The Triumph of Fake Fur
By Wayne Pacelle
To say that our staff didn’t have much hope for famed fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld to suddenly become faux fur’s biggest fan is an understatement. Head designer and creative director for Chanel, Mr. Lagerfeld has long incorporated fur into his high-end fashion designs. That’s why all of us at The HSUS, and many leaders within the fashion world, were more than a bit surprised—and delighted—when Mr. Lagerfeld revealed that all of the fur on the models at his recent Paris runway show was fake.
"The whole thing was fake, every bit of fur. But that seems right for the times,” Lagerfeld told press after the show. “It’s the triumph of fake fur…because fake fur changed so much and became so great now, that you can hardly see the difference,” he told another reporter.
Some in attendance in fact could not tell the difference: “Lagerfeld's compassion for the planet apparently does not extend to its four-legged inhabitants -- at least not this season,” Los Angeles Times fashion critic Booth Moore wrote about the show’s emphasis on fur, before Lagerfeld had revealed the fabric’s true origin.
Designers and fashion houses now have no excuse. We’ve known the moral case for alternatives to fur has been overwhelming. Now, just as a matter of aesthetics, it is clear that fake fur is just about indistinguishable from real fur. The only reason to continue to design with real fur is moral and fashion laziness.
P.S. Of course, we are mindful that when fake fur looks this real, some might think it is the real, cruel thing. That’s why our fur-free button makes a good accessory.
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Faux fur products have become so real some are nearly indistinguishable from the real thing. I should know, since I design with faux fur every day. I have had nearly epic arguments with studio visitors in regards to the fur products in my work . I ended up having to dig through my scraps to show her the back of in faux fur piece in order to finally rest my case.
Faux fur is a lovely product with colours and textures to match any real animal skin. The moral cause far outweighs the petroleum issue. Just think of the chemicals used in the preparation and preservation of real fur... I think that a responsible use of a bit of petroleum product far outweighs the moral issues of real fur. Check out my work at www.fuzzifauxfur.com
Mr. Pacelle, I would suggest you broaden your reading list, perhaps read Dominion over Wildlife? An Environmental Theology of Human-Wildlife Relations (Wipf and Stock, 2009). I understand there is one in your HSUS library. Ask Dr. Hadidian about it. To suggest that there is no moral justification for wearing fur is incredible. Fur is a renewable resource of which the U.S. and Canada has plenty of. In Nebraska alone, we harvest over 150,000 raccoons a year. Guess what, they aren't going extinct either, even with all the one's unfortunately killed by cars .
Listen everyone, stop supporting oil based fur. Get the real thing and support American industry and American trade.
way these people have badgered (no pun intended) everyone, it is a wonder the minks are wearing fur .