When I take a really great street-style photo, usually one of two things happens. I either rush to put it up within the next week or I set it aside for a really amazing post. Normally it’s the latter, which is what happened with this photo. Aside from Lyn’s natural beauty and a stunning Wicker Park background, the best part about this image is her authentic vintage monkey fur vest from the early 20th century.
When I complimented her on her extraordinary goat fur vest, she hestiated for a moment. Then she told me that it was in fact monkey. I first felt a strong wave of digust. For a split-second I considered yelling “people are skinning monkeys now!!? What the hell!?” but then I realized that was probably (and indeed is) vintage fur. I try to keep an open mind and stay positive around my subjects so when I pried a little further, she told me that she had purchased it from a reputable vintage seller. I held onto this picture for a while, not knowing how I would position it. It’s an incredible vest and looks amazing. Then I saw the Refinery29 boot/fur ethics story this morning and it got me thinking.
Is wearing vintage exotic furs ethical? I mean, the animal has been dead for a long time and not wearing the fur isn’t going to bring them back. It’s almost a waste to not wear the fur… which is sad. I own a Mongolian lambswool fur coat which is leather-free and gathered by shaving (not killing) the animal, but I would considering owning other vintage furs too if I could afford it. I don’t know, I mean the more I thought about Lyn’s monkey fur vest the less angry I felt. I feel bad that monkey died decades ago but no amount of self-righteous pontificating is going to bring it back. And is owning a monkey fur garment really that different from owning a mink fur coat? Is all fur equally bad? What do you think?
Bottom line: monkey fur or not, Lyn looks amazing in her outfit!
Tatiana is a talented local jewelry designer, but that’s not why I stopped her on Milwaukee Avenue because I had no idea who she was. Those crazy wire-rimmed sungalsses! The floral print + crocodile-stamped leather bag! The Pendleton-esque cardigan! It’s all so fantastic. She unfortunately wasn’t wearing any pieces from her jewelry line,
Arrow. Make sure to click the link and visit Arrow’s Etsy store.
Thanks Kokorokoko for IDing!
I mentioned in last week’s post about Taylor Tomasi Hill and Joanna Hillman that Anna Dello Russo is the owner of quite possibly the greatest legs in fashion. “But she’s not a model,” you secretly think, laughing at my childlike enthusiasm (a lot of people do!). Since when have you ever seen a high fashion model who is the picture of health and vitality, excluding the anomaly that is Gisele? But what about that Refinery29 slideshow… oh that’s right, it was about how
unhealthy they are at the end of fashion week. Discoloration of the hands and feet is one side-effect of eating disorders.
Anna’s athletic, toned body is as much a part of her street-style imagery as the over-the-top outfits. In a few different interviews she’s disclosed her early morning work-outs and healthy eating habits as the key to her remarkably in shape body. My mom is an avid runner and she used to invite me to go on runs with her from time to time. I accepted because I never turn down a challenge, but was always secretly miserable because I could never keep up. I felt bad because not only is she my mom she was also in better shape at 40 than I was at 14. In her defense she always encouraged me by saying “you can’t just wake up one day and run six miles fast without training” to try to get me to go on more runs. I saw right through that one. I’m a perfectionist and could never get past the “warm up” stage of running when your calves burn like hot coals.
Fast forward to now, and my best friend from college is a big runner too. Every time she stays with me in Chicago she runs in the morning while I sleep in an extra hour. Yup, I’m that girl. My ability to eat whatever the hell I wanted and maintain a svelte figure, which lasted a full 25 years, finally disappeared this summer. I’ve fallen out of shape and I think this photo is the inspiration (aka a kick in the butt) I needed to get back into shape. After all, now both Anna Dello Russo and my mom are in better shape than me, and they’re both twice my age at around 50 years old!
Obviously since winter is around the corner I’m not going to run around in the snow crying tears of ice about how my metabolism finally slowed down! I’m going to be proactive and join a gym.
So, my loyal readers, can you recommend a gym in Chicago for me to join?
