings.

We’ve been enjoying Sean’s posts, becoming huge fans of Swazzle’s work, and are sure you will too!