When I was a Uni I didn’t have the money or knowledge to be fashionable or stylish, but I did make the attempt. I had a terribly daggy, boxy coat that was 3 sizes too big from school (I think my Mum bought it with the idea that my brother could grow into it). I hacked into it, taking it in at the sides, adding darts through the back and taking up the sleeves and it the end it still looked crap, but better. The last thing I did was buy some black and white fake fur from Lincraft in the city and sewed it on over the collar. I was reasonably happy with how it looked.
One cold day I was shopping in the city with P. We’d just come out of a bookstore (as we do) and suddenly I was verbally assaulted by a man (who was at least 30 to my 20) calling me disgusting and saying “how dare you” and telling me that wearing fur was a filthy practice. I looked at him with incredulity and managed to stammer out (as you do when verbally assaulted by a complete stranger) “It’s faux!”
He huffed and puffed a bit more and then walked away and I was left wondering what the hell he was thinking. Here I was, a poor Uni student in my hacked jacket; how did he think I could afford fur (even if I wanted to wear it) and if I could afford it, surely it wouldn’t be on such a badly cut jacket. It was weird.
What do you think of wearing faux fur or even real fur? Are you for or against?
I am not a vegetarian and I wear leather. I don’t have a problem with fur/leather if the rest of the animal is not wasted and is used for food production. Fur from animals bred only for fun is a no-no. Astrakan (the wool from lamb foetuses) is vile.
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10 chic comments:
Hi there,
Neat blog and thanks for stopping by mine.
Well,I am divided about this.I dont approve of the in humane ways people kill animals.But if we can eat meat then we can wear fur,right !Hope Peta is not watching your blog...
I dont wear fur and can afford only the faux ones.Reminded me of a great 99 cent faux fur coat I bought...Maybe a winter post!
I am also divided. If the fur was acquired by some other method other than trapping... Oh, this is a tough one. Particularly with vintage furs. As for faux fur incidents, I very nearly had one myself a few years ago, but I ducked away quietly before the drunken wench had a chance to pounce. I quite like faux fur -- all the glamour, zero guilt.
Hmm...
Well, obviously back when furry animals were plentiful & it was all about taming the wild, etc. etc., & fur coats weren't mass produced in factories, where animals were bred & killed for that very purpose... Compare Inuits, who used fur to survive in the Arctic, to senseless superfluous usage of animal fur.
For modern times, I don't *approve* of it. But obviously you can't expect fashion & our society to just cut off from "fur fashions" at ALL, cold turkey...that's why faux fur is so ingenious & popular. If anyone MUST wear fur, why NOT go faux? It also comes in millions of fun colours [purple leopard spots!] & designs...& costs less!!
Agree with gina: "all the glamour, zero guilt"!!
{a}--I don't mean to sound as picky as I'm going to sound, but fur production in industrialized society has never been about "taming the wild"...or maybe I'm thinking too much of the US. The fur trade was a big piece of French colonialism in North America, for example, and the aggressive "harvesting" of wild fur species for the emerging US and existing European markets drove many populations to near extinction even before the 20th century began. That's partly why furriers were always looking for new animals--rabbits, nutria, etc.
I don't care for new fur, and I've even pretty much stopped wearing my lovely fifties fur-collared coats because if vintage fur collars are fashionable then there will be new ones made because the vintage supply is limited. (Since I'm such an incredible fashion trend-setter, of course...)
In theory, this should make me stop wearing leather, too, though...and I just can't bear synthetic shoes when I have the cash for better ones.
Deep down, I don't really believe that people ought to kill animals when reasonably easy alternatives exist. This doesn't keep me from eating dim sum occasionally, but mostly I try to stay vegetarian.
I was given the softest beaver poncho last Christmas and have enjoyed wearing it so very much. I sympathize with people's moral qualms about fur but I will happily continue to wear it. I also support the idea of treating animals raised for their fur as humanely as possible, just as I do for animals raised for their meat or their hides. I find it offensive that people like the man who shouted at you will verbally assault those who *seem* not to share their beliefs.
Love your blog, by the way!
Unfortunately this just re-inforces how thick most men are, most women would be able to tell from 100 paces that it was a fake. But let me ask, how many polyester monsters did it take to make said collar?
Frasypoo, 99 cent! Wow great bargin.
Gina, I know I would never buy a real fur, but you're right. I'm not sure where I stand on vintage.
[A}, I agree that indigenous populations should still have a right to produce and use fur in their own lifestyles.
Frowner, If you are vegetarian I can respect that, but it's not a choice I would make (I like me meat too much ^_^)
TOE Valet, I think as long as you know your own mind and have though about the choices you make that’s fine. If you love your poncho, go you!
Dean, I promise that all polyester monsters were carefully shaved and then fleeced in to weavings knitted from the acrylic sheep ^_^. All shaved polyester monsters were re-employed as gym wear.
I guess my thing is, if you're already eating the animal, I think you should be able to use the skin as well, as long as we aren't wasting anything. I'm happy with leather, fur from animals that are already being eaten (like kangaroo, rabbit and lambs wool). I don’t agree with animals that are farmed only for their skin and I don’t agree with hunting animals only for their skin. I understand that people may disagree with me, but if we all though the same way, wouldn’t life be boring.
P.S. This is a good link for condensed info on the subject:
http://www.charityguide.org/volunteer/fewhours/real-fur.htm
[A}, I like the idea of using old furs as bedding for orphaned animals. Cool!
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