is it just me who doesn't understand how anyone buying these items for themselves can't tell the difference? even the roughest, least-cultivated wild animal fur has a tactile nature that i've never felt in faux fur products. they also have completely different smells from each other. faux fur has a very synthetic smell. and they're attached to their backing very differently.
@msAnthrope: I seriously doubt I could tell the difference. I've never owned any faux or real fur (Alabama living yo!) so I would probably rely on a label. Does it smell like animal? Cuz that's kind of nasty. I love doggies, but they usually stank.
@msAnthrope: I had the same thought, that real fur can't possibly be confused with synthetic. But then I remembered the time I asked my vegan sister what she was doing borrowing our mother's fur-collared coat and she claimed she had no idea it was real.
I have a moral dilemma. I wear leather somewhere on my body almost every day, as many, if not most, people in America do, especially during winter. I've also noticed that many people who wear leather, myself included, would not wear fur and generally have a negative view on the use of fur. It makes me feel like a hypocrite. So there's my confession.
But my bigger question is why is there this huge anti-fur movement, and you never hear about groups specifically targeting leather? As far as I know, cows used for leather are not the same cows that we eat, so the argument that the leather is a by-product of meat will not fly. I know there are a handful of companies that make fur and leather products where the entire animal's body was put to use and they were kept in humane conditions, but those companies are few. So why the outcry over fur and not leather?
@rubyinthedust: I went through this a few years ago. Even though I'm an omnivore, I really struggled to make responsible decisions that animals that contributed to my lifestyle - for food, clothing, etc - should all be free range and treated humanely. It's fairly easy, though expensive, to shop this way for food. It is much harder when it comes to clothing.
And then the more research I did, the more I learned that synthetic leathers are terrible for the environment and the production is often toxic to the sweatshop laborers employed to make the stuff.
So now I am back to wearing leather, although I try to limit my purchases, and I buy vintage as often as possible. Which is why I would also be okay with wearing vintage fur. I can't rationalize why I should treat a cow as though it's less important than a mink, so I don't.
In this day and age, it amazes me that there are people out there who still wear fur. I don't understand the desire to simulate wearing fur either. Why even bother to pretend? I'll take my poly-fleece winter coat any day over fur.
@operasingergirl: That's kind of what I was thinking- why bother wearing fake fur? I guess everyone has their opinion on what makes something luxurious, but I'm not into it. I dunno.
@operasingergirl: As someone who grew up in NORTHERN MN where its colder than anyone here can imagine, I can attest to the fact that fur is WARM. Yes even fake fur. I've had down filled, fleecy, new-tech whateverthefuck jackets and the furry ones are always hands down the warmest.
That would be why one would wear fur.
Now that I live in LA, and I still love the fake leopard...
These people are not THE Humane Society. They are PETA-level weirdos that misuse the HS name to sound legitimate. They are an "animal rights" group, as opposed to "animal welfare". They also have ties to the Animal Liberation Front.
This is so not the first time this has happened. Totally makes me reconsider even buying faux. Or shopping at any of these department stores whatsoever.
It's times like this when I wish that that scene in Ghostbusters 2, where the woman's mink coat comes alive and starts attacking her before running down the street, really happened.
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good point! if you've never owned either how could you know? i live in rhode island, and both real and faux fur is everywhere.
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that's kind of funny she just assumed your mom's coat was faux!
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But my bigger question is why is there this huge anti-fur movement, and you never hear about groups specifically targeting leather? As far as I know, cows used for leather are not the same cows that we eat, so the argument that the leather is a by-product of meat will not fly. I know there are a handful of companies that make fur and leather products where the entire animal's body was put to use and they were kept in humane conditions, but those companies are few. So why the outcry over fur and not leather?
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And then the more research I did, the more I learned that synthetic leathers are terrible for the environment and the production is often toxic to the sweatshop laborers employed to make the stuff.
So now I am back to wearing leather, although I try to limit my purchases, and I buy vintage as often as possible. Which is why I would also be okay with wearing vintage fur. I can't rationalize why I should treat a cow as though it's less important than a mink, so I don't.
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That don't make it right...
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That would be why one would wear fur.
Now that I live in LA, and I still love the fake leopard...
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These people are not THE Humane Society. They are PETA-level weirdos that misuse the HS name to sound legitimate. They are an "animal rights" group, as opposed to "animal welfare". They also have ties to the Animal Liberation Front.
[www.activistcash.com]
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"wait for the signal. then all prisoners will be set free!"