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Uh Oh: Real Fur Advertised As "Faux" At Barneys
By
Jen Carlson
Published Dec 22, 2010
Modified Dec 22, 2010
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By
Jen Carlson
Published Dec 22, 2010
Modified Dec 22, 2010
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The Humane Society of the United States has gone on a fur-finding mission and found that a Phillip Lim brand faux fur parka sold online by Barneys New York... is actually made of real animal fur. They tell us "the same coat was sold in their Madison Avenue flagship store without the 'real fur' label required by New York state law." The group is now asking Barneys to become 100% fur-free, like other retailers and designers have done.
The HSUS tested the parka (pictured) in a lab and found out its trim may come from a coyote (Hal?). The organization says that "selling unlabeled real animal fur-trim jackets has been allowed for decades through a loophole in the nearly 60-year-old federal fur labeling law, but a new bill signed on Saturday by President Obama will close this loophole." That will take effect in March and will require all garments made with animal fur to be labeled and include which animal species the fur is from. As for the Barneys parka, it is unlawful to describe the garment as "faux fur" since it does contain real fur, this violation carries a $5,000 fine and possible year in prison.
The NBC crew took a closer look at the $950 jacket, and the store told them they “are investigating the matter with the brand." The brand, however, says they “never claimed the collar was fake” and will look into making their labels clearer (the fabric label on this one made no mention of fur). For now, they're offering a full refund for anyone turned off by the coyote collar.
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barneys
faux
fur
hsus
parka
Phillip Lim
Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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