Fake fur

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Girl wearing a parka with fake fur

Fake fur, fun fur, or faux fur is any material designed to resemble fur, normally as part of a piece of clothing and is internationally recognized as the 'animal friendly' approach to fur fashion. Faux fur has received praise and recognition from a string of animal rights and welfare organizations and has inspired many notable individuals including Natalie Portman and high-fashion design labels such as Ralph Lauren and Marc Bouwer to promote the use of animal friendly products in their collections. Because it is manufactured, faux fur can be made softer than real fur or be created with rough, bumpy, soft or thick surfaces.

[edit] Prominence

It is also used in purses, bags, and many other objects. Typically it is made of synthetic fibers. It does not require animal products and often costs less than its counterpart. However, it has the disadvantages of not containing as much warmth as true fur and may shed. Currently, there are no faux furs that have been able to keep snow from melting and re-freezing on the fur's fiber filaments. This might be of concern if one chooses to wear a fur material rather than warmer totally synthetic garments while hiking, mountain climbing, skiing and other activities which are done in extreme conditions.

Not all fake fur is used in clothing. Faux fur is very commonly used to make toys (especially teddy bears and other stuffed animals) and home decorations like pillows. It is also sometimes used for craft projects because it can be sewn on a sewing machine. Real fur is generally thicker and requires a special machine, hand sewing or an awl to sew it.

Lately, there have been many uses of fake fur in main stream teen fashion. The stores Abercrombie and Fitch, and American Eagle both use faux fur in their clothing such as in their Trapper Hats and Sweaters.

'Fish fur' is a slang term used in the Russian Army for the fake fur often used on winter clothing and the ubiquitous ushanka hats^{[citation needed]}. It is called fish fur because it does not come from any recognisable animal, but is made from wool and cloth.

[edit] Advantages of fake fur

Faux fur has been available since the 1950's, but its increasing popularity has been credited to promotion by animal rights groups which claim that it is an animal-friendly alternative to real fur.