Hello all i am experimenting trying to bleach a wild rabbit skin before dyeing it a light yellow colour but needing some advice. I have it soaking in neat low strength cheap bleach it says less than 5 % on the bottle. It's been soaking about 4 hours the skin has turned very white but don't think anything is changing with the fur.How long do you have to leave it in the bleach solution & is bleach going to work or is more drastic action needed.I have read about people using a Clairol 2 hair lightnere & peroxide mixture to bleach materials.Any advice would be welcome. Cheers

I'm afraid you're not going to achieve anything noticeable with 5% bleach.

To bleach furs and hairs, eg squirel I use a product that I sourced from a hair dresser. It's not available over the counter to the general public, just through trade suppliers. (Makes you wonder if the products women apply to their heads offer some explanation of their character traits! )

Anyway, it's a two part product, liquid and blue powder that's mixed and applied with something like and old toothbrush and worked into the material, then left for a while to do its stuff. How long, trial and error - too long and you'll 'burn' the hair or fur.

Obviously, before you start the pelt or tail needs to be absolutely clean and degreased.

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Beware of peroxide - I believe it can be explosive under certain circumstances. I read about using some stuff called "Born Blonde" which was being used to bleach pheasant and squirrel tails before dying to get a solid colour so that might work.

Bobp,

Lighthouse is right that the best stuff is Hair bleach, sometimes called lightener or pre-lightener it is easily available at chemists Boots or Superdrug etc in the Hair colourants isle. Just buy the own brand stuff it's as good as any (I use superdrug) or there might be some special offers.


There will be a powder and a liquid mix them together (could be blue or white) brush onto the pelt working well in and leave to change colour. I tend to wrap it in cling film. The timing can vary so keep an eye on it.

Hope this helps

Cheers look's like a trip to Superdrug i going in to buy one of these anyway. Buy Stainless Steel Chip Pan. at Argos.co.uk - Your Online Shop for .

Excellent point .... whatever you do don't use your dearly beloved's best kitchenware for bleaching and dying - a recipe for accrimony! Cover surfaces too, dyes stain really well ... it's what they're designed to do!

__________________
[I]"I still don't know why I fish or why other men fish, except that we like it and it makes us think and feel."[/I] Roderick L Haig-Brown

[url]www.wildfly.net[/url]

[url]http://www.gameanglinginstructors.co.uk/[/url]