A MALE FUR?

[auzmink]

Okay, given the number of males on this forum, and given the poor representation of furs on men (Lynxette might like to comment on that), and given some of the terrible 'fashions' for us men; http://thefurden.com/bbden/viewtopic.php?t=9928

 

lets ask the question: Guys, what WOULD you wear

 

I'm aware of OFF's fur lined jackets amongst others, we've seen images of full length Coyote coats in Canada etc, but really, what would the vast majority of males BE PREPARED to wear for most everyday use THAT is fashionable, stylish and reasonable. Can we design a MALE FUR?

 

Perhaps we can banish some of the gaudy rubbish present in the World that is supposed to represent male fur and come up with better ideas..... Gents, the catwalk awaits....

 

Auzmink.

[lynxette]

This is the most interesting use I have yet seen for mink tails in a fur coat. They are basically worked in squares, and then the texture is alternated. Hmmmm...I would have to agree that it is not the typical daily use fur for the average male, but on the other hand in my crusade to get men into furs out of doors any little bit helps IMHO. For the right personality this could be just the ticket indeed.

[Zaphod_bee]

As already said by a member when I introduced pictures of my black sheared nutria pullover, this IS something to wear for a man in an "everyday" purpose. It is not something very delicate or extraordinary, but it is weareable because of the normal style.

After all this was the piece of fur I had the heart to wear in the public !!

 

... it is as with OFF´s lined jackets - they are mild enough.

 

Nevertheless I would like to dare to wear a stylish full lenght long haired fur

 

Zaphod_bee

[lynxette]

Oh yes, please do so!

[Worker 11811]

What would be the ULTIMATE thing for me to wear?

 

 

[Guest]

This is what drove me to design my own. Bad taste is standard fair and unfortunately it is most prevalent. The only thing maybe more prevalent is conservative boring. How many all black mink/lambskin reversible jackets can a person wear.

 

I went into Schumackers in Portland before they shut down and I saw maybe a dozen or more of that identical jacket.

 

I asked "Do you have it in any other color?" Just a different color and they were beyond what they could show me other than a single men's BLACK mink full length coat.

 

I don't wear BLACK!!!! So they had NOTHING I could buy at all.

 

I could .. I would wear worker's example and I know I can get Horst to make one for me. He also has the Beaver I want .. and will get when my ship comes in. It's a natural Beaver version of worker's picture.

 

The lack of imagination is appalling. Even the simple concept of Mink lining a Carhartt jacket is beyond the feeble imagination of the fur industry????

 

OFF

[auzmink]

Ok - so far

 

Nutria pullover as an option

 

Fur lined jacket - ?denim jacket.

 

The Hagrid look - not an option for many of us!!!!! Bit scraggly!

 

Any others.......

 

Auzmink.

[Worker 11811]

I'm 6-3 ft. tall in my stocking feet and weigh 275 lbs. butt-nekkid.

 

Except for the beard, that look would work on me.

I'd probably want a less scraggly version of the coat as well but the overall concept is what I was going for.

[JGalanos]

I own ten furs ... Ranging from ankle length fox coats to hip length mink jackets. I have found every one of my furs attracts attention (even the supposedly sedate mink jackets) -- With the exception of my dark fisher coat. I must admit I'm surprised it doesn't attract more attention given its style (ankle length, wide sweep, oversized notch collar, turnback cuffs) ... I assume it must be the dark brown color of the fur (a typical color for a man's overcoat).

[Guest]

I never thought I would own my own fur--most of the styles I saw just didn't appeal to my demographic. But then I found my black sheared mink overcoat, and wear it everywhere.

 

Also, guys--don't dismiss the appeal of shearling.

[blackwillo]

I have a black mink coat but what I'd love to have is a black mink trench coat complete with epilettes, waist belt (long), and big deep outside fur pockets. One more addition...big fur cuffs. Ooh ya!

 

bw

[foxkid]

I've touched on this before in a post related to the Saga Furs post (i.e. http://www.sagafurs.com/index.php?id=13&g2_itemId=22636)

 

What seems to be happening is that obviouisly the industry has tried to reinvent it's self style wise since the 80's. For most things, it's worked, however, for some reason most designers have failed badly with mens wear.

 

I think some of it seems to be partly due to the fact there is a convergance with mens wear and unisex items, and the fact in some areas mens clothing seems to be inheriting more femine traits (i.e. very skinny clothing).

 

What I find so annoying is the use of dyed fur, that is dyed in really bright unnatural colours like blue, lemon yellow, or purple. It just looks wrong. For instance, the guy wearing this ...

 

 

... has an uncanny resemblence to ...

 

 

Anyone who dresses in a coat like that just looks more like something out of a kids cartoon to be honest!

 

Like Off, I tend to go for fur lined items. Leather coats and hoodies are excellent because they can be worn casually on a daily basis, you don't feel like you are dressing up for some special event.

 

For younger guys anything overly fluffy does look particularly daft as a rule of thumb, especially on someone like me who isn't the heavy / hairy build lol. The coat I have on in my avatar is probably an rare exception that suits me. I think though for older guys and more heavily built guys things like fully length coyote can work if you have rugged body to match the coat.

 

Again like Off says, it seems the only thing that seems to be made for men regularly that looks acceptable by many furriers is the black mink lined black leather bomber. But as he stated it's such a dull cliche. However, there are so many designs for leather and demin jackets out there, you can pretty much take any of them (as long as they are exceptionally skinny, of which like I said I hate tight means wear... if men want to wear something tight like spandex in the bedroom, fine, just please not in front of me!) and make a fur lining to go inside. The same applies for hoodies. Both Off and Zaphod have proven this is a good formula. The other thing is this is a subtle, but yet still noticeable way to wear furs. It's also a good way to wear softer furs like lynx, alaskan seal, rex rabbit, sheared beaver etc which typically aren't used for mens furs. I have a few friends who rally envy my hooded bronze leather rex rabbit lined coat because it feels so warm and soft on the inside!

 

For more formal occasions I do think shorter full length furs like black, or iris mink work well.

 

It does seem for men simple designs work best, irrepective of age, build, or function. Crazy patterns and bright colours no!

[White Fox]

Certainly the "Make it big and then one size will fit all" complex is out there and pretty much killing the industry for men.

 

Last year I was in a fur store for instance, and tried on a men's coyote. Looked terrible on me. Men's mink. Looked worse. Even if it had fit, the "cut" would have made them look two sizes too big.

 

The gal waiting on me said "Is there anything else you see that you would like to try on? They had a hooded coyote (women's) with white fox trim. Instantly that coat looked fantastic on me. It was made to fit! They were not stuck in this stupid "One size fits all" complex when they made that coat. And as a result, they made a nice looking coat. If they made and showed coats like that for men, they would sell more. Course I realize the cost of stock, etc. But just think. 50% of the population is male. Think of the potential size of that market!

 

In comparison think of the small desire for pink, yellow, and blue furs. Yes, some young folk will like them. I realize that. But think how many men here have told us they would like a men's blue fox or white fox in a full length possibly hooded coat. And how many times have you seen one advertised or in a fur store.

 

W

[Guest]

Thanks foxkid.

 

I think that those who love colored furs on men have only one big eye

 

 

 

OFF

[Zaphod_bee]

I think foxkid took it to the point: it is realistic for men to wear "normal" or casual furs. For this the lined version or understated fur does the strike.

 

Nevertheless it is the dreamy version for the bedroom or the heavy guy to wear a spectacular long-haired impressive coat.

 

I would really like to try on White fox´es described full lenght hooded fox - but it has to be masculine enough as well as matched for the male wearer !

 

Zaphod_bee

[sable-mink]

That's what I wear. Got three fur scarfs as well. Saving up some money for a hooded sheared fur jacket.

[Guest]

Nice coat sable-mink.

 

 

 

 

OFF

[JGalanos]

Personally, I want my furs to be well constructed, luxurious, beautiful -- And masculine. And these days I find that combination very hard to find (half my furs were custom made for very good reason). I have found the marketplace filled with poorly designed, poorly crafted, over-priced garments. I miss the glamorous men's furs of the 70's and 80's.

[Guest]

What Department do we complain to

 

 

 

OFF

[auzmink]

Quite a range of replies, but good enough to suggest that as a demographic, WE ARE DISAPPOINTED

 

I guess the area we are in dictates the style. Deep powder snow 5 months of the year is different to a balmy 10'C windy day, possible drizzle!

 

When I'm back in Auz, Snowy mountains are only 3 months of the year and a 1600m climb upwards. Not useful for Sunny cities.

 

What does the group think of 'fur additions' such as was worn in the middle age - a fox pelt splashed over a shoulder attached to a coat or jacket? Bit Henry Viii th

 

Auzmink

[JGalanos]

What does the group think of 'fur additions' such as was worn in the middle age - a fox pelt splashed over a shoulder attached to a coat or jacket? Bit Henry Viii th

 

Unless it's being worn in a period drama, "pretentious" comes to mind.

 

I think "disappointed" is a good summary. I think things have changed dramatically since the 70's and 80's. Back then you saw great designs for men on the runway and they were often translated into similar quality, affordable designs in furrier showrooms. Based upon my experience, you can still see great men's furs on the runway (unfortunately the volume is way down) ... But if you run across a copy in a showroom it's often a pale imitation of the original.

 

As an example, I liked the fur jacket Vin Diesel wore in "XXX" ... Which was a terrific, current Gucci design. The next season I ran across a few "copies" in furrier showrooms, but they were nowhere near the quality of the Gucci jacket. You don't expect a "knockoff" to be equal to the designer original ... But the pelt and construction quality of the jackets I saw were low and the prices ridiculously high. I have often thought that furriers think men are fashion stupid -- Unable to distinguish good quality and design from bad. (And based upon some of the items I've seen offered for sale on ebay, maybe they are right to an extent!)

[RonGav]

As for styles I still prefer the traditonal, not too bulky, but coats as opposed to vests and such. Colors are out -- way too conspicuous.

 

My first coat for truly myself was a raccoon coat, soon after a beaver and then coyote.

 

It was all I could do to walk into the real world while first wearing my raccoon coat. It literally took years both to finally buy them and then acutally overcome my self conscious block and venture forth.

 

But the good news is the reaction of woman to my various coats. Always fearing the worse, the results, however, have been quite positive. It has since been quite easy and fun wearing my coats out and seeing the reaction. In fact my wife and I spent a week in Sun Valley in February. I brought and wore my raccoon coat. My wife took a picture of me wearing it and we emailed the picture to her secretary.

 

Last week while having lunch, her secretary (and HER mom who was there) both said how HOT I looked in my fur coat.. Since it was snowing in the picture I had to presume she was not speaking of the temperature.

 

It just keeps getting better. Guys -- don't wait, go for it.

[samurman]

Maybe I should have opened a new thread but since this one is about furs for men, let me continue here.

 

When I was having my first custom fur coat, I told my furrier that I did not want the coat to slip open while sitting. He said that in order to achieve that, he had to increase the "sweep" of the coat, but then, it would not be appropriate for a men's coat. From then onwards, I have been keeping a conscious eye on the sweep of the coats, and indeed, it seems men's coats tend to have more straight cuts. This seems to be especially valid for strollers or 3/4 coats. If the coat/jackets hits just the hips or a little lower and it has like 100 inches of sweep, it definitely looks like a ladies' coat. My full length fox eventually had some sweep but it is not excessive.

 

What do you think?

[JGalanos]

I agree that the sweep is a concern. All of my custom coats have a relatively wide sweep ... I'd say they range from ~70 to ~80 inches. I can't stand a narrow sweep, even with a back slit -- It's just too confining when I walk. I had to make a specific request for an unusually wide sweep each time. Most furriers seem to think a men's coat should fit like a strait jacket.

[Guest]

I'll join with you on that one JG.

 

The few big furs I've tried on at Ungar Furs are all quite big and with wide sweeps.

 

Suppressing my ego I have to say they look terrific on me

 

Especially that Beaver he still has.

 

That Silver Fox he had was just simply too gargantuan but in a size or two smaller it would still have been very generous and very good looking.

 

Just wish I had somewhere to wear a fur like that

 

OFF