Some might call it a vicious stab in my fashion conscience.
Whatever it is, i feel dirty and need to air the laundry.
I admit..... I like fur.
Now before you jump down my throat as if i skinned the rabbit with my own bare hands let me waive the little white flag for a second and broaden my point.
The wearing of fur dates back centuries and is synonymous with prestige, femininity and glamour, particularly from the golden ages of yesteryear. I think if Marilyn Monroe had a follow up to 'Diamonds are a Girls Best Friend', then 'Fur Comes a Close Second' would have been pretty spot on the mark.
As someone who admires the distinguished fashions from this era and prior, it still leaves an ugly taste in my mouth to think that even with all the knowledge that i have today on fur crimes that i still find it absolutely endearing.
Reality sets in. Guilt ensues.
I'm surprised i wasnt raised a Catholic because I am quite seasoned with the whole guilt thing...
But on the contrary, one thing i WAS raised to know and respect is where i came from.
And this is why I can understand (dare i say, justify?) my continued fascination.
Recently i have been given two fur pieces handed down to me from the older generation in my family. This alone is special as i know how personally valuable that obtaining these coats would have meant to a young woman growing up in a poor household. Its almost Cinderella-like in meaning and i can appreciate wholeheartedly what it represented then and now.
If there were two things that a woman was given to mark their presence into womanhood, it was a fur and white goods. And im going to go right ahead and say that a Westinghouse isnt quite as glamourous...or practical in the cold i might add.
So, this i ask you: Is it a crime to wear fur thats been handed down from generations as a family heirloom?
Is by wearing it in this day and age still promoting that wearing fur, and thus killing for fur, is ok?
It's a question enough to make me hesitate from walking out my front door wearing a Mink corpse across my shoulders thats for sure. But on the other hand, if it's an animal that has been dead for 60 years, then whats the harm? You wouldnt be bringing it back from the grave by letting it sit in moth balls for the rest of its coathangered life? It would actually give me great pleasure to don this remarkable piece of clothing knowing that someone had once cherished it as the one thing that made them feel a part of something bigger. More illustrious. More decadent.
Now I for one am in no way condoning the killing of animals for the pure sake of fashion or otherwise, particularly in the inhumane manner in which many kill for these pelts. In fact i am an avid campaigner against the slaughter of harp seals in Canada (IFAW). But my imaginary halo is about to slip and choke me right now as i can hear many of you ask how can i still even be questioning this if that is indeed the truth.
Well, my furry friends, call me ignorant if you must but I have to say that my blunt conclusion is this:
Unless your a vegetarian, unless you refuse to buy leather products, unless you fervently scour the supermarket looking for the 1 in 1000 products that dont contain palm oil, unless you are a part of some alternate universe where all the wrong doings we contribute towards in our society such as waste, pollution, lack of recycling etc does not occur- then its time to take a step down off the high horse and realise that we are indefinately harming animals in some way or another and are all guilty of something. And i think that a bit of vintage fur here and there amongst us isnt going to fix these problems, nor create more.
So on that note I'm going to sit here in my Grandmothers fur, eating a steak off my bone china and clicking my leather boots together as I toast to those who are morally better than I.
Because Godamnit, i like it.
And now a word from PETA to make everyone even more bummed out.
