THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, November 17, 1994 TAG: 9411170039
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E5 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MONIQUE WILLIAMS, SPECIAL TO THE DAILY BREAK
LENGTH: Medium: 78 lines
IT COULD BE said that fur is coming in from the cold.
After several seasons of verbal knifing and a very public bloodshed, the warriors have laid down their arms.
Fur is again hot.
``Retail fur sales have increased 20 percent over the past two years,'' says Sandy Blye, director of fashion promotions at the Fur Information Council of America.
Hugh Vaughan, president of Lowenthal Furriers in Virginia Beach, has also seen his numbers rise.
``First, there were the economic factors,'' he says of the hard times the industry encountered, ``and the fur has always been a luxury item.''
Although Virginia did not directly experience animal activism similar to the kind in New York, the industry, in general, suffered a major blow from the negative publicity.
``There is no doubt that animal activism hurt us,'' adds Vaughan. ``Furs were not viewed as fashionably popular.''
Fashion designers reacted by creating spirited fake furs that not only generated a new interest but renewed interest in the real thing - surely not what animal activists were wishing for.
The new popularity wave that furs - fake or real - is enjoying is a slap in the face of the activist movement.
``I think it backfired on them,'' says Vaughan, ``because people don't like to be told what to wear.''
The industry isn't at all displeased about the introduction of fake fur - which is no more than pile fabric to the market.
Contrary.
``Just as the sale of costume jewelry has spawned sales of real jewelry,'' says Jack Pearson, director or the Fur Information Council of America, ``the interest in imitation fur is having the same effect on real fur.''
Some of this popularity can be credited to designers such as Marc Jacobs - who don't come any younger or hipper - and who are designing furs for a younger set.
And designers Karl Lagerfeld and Louis Feraud have also designed spirited fur coats that are anything but conservative.
As a result, the runways have seen fake furs in neon colors, furs dyed in a kaleidoscope of vibrant colors and even furs in a checkboard pattern - all of which have added an element of whimsy and excitement to fall fashions.
``It used to be that fur was the old lady's coat. Now, fur is the look, real or not,'' says Blye. ``There is no question about their fashion popularity.''
This season's sophisticated and polished look coupled with a predicted cold winter will certainly increase fur's visibility.
``Women want to look more feminine with pearls and jewelry, and fur fits well in that picture,'' adds Blye.
``We have seen glamour return to the runways, and designers have been creating a lot of excitement with shearling, cashmere and silk.''
Real fur doesn't come cheap. Although some real value can be found at $1,500, a glance at Bloomingdale's fur catalog will leave most women gasping.
For the average woman with an average wallet, the operative word this season is faux.
Faux mink coats, faux leopard jackets, faux lamb trims on collars, faux crocodile pumps, faux cheetah-printed cowhide shoes worn with form-fitted clothes and finished off with hat, gloves, stilettos and - what else - faux diamonds are the rage in both New York and Paris.
Neon fake furs, however, will take a lot of courage to wear, particularly in Hampton Roads were eccentricity isn't part of the fashion lexicon.
Fakes allow women that won't buy the real thing - for financial or moral reasons - to feel fashionable without compromising their wallets or their values.
As they say, imitation is the highest form of flattery. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
This coat made with Russian lynx by Karl Lagerfeld is available at
Bloomingdale's.
by CNB