Fur and fashion have always had a complicated relationship. While luxurious and undeniably stylish, the use of animal fur in clothing has drawn criticism for decades. Many designers have shifted toward faux fur as an alternative, but the French luxury brand Yves Salomon is taking a different route: recycling.
Instead of creating new pelts, the company is now repurposing older furs into fresh designs. As Yves Salomon explained, we are using only used fur like old coats and also old leftovers of various collections, and we decided to create a line called PIECES, because they are unique pieces, and they are also made with pieces. We want to show that these garments are made from leftover materials and to deliver the sustainable message.
These aren’t furs pulled from dusty thrift shops, though. The brand sources from wealthy clients who return coats after only a handful of wears. Salomon noted, old coats which people are wearing and they don’t want anymore. We get them back and re-use them to make this kind of lines.
The result is a collection that looks and feels completely new, even if its foundation is decades old. As Salomon described, when you look at them and you wear them, it looks like completely new, and it is new because it’s a new creation and it is not made before. So this is the spirit, to make something new with these pieces which have been used or cannot be used. And the idea of re-using is very strong.
This approach fits into a broader movement in couture: recycling and upcycling as a response to fashion’s waste problem. Salomon emphasized this point, saying, there is too much wastage in our society, and we must show that fur is one article that cannot be wasted, and is not wasted because we can re-use it. This is a strong message on fur, and we want to deliver this message.
Still, despite its sustainability appeal, these recycled fur coats won’t be flooding the market anytime soon. Each one takes extraordinary effort to make. It takes a hell of a long time because it is all sewing these pieces together so it takes days and days. One coat like that is two weeks’ work. And this is why they’re one of a kind because we can’t just produce them in the mass way. It’s impossible.
For those who love the luxury of fur but also care about sustainability, Yves Salomon’s PIECES collection offers a rare middle ground: a way to indulge while easing the conscience, if only slightly.
