r/ZeroWaste • u/trashspoon • 1d ago

Question / Support Furs

Hi guys,
I work in a theatre’s costume shop and we’ve been in the process of cleaning out our garment storage for 3+ years (we have SO much stuff…). One of the sections we’re looking to significantly downsize is our fur collection. We have probably 100+ genuine fur garments (coats, shawls, hats, scarves, etc.) and we’ll probably keep only a few. I’ve tried to look into it before about animal rescues I can donate them to but I haven’t had a ton of success where I’m located in the Midwest. Any other suggestions?

38 Upvotes

89% Upvoted

42 comments sorted by

131

u/Green_Newspaper_5623 1d ago

Is there a reason you can’t sell them so that the theatre has more money? The one I used to costume for did a costume clear out sale in early October every few years so that people could find their Halloween costumes, re-enactors could find stuff they wanted/needed, vintage clothing lovers could find new pieces, people looking for truly unique items could get a thing or three, and we’d discount for costume departments for other theatre companies. We made a pretty solid chunk of money every time we did it, especially when we were decluttering after winning regional costuming awards.

33

u/ijustneedtolurk 1d ago

Yesss I would do this, or maybe a charity auction for any pricier pieces to benefit the organization.

4

u/nkdeck07 22h ago

We did that as well. Worked costuming in college and it was a great fundraiser

-6

u/Background-Cod-7035 21h ago

Isn’t this a little morally iffy, as it keeps real fur in fashion? Like selling ivory is illegal because it keeps making ivory a desirable thing to own. I guess it depends on how you feel about fur farms. This is one instance where I personally would throw out rather than keep in circulation as desirable items, but that’s my own fur farms feelings and I totally respect if people come down on the other end of the tipping scales of waste. 

13

u/PandaBeaarAmy 21h ago

The animal is already dead, people already wear furs. The idea is to shift the mindset into buying second hand and circulating furs rather than buying new.

0

u/Background-Cod-7035 21h ago

Real fur decays. If people stay too used to real fur there’s no way to avoid keeping up the demand. FAR fewer people wear real fur these days. And ivory is from dead elephants but it is still wrong to trade. And people still keep poaching elephants for it, but it’s getting less and less as there’s less on the market. It’s proven that taking things out of circulation entirely can work to shift societal perception

2

u/PandaBeaarAmy 20h ago

Then sure, toss it when it does decay, but it still exists now and people are still producing fur today, in this economy, in this market right now.

1

u/gothiclg 18h ago

They’ve been made already and I’m guessing have been around for years. I’m aggressively against killing animals just for their fur but I can’t justifiably do that over existing coats, we need to focus on ensuring no new fur coats get made.

1

u/Look_A_Bunny 20h ago

The animals have already died for their furs. It was be incredibly wasteful and disrespectful to just throw them away.

1

u/Background-Cod-7035 19h ago

Would you really say the same about carved ivory pieces?

2

u/Look_A_Bunny 18h ago edited 17h ago

Yes, that is why museums still display ivory pieces. They are a part of history and represent an animal's life. It is not illegal to own ivory. And ivory, unlike furs, nearly led to the extinction of the elephants. Foxes, minks, and rabbits are not endangered due to the fur trade.

3

u/Background-Cod-7035 17h ago edited 17h ago

It is illegal to sell, trade or buy ivory (and things made of many other endangered species) and often hard to donate because you cannot get tax breaks, and most museums do not want to accrue more items like this. The pieces on display in museums are grandfathered in. 

There’s a very very famous painting that has a taxidermied bald eagle in it and the painting can never be sold nor donated with any tax breaks. The heirs of the owner of that painting are really angry. 

Edit: regarding your last part, that is true, foxes and mink are not going extinct. But hopefully the desire for fur and the inhumane practices inherent in its production will eventually be so societally unpalatable that the market will cease to exist. All I’m saying is it should be questioned whether fur should at present remain even in a circular market. 

59

u/NSAinATL 1d ago

Y'all aren't having a storage sale? Animal rescues will have no need for them. Sell them on Poshmark (I find it the easiest platform) and put the profits towards the theatre!

6

u/BigBigBop 23h ago

I bought the most beautiful 1920s rabbit fur coat for $60 on fb marketplace, felt like a steal!

1

u/trashspoon 11h ago

We do have a storage sale every year but we’re in a small college town and only end up selling around half the selection. I think I’ll advertise on a bigger scale like people have suggested.

21

u/madnessdoesntplay 1d ago

Wait, is there a thing where people donate fur clothing to animal rescues? I’ve never heard of this.

16

u/soup__soda 22h ago

No it's not. They have no use for them. Maybe a nature center if they do education on fur trade and things like that, but not a shelter.

4

u/mrs_rabbit_0 22h ago

there was a question about furs a couple of months ago and a lot of people said animal rescues use them for newborn puppies

2

u/madnessdoesntplay 13h ago

hm. I work with tons of neo natal animal rehabilitation, and that sounds like some tiktok thing.

2

u/mrs_rabbit_0 11h ago

it sounded sus to me too. 

I also believe that if an animal died for us we should be respectful of it and use every part. furs, once they have been made, should be used until they’re in tatters. every fur you use also displaces a new one, so you save the environment (and therefore animals) from the byproducts of making and throwing plastic garments

4

u/glacialaftermath 19h ago

Not domestic animal rescue, but sometimes wildlife rehabilitation places will take them for orphaned wildlife

45

u/Look_A_Bunny 1d ago

Animal rescues aren't likely to take furs. You could either sell or donate them; allow people to keep using and appreciating the furs rather than them go to waste.

2

u/WaldrotDE 1d ago

yea I don’t think they’ll take them. just what I thought too. maybe donate to other theatre organizations so they are reused.

2

u/pyretta_blaze13 10h ago

I work with a few small, local theatres (and ren faires/other creatives) who may be interested! From your post, it sounds like they couldn’t take all of them, but you’re welcome to dm me if you’d like!

32

u/TeachCompetitive2742 1d ago

2nd hand furs are ethical! Fur is biodegradable and lasts a very very long time. Definitely sell these to benefit your theatre. 

6

u/Humble-Attempt-2201 23h ago

search specifically for wildlife rehabbers instead of standard animal shelters! they use real fur to comfort orphaned baby animals so they feel like they're with their mom, and they're usually desperate for donations like this.

1

u/ProudAbalone3856 13h ago

Yep. PETA operates a program that does exactly that, though the hive mind mysteriously opted to downvote my suggestion. Yet another reason why humans tend to be my least favorite animal. 😂

16

u/Uncreativeinjune 1d ago

Maybe see if there are nature centers that can use them for educational purposes? Several nature and visitor centers in my area have exhibits where you can touch the fur of various local animals and I imagine they have to replace the fur every so often.

10

u/Uncreativeinjune 1d ago

Or museums and historical renactiment groups if they are true vintage

5

u/aksnowraven 17h ago

I heard on the radio once about a group of women in Hollywood who sent all of their furs to Utqiagvik to be given away. Everyone’s parkas had exotic fur trims that year. Another year they got a surplus of Hawaiian print fabric…

4

u/StoicEstate 18h ago

Check with zoos, museums, nature centers, etc. Sometimes they will use fashion furs in educational programs!

9

u/trubluevan 1d ago

If there's an Indigenous friendship centre nearby, they may accept them. My family used to upcycle fur coats for mitts etc.

3

u/OmriTeal 21h ago

I would recommend either contacting other theater departments to see if any of them need them. Or have a storage/downsizing sale or auction fundraiser for them.

While Making new furs is unethical reusing already made fur clothing is a good way to stop someone from buying a new fur piece is they really want one.

2

u/IncontiCreature 7h ago

I will say, theres a decent chance they could have pests on them such as moths and beetles, or some pretty gnarly chemicals to kill said pests.

Some alterhumans like real fur, for identity reasons. It’s a long shot but somebody might buy it for that reason

5

u/honeyb0518 1d ago

I have an online eBay store. I'd be willing to work out a wholesale price for them or help you launch your own store. Please DM me if you are interested. I can provide my store information if you'd like to see my reviews as well. I wish you luck either way!

2

u/sarazzz666 23h ago

homeless shelters? keeps them warm and also puts a dent in that gross idea that fur is a luxury item to be worn by the rich, feeding two birds with one scone.

3

u/borzoilady 21h ago

Sell them as a fundraiser - 2nd hand fur is a great way to shop ethically!

3

u/cactusgirl69420 20h ago

Definitely sell them and put the funds towards the theatre!! Local theater is so underfunded these days. Also, I donate all my costumey stuff to my local lgbtq center as it can be gender affirming/ help lgbtq youth peruse the arts.

2

u/gaymythicalcreature 21h ago

💥💳💥💳 please i would buy them

0

u/ghostwarfolklore 1d ago

where in the midwest? if you’re in minnesota i’ll buy them! :)

-10

u/ProudAbalone3856 1d ago

Donate them to PETA.

https://www.peta.org/donate/ways-to-support-peta/gifts-of-property/donate-fur/

1

u/ProudAbalone3856 18h ago

Downvoting a legitimate way of disposing of animal skins is genuinely bizarre.