I need help with a lion's mane!
 

I'm making a Lion quilt and I want to make a huge, textural mane for him. I'm thinking of 2 1/2 strips, folded in half, sew the fold to the backing and clip the ends to make it raggy. If I overlap the strips a bit, it should be a nice full mane.
That's the theory.
Would you:
A) cut straight strips & sew them on straight. The mane will be shaggy, so if it doesn't follow the curve of his head-no big deal
B) cut bias strips and sew them on in concentric circles with the shape of his head (the face going in the non-raggy middle of his head). Will the curve of the strips make a visual difference?
C) skip the strips and make a faux chenille?
D) can I use homespun to get a really loose mane? Will it disintegrate in the wash (baby quilt)?
E) something else???

What else do you need to know? I'm using cotton. Come on ladies-help me figure it out!

What about fleece strips & clip them to make it like a rag quilt after sewed to the lions head. The fleece will stretch when cut one way, but won't if cut the other way. I don't think you would want it to stretch. The longer the mane you want would determine how wide you cut your strips you sewed to the head. Do a test peace on a scrap of fabric to see if this would work for you.

Hmmmmm....maybe I'll just go all fleece on the next one. I'm not sure about a fleece mane on a cotton head-but that might just be the big shaggy mane effect I'm looking for. Getting off the computer now and going to try a bunch of different techniques on a sample piece.

My first thought was homespun. It rags so beautifully and is really soft. I would probably stitch it twice, the second stitch line a millimeter from the first for added stability since it is a looser weave. Don't forget to post a pic of the finished quilt, I'm anxious to see it!

If its a baby quilt...maybe fleece or do a circular kind of cut-out using minky to represent the mane???

I just sewed a zillion test strips. Straight of grain and bias for cotton and homespun, stretchy and non stretchy for fleece. And I did 2" and 2-1/2" of each of those.
Going to snip the edges to rag it and throw it in the wash. Stand by....more in the morning!

I've done this with RaggedyAnn dolls hair. (See my avatar)I cut 3-4 strips WOF, in different widths, like 1 1/2", 2", lay the strips on top of each other, then stitch down the middle, clip along the edges, almost to the stitching,spacing the clips from 1/4 to 1/2" apart. Then wash and dry the strips and they will ravel and give you the shaggy look. Then you can eithe hand or machine stitch it to the quilt. Hope this helps-

One problem solved: I need to sew the strips in concentric circles. Makes a HUGE difference in looking like a mane!

And we have a winner! Homespun cut on the straight of grain, 2-1/2 & 3" strips, folded in half, fold stitched to the mane area in concentric circles. It's a big area, and homespun is loose enough to curve. Straight stitch down, then a small zigzag over the top. It sheds like crazy the first few washes, but then it stops shedding and is so fuzzy!
I'll have time tomorrow to post a picture of the samples and tell you why you should never cut homespun on the bias!

Why not thick wool put on in a loop then cut to desired length. ?