I LOVE fur so much (odd since I don't like taxidermy). I remember as a kid taking naps in my grandma's mink coat. I wanted to turn it into a throw or pillow after she passed away but my parents had it carted off to goodwill. I suppose vintage fur is animal friendly!
I purr for fur. As you know, I worship the floor my leopard walks on. I have two fur coats, one a leopard jacket and one a coyote long one with a hood. They are fun and warm and faux. I won't make the mistake of wearing my faux to the grocery co-op any more. I keep getting the PETA looks. A woman actually looked menacing at me and said, "How could you?" I replied, "If you want to throw paint at me, be sure it's faux because the fur is."
I don't mind, but I've hinted waterfowl. We had a guest wear baby mink to New Year's Eve. Unbelievable, light, soft. But she begged me not to mention it to anyone.
what do you do? on principle, no, absolutely not, i am against it. however, i still want to honor an animal that has gone before -- what do you do with your grandmother's chinchilla coat or a little mink hat. keep it in the closet? give it away? or find reuse for it (like arch. design suggested... pillows) and not let the pelt go to waste?
oh, i love fur. I'm a vegetarian and a huge animal lover, but I have three fur coats and I just picked up a little mink hat the other day. It's so warm... and I only ever buy it used at thrift stores...I'm trying to come up with some sort of rationalization of why it's okay to wear, but it comes down to the fact that i LOVE it and it's really really warm.
soodie -- if you want to get rid of fur coats in a helpful way, the Humane Society has a program that recycles them into bedding for orphaned animals: http://www.coatsforcubs.org
It can be a conundrum. I have a couple of old coats, a reworked mink muffler from a stole, other fur mufflers. I do wear them. It is not something I would get on a soap box for-saving that for decorating feuds!
Townhouse-that is a wonderful link! What a great idea. My Zetta has inherited 2 Pierre Frey faux fur throws from the Sainted Moses. (yes she is somewhat of a name dropper that one!) She absolutely LOVES them one in her chair and the other on her (my) bed.
Rosie-those old movies will make you do some crazy things. That is a good one. If for nothing else I will watch Camelot just to see Richard Harris and Vanessa Redgrave in their furs. I love Your traversing the village in the snow post today! Hilarious.
i have to admit, I have a raccoon fur hat that was my mother's in the 70s. super 70s hat it is and it is awfully warm especially in this snowy -20 degree wind chill weather we're having. my dog's reaction to the hat is not to snuggle, but the little terrier he is, he likes to yank it off a chair and run like a bat outta hell with it, shaking it violently.
lastly, not to upset anyone, but isn’t there that leather from unborn calf fetuses called splunk, slunk, something. I worked for a mean, loud, unnecessarily dramatic decorator once who swore the feel of it was heavenly. something about using skin from the unborn is just so, so wrong.
Soodie! That may be a terrier, my Zetta is not allowed near anything but the faux, she is a determined little gal. God, No never to the unborn-are you sure that wasn't Cruella DeVille? G
As far as I'm concerned, the greatest accomplishment in the life of a mink or a beaver is to find its pelt worn on the back of a lovely woman. I am very opposed to using the skins of endangered animals for such purpose, but so long as the animal is farmed or in plentiful supply I see no reason not to either eat, or wear its leather or fur. It's hard to make a convincing argument otherwise, unless such an advocate eschews the eating of meat or wearing of leather entirely. I am very fond of my shearling jacket, and also my fur hats.
I absolutely love real fur though I only wear it when the weather outside is frightful. I wear it for the warmth not the fashion, but that's not to say I forbid myself from buying 'new/fashionable' coats. Winters here are harsh with temperatures often dropping to the single digits in the morning and evening hours (when I'm outside getting ready for my commute) with windchill in the negative. While I'm not opposed to faux, my experience (15+ yrs) has been that synthetics or faux fur simply isn't as warm. I'm hard pressed to believe anyone who claims otherwise. My guess is that they probably have never lived in conditions cold enough to notice the obvious difference between wearing faux vs real. Wind cuts straight through faux fur.
My boyfriend was weary our first winter together when I pulled out my furs from storage. He commented kindly that fur was not exactly 'socially accepted' nowadays. I just shrugged my shoulders - to each their own. He quickly lost his apprehension after our first outing. I've honestly have never received anything but compliments and inquiries on where I buy my coats (along with a few 'i'm so sick of PETA' remarks along the way). Most people, men and women, have even come up to me just to ask if they could touch the fur. I'm sure there are people who are outraged by my love of staying warm in animal pelts but apparently they are not nearly as vocal as I'm led to believe they have been in the past. I have yet to run into any negative nay Sayers and even if I did, it wouldn't change my ways.
How disenchanting it is to read some of the comments in regards to the wearing of fur these days. I presume that the statements were made by fairly young people who should know better than to wear another being's skin for fashion.
I wonder: do these people have pets? Cats & dogs? would they consider wearing their fur? Really, there's no difference - a skin is a skin. May I also remind your readers that in Nazi Germany, lampshades & other things were made from human victims' skins - would your readers consider that too far-fetched?? After all, skin is skin. Who can judge? Where is the line drawn?
My stand on the issue of fur is clear: it's barbaric & cruel. I, for one, am proud to wear cloth coats. In this day & age, fur is unnecessary - it belongs in the past, the distant past; it belongs on cavemen & cavewomen & not on modern day people who ought to know better and whose tastes/thoughts should've advanced beyond the Neolithic era.
Anon, October 19th- I understand you feelings and passion for this issue. I have to look at this like I look at most things (Though my own personal convictions-I am adamant)on a different level-I think women should be allowed to have abortions- abhorrent to so many people.
That said- People should have the freedom to Dress in whatever they want. Most of these identified readers are- I might say- Mature, Thoughtful people and have firm passionate convictions about most any topic that requires opinion.
People eat animals, wear them on our feet. It is as I say a personal choice- I have a number or faux things and some vintage fur. Again your comments and passion are appreciated. pgt
I can well appreciate your comments and stance on the freedoms we all have & I respect your opinion - after all, it comes down to choice, doesn't it? - for yourself, for your readers, and for myself. And yes, people have been wearing skins for millennia out of necessity as well as for ceremonial purposes. My main objection are the farming methods and wholesale slaughter of animals, often kept in the most heinous conditions. Simply put, can we, with a clear, civil & humane conscience as well as with full knowledge of how skins are culled, don an animal's skin on our back? That's the question. Once one's eyes are open to the truth, one's actions become liable and ethics come into play.
Just for the record, although I myself may not agree with abortion personally, I do believe in choice for those who need it or want it. I also believe that under special circumstances, abortion is permissible and even needed. I fully support a woman's choice - always have & always will. A woman should certainly be the sole master of her own body. But since we're on the subject, do sheep who's bellies are cut open to retrieve their unborn foetuses' skins[known as 'karakul' or 'Persian' lamb's fur] for the sake of fashion - and how many foetuses are needed to make a swing coat, I wonder - have that same choice?
Conversely, fur is needed in special circumstances as well, I agree - e.g., if one lived in the far reaches of the Arctic. But let's keep in mind that the Innuit and other First Nations peoples use every part of an animal, not just the skin [for frivolous fashion/status statements] and the animal is killed with prayers of forgiveness & appreciation to its spirit. Such issues, whether they be fur-wearing or abortion, are ethical ones - and one which we each must make a choice when faced with the options.
Yours sincerely & with appreciation, Anonymous - October 19th.
I LOVE fur so much (odd since I don't like taxidermy). I remember as a kid taking naps in my grandma's mink coat. I wanted to turn it into a throw or pillow after she passed away but my parents had it carted off to goodwill.
ReplyDeleteI suppose vintage fur is animal friendly!
I purr for fur. As you know, I worship the floor my leopard walks on. I have two fur coats, one a leopard jacket and one a coyote long one with a hood. They are fun and warm and faux. I won't make the mistake of wearing my faux to the grocery co-op any more. I keep getting the PETA looks. A woman actually looked menacing at me and said, "How could you?" I replied, "If you want to throw paint at me, be sure it's faux because the fur is."
ReplyDeleteI don't mind, but I've hinted waterfowl. We had a guest wear baby mink to New Year's Eve. Unbelievable, light, soft. But she begged me not to mention it to anyone.
ReplyDeletewhat do you do? on principle, no, absolutely not, i am against it. however, i still want to honor an animal that has gone before -- what do you do with your grandmother's chinchilla coat or a little mink hat. keep it in the closet? give it away? or find reuse for it (like arch. design suggested... pillows) and not let the pelt go to waste?
ReplyDeleteI wanted to sell up all my possessions to have a Russian sable throw for my double bed instead. Needless to say..
ReplyDeleteI think I got the idea from the film Lion in Winter with Katharine Hepburn as Eleanor of Aquitaine inhabiting a very chilly castle.
I love faux fur, and miss my '50's faux leopard coat desperately.
ReplyDeleteoh, i love fur. I'm a vegetarian and a huge animal lover, but I have three fur coats and I just picked up a little mink hat the other day. It's so warm... and I only ever buy it used at thrift stores...I'm trying to come up with some sort of rationalization of why it's okay to wear, but it comes down to the fact that i LOVE it and it's really really warm.
ReplyDeletesoodie -- if you want to get rid of fur coats in a helpful way, the Humane Society has a program that recycles them into bedding for orphaned animals: http://www.coatsforcubs.org
ReplyDeleteFur, no. Faux - yes. Vinyl/pvc - no. Leather - yes. I am a contradictory (and contrary) individual!
ReplyDeleteAnon.
It can be a conundrum. I have a couple of old coats, a reworked mink muffler from a stole, other fur mufflers. I do wear them. It is not something I would get on a soap box for-saving that for decorating feuds!
ReplyDeleteTownhouse-that is a wonderful link! What a great idea. My Zetta has inherited 2 Pierre Frey faux fur throws from the Sainted Moses. (yes she is somewhat of a name dropper that one!) She absolutely LOVES them one in her chair and the other on her (my) bed.
Rosie-those old movies will make you do some crazy things. That is a good one. If for nothing else I will watch Camelot just to see Richard Harris and Vanessa Redgrave in their furs. I love Your traversing the village in the snow post today! Hilarious.
ReplyDeletetownhouse, great idea. but... my naiveté here... why wouldn't that freak an orphaned animal out -- to snuggle up against a dead pelt? however, if it really does help, I would like to help. I clicked through the site. It was a little rough to read at times, (the part about dogs and cats).
ReplyDeletei have to admit, I have a raccoon fur hat that was my mother's in the 70s. super 70s hat it is and it is awfully warm especially in this snowy -20 degree wind chill weather we're having. my dog's reaction to the hat is not to snuggle, but the little terrier he is, he likes to yank it off a chair and run like a bat outta hell with it, shaking it violently.
lastly, not to upset anyone, but isn’t there that leather from unborn calf fetuses called splunk, slunk, something. I worked for a mean, loud, unnecessarily dramatic decorator once who swore the feel of it was heavenly. something about using skin from the unborn is just so, so wrong.
Soodie! That may be a terrier, my Zetta is not allowed near anything but the faux, she is a determined little gal. God, No never to the unborn-are you sure that wasn't Cruella DeVille? G
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't buy a new one, but I got a mink at an estate sale for $68! 1/2 price the last day! And is it ever warm on the playground.
ReplyDeleteAs far as I'm concerned, the greatest accomplishment in the life of a mink or a beaver is to find its pelt worn on the back of a lovely woman. I am very opposed to using the skins of endangered animals for such purpose, but so long as the animal is farmed or in plentiful supply I see no reason not to either eat, or wear its leather or fur. It's hard to make a convincing argument otherwise, unless such an advocate eschews the eating of meat or wearing of leather entirely. I am very fond of my shearling jacket, and also my fur hats.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love real fur though I only wear it when the weather outside is frightful. I wear it for the warmth not the fashion, but that's not to say I forbid myself from buying 'new/fashionable' coats. Winters here are harsh with temperatures often dropping to the single digits in the morning and evening hours (when I'm outside getting ready for my commute) with windchill in the negative. While I'm not opposed to faux, my experience (15+ yrs) has been that synthetics or faux fur simply isn't as warm. I'm hard pressed to believe anyone who claims otherwise. My guess is that they probably have never lived in conditions cold enough to notice the obvious difference between wearing faux vs real. Wind cuts straight through faux fur.
ReplyDeleteMy boyfriend was weary our first winter together when I pulled out my furs from storage. He commented kindly that fur was not exactly 'socially accepted' nowadays. I just shrugged my shoulders - to each their own. He quickly lost his apprehension after our first outing. I've honestly have never received anything but compliments and inquiries on where I buy my coats (along with a few 'i'm so sick of PETA' remarks along the way). Most people, men and women, have even come up to me just to ask if they could touch the fur. I'm sure there are people who are outraged by my love of staying warm in animal pelts but apparently they are not nearly as vocal as I'm led to believe they have been in the past. I have yet to run into any negative nay Sayers and even if I did, it wouldn't change my ways.
Peace and stay warm ;-)
How disenchanting it is to read some of the comments in regards to the wearing of fur these days. I presume that the statements were made by fairly young people who should know better than to wear another being's skin for fashion.
ReplyDeleteI wonder: do these people have pets? Cats & dogs? would they consider wearing their fur? Really, there's no difference - a skin is a skin. May I also remind your readers that in Nazi Germany, lampshades & other things were made from human victims' skins - would your readers consider that too far-fetched?? After all, skin is skin. Who can judge? Where is the line drawn?
My stand on the issue of fur is clear: it's barbaric & cruel. I, for one, am proud to wear cloth coats. In this day & age, fur is unnecessary - it belongs in the past, the distant past; it belongs on cavemen & cavewomen & not on modern day people who ought to know better and whose tastes/thoughts should've advanced beyond the Neolithic era.
Anon, October 19th- I understand you feelings and passion for this issue. I have to look at this like I look at most things (Though my own personal convictions-I am adamant)on a different level-I think women should be allowed to have abortions- abhorrent to so many people.
ReplyDeleteThat said- People should have the freedom to Dress in whatever they want. Most of these identified readers are- I might say- Mature, Thoughtful people and have firm passionate convictions about most any topic that requires opinion.
People eat animals, wear them on our feet. It is as I say a personal choice- I have a number or faux things and some vintage fur.
Again your comments and passion are appreciated.
pgt
Dear L.A.:
ReplyDeleteI can well appreciate your comments and stance on the freedoms we all have & I respect your opinion - after all, it comes down to choice, doesn't it? - for yourself, for your readers, and for myself. And yes, people have been wearing skins for millennia out of necessity as well as for ceremonial purposes. My main objection are the farming methods and wholesale slaughter of animals, often kept in the most heinous conditions. Simply put, can we, with a clear, civil & humane conscience as well as with full knowledge of how skins are culled, don an animal's skin on our back? That's the question. Once one's eyes are open to the truth, one's actions become liable and ethics come into play.
Just for the record, although I myself may not agree with abortion personally, I do believe in choice for those who need it or want it. I also believe that under special circumstances, abortion is permissible and even needed. I fully support a woman's choice - always have & always will. A woman should certainly be the sole master of her own body. But since we're on the subject, do sheep who's bellies are cut open to retrieve their unborn foetuses' skins[known as 'karakul' or 'Persian' lamb's fur] for the sake of fashion - and how many foetuses are needed to make a swing coat, I wonder - have that same choice?
Conversely, fur is needed in special circumstances as well, I agree - e.g., if one lived in the far reaches of the Arctic. But let's keep in mind that the Innuit and other First Nations peoples use every part of an animal, not just the skin [for frivolous fashion/status statements] and the animal is killed with prayers of forgiveness & appreciation to its spirit. Such issues, whether they be fur-wearing or abortion, are ethical ones - and one which we each must make a choice when faced with the options.
Yours sincerely & with appreciation,
Anonymous - October 19th.