Oh did she say the "F" word?

I'm in an honest mood today and it just happened that I got a comment on my facebook page that made me want to really talk about this subject, which I have been dodging for a long time. I think every vintage blogger who wears fur has talked about this issue but here we go again.

After posting some pics of my furs on facebook, I received comments "Is that real fur?" and "Great closet!!!! and hoping your furs are synthetic....."

 Well no, in fact they are not. They are vintage and I wear them and enjoy them. I do love animals.  I had 3 kitties and a ferret for the longest time and as a kid, we had a dog, cat, iguana, a tarantula, snakes, mice, rabbits and a wolf....not all at the same time, of course.  Our current family pet is a little hamster named Sour Cream who is just as soft as cashmere and sweet as can be. I prefer to see the lovely fur on a living creature, happily going about its business but if I come across an old fur in a thrift store, flea market or it's passed on to me as a gift, it's not going to end up in a landfill. I'm going to wear it.




 I wear it to appreciate its beauty and warmth. I don't often wear modern faux furs because they are made of polymer fibers created from coal and petroleum. These faux fibers take up to 1,000 years to break down. That's not very environmentally friendly and  I don't care for the way it feels, to be honest. Its very scratchy and uncomfortable. There are some very nice quality faux furs on the market today but I still don't like the idea of mass produced stuff piling up, which is a major reason why I wear vintage.
I do have one modern fur. It's a fox and it was trapped by a friend of the family, who is a re-enactor.  The bones were used for buttons and such, the meat- although not a great meat to cook was eaten (cause that's what you do when you're in the middle of nowhere), the brain used to tan the skin. He traded the fur with my husband for some hand made soap and leather pouches and it ended up in my hands, where I finished it as a stole, and am still hunting around for the right glass eyes.






I also wear leather, wool, fur velour hats and enjoy a good cheeseburger more often than I should but it's my personal choice. If someone came up to me in a restaurant and said "Oh yummy, That looks good but I hope it's a veggie burger!" I'd probably punch 'em in the eye and tell them where to shove their opinions.

 Some may say "but you don't have to wear fur, it's just for vanity" well, I don't -have- to eat meat either. The meat and dairy industry is terribly cruel and freaky with their hormones and genetically modified everything but in the end, I still order a burger or bacon on my pizza. Its a personal choice. 

 I must admit, for the past few years, I've been afraid to bring the topic up because I've seen the harsh backlash on other vintage fashion blogs but I remember that I'm here because I want to remind other women to be independent. To do your own thing and to wear what makes you feel good, regardless of what society thinks you should wear. If I can't do that openly on my blog, I feel like I'm failing my readers and myself.


If you have a few furs end up too old and messed up to wear anymore or if wearing fur isn't your cup o' tea, you can donate them to Coats for Cubs, an organization helping to rehabilitate orphaned wildlife.


You may also enjoy this interesting article from Collector's Weekly "Should you Feel Guilty About Wearing Fur?"