Bit controversial this .....real fur

[Eliza22]

Just asking as a general question.

My elderly mum has a fur coat. It was massively expensive, back in the day and is still pristine. I remember if used to go into cold storage for the summer! I also remember, as a child, snuggling into it and it and it smelt of her perfume. She still wears it.

She talks about leaving stuff " to me" (she's at that age, a little preoccupied with her not being here much longer) and I know she has the coat in mind.... It's become an heirloom.

What would you do? I personally have never owned anything sporting animal fur. I've told her I'd probably get a load of abuse, if I tried to walk about in it. But then I thought..... It's vintage, it's dead already, I cannot bring it back so, should it be binned?

Would you wear it? My mum, having been asked about it always says " yes it's genuine but it was bought for me in a decade when people did wear fur and gave it little thought". I'd be inclined to say "no, it's fake. A very good fake".

God forbid the demise of my mum should be anytime soon but, what would YOU do?

Go for it op. they'd be dead by now anyway.

what fur is it from OP?

I wouldn't wear it but then I wouldn't wear fake fur either as it just isn't my cup of tea. If you love it and would wear it then keep it. Also it reminds you of your mum which is pretty priceless even if it never left the house.

Back in the eighties when the anti fur brigade started, I grew really disappointed.
Women were asked to bring their fur coats to market squares for ceremonial bonfires. Where is the sincerity in that?
They should have been collected for poor people in Russia! Where the only thing that does keep you warm is a pelt. Indispensable at minus 30 centigrade!

If fur is vintage , that should be fine.
After all there is nothing ,nothing more flattering to a woman's skin than fur.
Better than jewellery.

Can you sell it and give the money to peta?

Sorry to be pi.

Oh sorry I missed the bit where you don't like Peta. Find like a rare animal preservation soc and give it to that. Donkey sanctuary. Whales and Dolphins.

Interested to read this as I'm in a similar position as OP.

My first instinct is to wear it, but lie about its history

I've got it. Ivory trade still very dangerous for elephants. Could you sell it and donate the money to a charity fighting that.

I couldn't wear fur at all even though I wear leather and eat meat. If you could wear it then don't worry about what other people think.

Bit feeble to wear it and lie about it though, there doesn't seem much point in that.

My mother also has a collection of fur coats that are very OTT for my life, but I just know I would not be able to destroy or sell them. I would love to wear them.

I'd say keep it, if you don't want to wear it out maybe have it recrafted as a blanket or a throw.

I would wear it, I have a few inherited furs that I love and wear often

You should wear it. With no knickers underneath.

I think it has become something that looks ugly because people are conscious of what's involved in fur and make judgement calls about the wearer. Everything you wear sends a message and where fur used to say 'glamour, money, luxury' I don't think it does now. It says other things which are not nice. So I would get rid of it. My Mother has a rabbit fur coat she keeps in the wardrobe and would never wear now. If she left it to me I'd get rid of it.

Nkf.... , good idea! Why didn't I think of that?

Fridgepants...... True, the pelt always looks beautiful on the animal. Ds and I have done a fair few of this "adopt a snow leopard/jaguar/Amazonian ocelot". But this animal met its demise in the late 40's/early 50's. It'd have died of old age by now.

It would never occur to me to go out and buy one now, in the same way I wouldn't own a tortoise/ivory carving/bear skin rug/irresponsibly sourced diamond.

But the item exists and has done always in my lifetime, in my mother's wardrobe.

Thank you all, for your viewpoints. I will give it some serious thought.

My mum and I have a lot of fur coats inherited from my grandmother. One is a spectacular 1920's Bonny & Clyde affair with a stand-up collar and really suits me. Neither of us will wear any of them because we're both anti-fur, but we've held on to them anyway.

I think you need to decide how you feel about wearing the coat. If you're at all uncomfortable in fur, you won't enjoy wearing it. I wouldn't try to pass it off as fake, as most people will realise they're the real thing.

My mum tells of a story when she was about 4, in the 1940's, and saw a woman in shop queue wearing a real fur stole - one of the ones with the head and legs still attached. Like this

My mum said in a shocked way, to my grandma, mummy, why that woman got a dead dog on her??

That tells me all I ever needed to know about real fur. You'll have a 'dead dog' on you.

yuk. chuck it in the bin.
some of those animals are anally electrocuted just so you can have REAL fur. skinned whilst still alive, wonderful!

Well, this is a really funny subject, seriosly.

Why?

Becose:

1. "If is vintage is better than new". No, is the same, the new one is pretty dead too
2. "Wearing fur is cruel, non ethic etc". But wearing leather is ok. Suede is fine. S&B have alot of talk about leather for example.

3." The 'poor people in Rusia' who need the fur burned in the midle of street in '80's becose they dont have proper winther coat,bo-hoo!!" People in Rusia are known for wearing fur, for glamour or just practical reasons. Maybe not very expensive there.

I would wear it but not in London and not in UK, in Europe is ok to wear fur, people are more relaxed about that.
Keep it and see how you feel about wearing (or not?), but keep it, Peta is doing pretty well i think

I find it hard to get overly worked up about fur, i would wear it in an instance. I eat meat (and lots of it), wear leather, use cosmetics and medicine, and i dont get all jittery about doing these things (which i guess i probably could get by without) and im in no doubt that that those animals probably didn't have much better or worse a life than those that make fur coats, which on reading makes me a huge fucking hypocrite because i hate animal cruelty and probably if i witnessed first hand how these animals died to make all the above possible i probably would do without them , but i guess im willing to overlook certain cruelties to fit in with my lifestyle when im not having to see them first hand.

I'm a strict veggie, used to be vegan & didn't wear any leather for a long time. Personally as it is vintage I wouldn't have a problem with it. Not sure if I would wear it out and about, but would certainly keep it.

I hate it when people think you should destroy fur coats. It seems to me that it would be far more respectful to the dead animals that someone get some use of them.

I don't have a problem with vintage fur - I have a number of stoles of my late Granny's. I would wear them happily (although the heads & beady eyes freak me out a bit) - but I struggle with what to wear them with.

I wouldn't hesitate to wear a vintage fur coat.