Fur is Back on the Catwalk!

Supporters call it “eco-friendly” and “sustainable.” Opposers say it’s cruel and vicious. But whichever side you are on, there’s no denying that fur had a major presence on the fall 2013 runways. So have we accepted this trade?

Analysis have looked through every catwalk and every look and have found that an amazing 70% of designers who displayed their trends at fashion had at least one look that has included fur! Several collections incorporated fur into over 20 looks (Crotty, 2013).

But does that mean that fur is now in favour and is considered the norm in cat walk shows? In the past, fur was considered luxurious, royal and beautiful but was about to change when the wrongdoings were highlighted in the late 1970’s (Steele, 2012). With this in mind, the outburst of the internet allowed it to be a vehicle to display videos which cascaded into becoming viral all around the world; videos included images of helpless animals being mistreated, living in unhealthy environments, slowly dying and even being skinned alive (Crotty, 2013).  This outbreak of videos allows a new generation to become anti-fur.

However, people who see real fur as an eco-friendly option, stating that it is a renewable and biodegradable resource have also stated that it is a smarter choice than synthetic fur, which is considered to be petroleum-based, non-renewable, and manufactured using products that release harmful chemicals into the atmosphere (Steele, 2012)

So who is right and who is wrong? Should we accept fur into our daily lives?

References
Crotty, N (2013) Fur is Back in Fashion with a Vengeance: Will you Embrace It? Fashionista, 14th March [Online] Available at:http://fashionista.com/2013/03/fur-is-back-in-fashion-with-a-vengeance-will-you-embrace-it/ (Accessed: 19th March 2013)

Steele, V (2012) The Berg Companion to Fashion. Berg Publishers: United States.