Remember when the mark of making it was buying diamonds and fur? In our mothers’ generation, you had finally arrived when your husband gifted you that coveted pelt.
The emotion that fur conferred on its owner was palpable the moment it was slipped on. You were someone when you exited the car in a heavy fur, the lustrous guard hairs skittering with the wind. After handing over your fur to coat check, with a “take extra care of it” silent exchange, your walk became more regal as you moved to your table. There was ceremony in the caring of fur–each spring sending it away to cold storage to preserve it’s natural state.
Back then, mink was the vanguard of winning, the top of the domestic chain. Only the most exotic of women took it up another notch, and adorned themselves with animals out of the wild–like lynx. I picture Bianca Jagger here. Today, the exotics are color and wild texture. And the coolest women wear fake.
That same feeling of luxury and specialty runs over me when I wear faux fur. I have coats, vests, stoles, jackets and sweaters with furry accents. I’ve even worn a cape, around my waist, as an overlay to a midi skirt. Bold or soft color, riffs on wild animal, and long or curly texture feels the most indulgent right now. Last year I bought my first, big-statement-of-color in a long fur coat of pale, gray-blue. I feel the most decadent when I wear it off-handed with jeans and a t-shirt. Oh yea, it serves a real function too. Like it’s real forebears–it’s cozy and warm.
Technological advancements have taken faux fur to undetectable heights, and great bargains. There’s really no reason to wear real. The copies are so good that I often feel the need to disclaim that my coat isn’t real when someone compliments me. In fact in selecting the photos for this story, I’m hoping that I haven’t unknowingly chosen images of real fur. And the faux bargains are for real! I don’t think I’ve ever payed full price for my furs. They’re a sexy sale item used to draw shoppers in.
Show someone you love how grand you think they are, with a shocking pop of colored, unreal fur. Buy yourself a wild (faux) fur this holiday season as a mark of progress, achievement and growth in 2017. It still feels like an indulgence–especially when we get it for ourselves. Success today marked in a woman’s world of confidence, and care for beautiful creatures.
Photos: ImaxTree