Vegetarian Star

Stella McCartney has just opened her first clothing store in Milan.

The New York Times is reporting the store has a sustainable oak parquet floor, manufactured for the same furniture company her husband owns.

Stella is looking to make the entire store environmentally friendly, as she hopes to attain LEED certification, a standard implying the building is using resources like water and energy most efficiently, reducing CO2 emissions and maintaining a quality indoor environment.

The vegetarian designer who refuses to use leather or fur in any of her collections routinely makes decisions in her business to reach a higher level of ethics, which include using organic cotton, low impact dyes and manufacturing in countries that do not use child labor.

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Ah, everybody remembers when they received their first letter from PETA asking “Why the hell are you wearing fur?”

Eva Mendes can still recall the year 2003 when she was approached by the group after wearing a fur shawl to the premier of “Stuck on You.”

“You’re an up-and-coming star, and a lot of people are looking at you,” the letter read. “We noticed you were wearing fur and we wanted to bring this to your attention.”

Not only did Eva stop wearing fur, she posed in one of PETA’s anti-fur campaigns and has changed her diet to “mostly vegetarian.”

As the group celebrates 30 years of activism, it’s comforting to know that although fur is being seen as a trend for the fall and winter of 2010 on fashion runways, people in the real world aren’t putting them in their closets.

The Province reports that U.S. mink imports were down 30% in 2009 versus 2008. Demand for alligator and crocodile hides used in handbags and boots dropped 40% worldwide from the first quarter of 2008 to the same quarter of 2009, according to the Associated Press. And last year, the New York Times reported that the U.S. alligator farming business is also on the decline.

Retailers like H&M and Overstock.com have stopped selling exotic skins and designers like Donna Karan, Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein have also pledged to stop using fur in their designs.

To all the activists, PETA supporting or not, congratulations on a job well done and keep it up for the future!

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Chelsea Handler is giving Real Housewives of New York City star Kelly Bensimon a piece of her mind many other animal lovers share.

Handler discussed Bensimon’s recent rave about fur, where Bensimon said something to the effect that although she loves animals and never advocates hurting them, she doesn’t see a problem with wearing fur.

She also obviously doesn’t see the contradiction in her statements, but Handler on E! attempted to clear things up for her.

“Really? You don’t abuse animals? I think the chinchilla who just had his hide ripped off might disagree. You think you’re a great fur wearer? You know who wears it better? The innocent animal it came from. This is not a smart move. You just taunted PETA on national television while wearing an unattractive fur vest.”

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Designers have debuted their collections for the fall (including the Chanel show where Karl Lagerfeld praised fake fur), and soon women will start stocking their wardrobes accordingly.

If you can’t accessorize your closet exactly like the runway, several fashion experts in retail have given their advice on what to keep in mind, or the “big picture” when you walk into the department store.

Ethical designer Stella McCartney‘s collections are listed as both “must haves” and a blueprint for the “big picture.”

Elyse Walker, who’s shop is located in Pacific Palisades, has the right idea when she recommends a Stella vegan handbag, but is way off when she can’t stop talking about fur.

“I ordered 50 to 70 furs for a store that’s a mile from the beach. But it gets cold at night, and it’s a fashion statement that will be in every ad and editorial. Fur trims on sweaters (Brunello Cucinelli) and scarves (Gucci).”

Thankfully, Walker qualifies these statements with, “We will have faux fur as well.”

Julie Gilhart, fashion director, Barneys New York, says the idea that “less is more” is in, and is exemplified with sweaters such as Stella McCartney cardigans.

Learn what else you should take away from the fashion trends for the fall at latimes.

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Kelly Bensimon has continually ran her mouth about her love of fur, chicken, and everything not animal friendly.

The Real Housewives Examiner quoted Kelly comparing her Playboy shoot to appearing in an ad for PETA.

Apparently, she thinks there is no comparison.

“I don’t really think that there is any comparison between PETA and Playboy. Being photographed for Playboy is the ultimate sex symbol. It’s not like you’re posing nude, you’re posing nude for the most infamous book in the world. To be 41 and in Playboy is a really surreal moment.”

If meat and potatoes girl had any sense, she’d know that PETA ads, such as the “I’d Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur” ones are hands down, the sexiest.

There’s nothing sexier than scantily clad to nearly nude women (and men) who pose not only for publicity, but to gain attention to the important cause of treating animals humanely and with compassion.

Maybe she can take a clue from housewife Bethenny Frankel, who posed in a PETA ad, and consider giving up fur for good.

Dead isn’t sexy, Kelly.

Now please stop talking and stick a faux chicken wing in your mouth.

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Candace Parker PETA Anti Fur Ad

WNBA player Candace Parker put the basketball down for a moment to let everyone know wearing animals for fur should never be part of the game.

The MVP and Rookie of the year brought along her rescue dog Fendi, who steals just as much of the camera as Candace does.

“I feel very passionate about the fur campaign for PETA,” Candace says in the video below. “I feel like it’s very cruel-what they do to animals. I love my dog and couldn’t imagine anybody harming her.”

Check out Candace’s exclusive interview for PETA!

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Karl Lagerfeld is digging the fake fur scene!

The designer recently praised fake fur used in the Channel fall 2010 runway show.

Has Lagerfeld experienced a change in heart?

As Allure discusses, Lagerfeld was quoted by The Telegraph saying discussing the ethics of fur in fashion was “childish.”

But the beauty of faux has caught Lagerfeld’s attention and if he’s not doing it for ethics, at least he’s appreciating the aesthetic value of using material from something other than an animal.

Plus, the new fake fur is now soft and cuddly, according to Lagerfeld.

“Nothing, nothing, nothing, nothing, nothing—not one piece,” said Lagerfeld. “That was the idea. The material is beautiful and new in a way, because it was not that perfect before. It looked vaguely ok, but if you touched it, it was stiff and harsh. Now, it’s not like that at all anymore.”

On another positive note, Allure says Lagerfeld also doesn’t eat meat.

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Dave Navarro

Tattooed Dave Navarro is giving an almost full frontal view of his body to promote the cause of saving animals from the fashion industry.

Back in his earlier rocker days, Navarro wore what he calls “over the top outfits” that contained fur.

These days, he’s happy with his own skin decorations.

“Some of the simple things you can do to help save animals is not buy fur, stay away from products that have been animal tested,” he told PETA. “It’s really very, very simple to just support something or buy something that doesn’t brutalize animals like this.”

Navarro scores another point for the gentlemen in the category of sexy PETA ads.

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