- Fake fur
Fake fur, also called fun fur or faux fur, is any material made of
synthetic fiber s designed to resemblefur , normally as part of a piece ofclothing . It has been available since the 1950s, but its increasing popularity has been credited to its promotion byanimal rights andanimal welfare organizations which claim that it is an animal-friendly alternative to traditionalfur clothing .Fact|date=August 2008Usage
Faux fur is not only used in clothing, but also for
stuffed animal s,fashion accessory and home decorations like pillows. It is also sometimes used for craft projects because it can be sewn on asewing machine . Real fur is generally thicker and requires a special machine, hand sewing or an awl to sew it.Fact|date=August 2008 Lately, fake fur has been increasingly used in the main stream teen fashion, for example the storesAbercrombie and Fitch andAmerican Eagle use it for trapper hats and sweaters.Fact|date=August 2008 In the Russian Army, "fish fur " is used as a slang term for the fake fur used on winter clothing and the ubiquitousushanka hats.Fact|date=December 2007 Similarly, fashion design labels such asRalph Lauren have promoted the use of fake fur in their collections.Fact|date=August 2008Advantages and disadvantages
Advantages
* The energy consumption for the production of one coat made out of fake fur was given with 120 MBtu in a study of the scientific research laboratory of the automobile manufacturer
Ford in 1979, compared to 433 MBtu for trapped animals and 7,965 MBtu for animals raised in fur farms. [cite paper | title=Questions and Answers about Fur | pages=2
publisher=The Humane Society of the United States | date=1998 | url=http://files.hsus.org/web-files/PDF/WILD_Questions_and_Answers_about_Fur.pdf | format=PDF | accessdate=2008-08-17 ]
* Because it is manufactured, fake fur can be made softer than real fur or be created with rough, bumpy, soft or thick surfaces.Fact|date=August 2008
* The production of fake fur is cheaper than that of real fur of high quality.Fact|date=August 2008
* Fake fur and real fur may be equivalent in providing protection from cold, but since fake fur can be made in any thickness, fake fur garments can be constucted to be warmer than real fur. [ [http://www.fauxfur4u.com/faq Faqs] ] .Disadvantages
* Fake fur may shed. [ [http://www.fauxfur4u.com/faq Faqs] ] .
* 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.Fact|date=August 2008References
External links
* [http://www.madehow.com/Volume-3/Fake-Fur.html How fake fur is made]
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