Wombat costume - tips on sewing faux/fake fur

It was Book Week last week and Miss 5 had a dress-up day at school [as her favourite book character]. She decided [much to my dismay] that her favourite book was 'Diary of a Wombat'. So I had to make a wombat costume:

I found a pattern in an old Top Kids magazine that I thought would work, and jumped in.

I learnt a bit about fake/faux fur while doing this project which I thought I'd share with you in case you one day have to sew with this medium too. I have to admit I was nervous before I started.

THINGS I LEARNED ABOUT SEWING WITH FAKE FUR:

1. Expect the sewing room to look like you murdered a small furry animal in it.
2. Use a craft knife and cut single pieces from the back, then comb all fibres away from seam allowance prior to sewing, that way you won't cut the fur itself and not only is it tidier [see point 1] but you won't see your seam lines.
3. If you don't care about seeing the seams, use normal scissors - just make sure they're not your bestest most sharpest [or they won't be for long!].
4. Use a medium width zig zag for seams instead of straight stitches [it doesn't catch the fur as much].
5. The reverse side of fake fur can be a little scratchy. I lined this costume with satin so it felt lovely on.
6. Make the costume bigger than it needs to be so that all your children [even bigger ones] can try it on... they'll want to!
7. It's a very easy medium to work with - on this scale. Making something very small like a stuffed toy could prove more difficult.

I'll be using fake fur again, it was great fun to work with!