The dyeing of imitations is quite an artistic kind of work, and indeed fur dyeing ought to be classed among the finest of industrial arts. Some of the reproductions achieved by dyers on a commercial scale are truly admirable. The possibility of imitating the finer furs on cheaper skins naturally led to abuse, the dyed furs being passed off frequently on the unsuspecting and uninformed buyer as the genuine original. In fact, this practise became so flagrant that in England laws were enacted to remedy the evil. At the present time, dyed furs are all sold as such, although there always may be some unscrupulous merchants who seek to profit by deception. Some of the imitations and the names of the furs for which they were sold, are as follows:
Muskrat, dyed and plucked sold as seal Nutria, plucked and dyed sold as seal Nutria, plucked and natural sold as beaver Rabbit, sheared and dyed sold as seal or electric seal Otter, plucked and dyed sold as seal Marmot, dyed sold as mink or sable Fitch, dyed sold as sable Rabbit, dyed sold as sable Rabbit, dyed and sheared sold as beaver Muskrat, dyed sold as mink or sable Hare, dyed sold as sable, fox, or lynx Wallaby, dyed sold as skunk White rabbit, natural sold as ermine White rabbit, dyed sold as chinchilla White hare, dyed or natural sold as foxes, etc. Goat, dyed sold as bear, leopard, etc.
This list serves to indicate but a few of the great number of possibilities which are available for the fur dyer to produce imitations of the better classes of furs. Needless to say, these imitations cannot, as a general rule, equal the originals, because while the color is one of the most important features in judging the fur, the nature of the hair, gloss, waviness, thickness, and also the durability are essential considerations, and it is only in certain instances that skins used for imitations approach the originals in these respects. However, for the purposes and desires of the majority of people who wear furs, the imitations are deemed quite satisfactory, and they also have the advantage of being cheaper than the natural originals.
For whichever reason furs are dyed, there is no doubt that the art of fur dyeing is one of the most difficult kinds of application of dye materials. In the dyeing of the various textiles, either as skein or woven fabric, the material is of a uniform nature, and therefore the dye is absorbed evenly by the fibres. Moreover, textiles are dyed at, or near the boil, the dyestuff being more uniformly and permanently taken up from solution by the fibre at elevated temperatures.