In order to obtain brilliant colors with superb translucence and luster you must dye your own seal fur. Bleached seal fur (from commercial sources) is a dull, dirty brown color and is full of sawdust, both which must be removed prior to dying if dull lifeless colors are to be avoided. It takes a lot of time and work to do this, but the results justify the effort.

One approach to preparing seal fur for dying involves the following six steps:

1. Removal of Most of the Sawdust. Shake the seal in a plastic bag to separate the fine sawdust from the fur. Pull the fur apart to allow most of the coarse sawdust to fall out.

2. Degreasing. Add a small quantity of water containing Veniard's Degreaser to the fur so as to form a wet mass - not a slurry. Knead the wet mass every several hours for two days. Rinse several times with warm water and air dry at roan temperature. Remove additional sawdust by repeatedly pulling the fur through your fingers.

3. Washing. Repeat step 2, but replace the De Greaser with Veniards Venpol.

4. Repeat Step 2.

5. Repeat Step 3.

6. Bleaching. Using a wet mass of fur, bleach with MAXI-BLAND or ULTRABLUE hair bleach. Knead every several hours for two days, rinse several times with warm water and air dry. Remove as much of the remaining sawdust as is possible prior to storing or dying. Follow the dye manufacturer's instructions when dying. Veniards dyes generally do a good job, but some exceptions must be noted. For claret use Veniards Dark Claret and not their Light Claret. For black use Natural Black, or Jet Black hair dye. For purple use Gentian Violet (from your Doctor), or, if you can find it, Analine Dye. After dying seal fur any color treat it with a good hair conditioner.