One trend that never seems to really leave the catwalk? Feathers.
Kendall and Kylie Jenner stepped out at the 2019 Met Gala in their now iconic Versace feather dresses; Hailey Bieber has also graced the same red carpet wearing a Saint Laurent gown and a matching feather-adorned jacket. Emma Stone, Eiza Gonzáles, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Ashley Park have all relied on feathers to bring their looks together for the prestigious event.
Feathers aren’t just for the Met Gala though; you can find a dress with feather trim at Miu Miu for around $3,700, or a pair of feather trousers for a cool $13,500 at Gucci. But it’s nothing new, really. Ten years ago, we were all wearing feather earrings (and if the 2010 revival sticks around, we’ll be seeing them again very soon). Feathers represent maximalism, excess, and luxury. And that’s also why, way back in the 1800s, feather-trimmed hats were all the rage, too.
But there’s a problem with fashion’s love of feathers. Namely, the birds that they’re plucked from. In the last few years, luxury brands have banned fur from their collections for both ethical and sustainability reasons. But feathers don’t seem to have the same regard. And, according to animal rights activists, including designer Stella McCartney, that’s wrong. Last September, the designer put feathers front and center.
“We’re talking about not killing birds this season,” the designer said at her Paris Fashion Week showing, “but a billion and a half birds are killed for fashion. Feathers belong on birds, so we can be inspired by them. This season was about being elevated, being a bird, being free and seeing things from a different perspective: masculinity, femininity.”
Most statement feathers that luxury brands use are ostrich feathers. They’re fluffy, they’re symmetrical, and they look impressive. But the majority of ostrich farms are located in South Africa — a country where the birds can also be found running free in the wild. But because, unlike many other bird species, ostriches don’t molt, this means that the farmed birds have to have their feathers plucked directly out of their skin. This can happen when they’re alive, or when they’re dead (as ostriches are also raised for the meat and leather industries).
According to the animal rights organization PETA Australia, when the birds are live-plucked, a bag is placed over their head while their feathers are pulled from their skin follicles by hand or with a pair of pliers. “Some birds are returned to cages, bleeding from their fresh wounds,” notes the organization, which has carried out undercover investigations into the industry.
“Others are shot with a captive-bolt gun or electrically shocked and hung upside down, then their throats are slit and the blood slowly drains from their featherless bodies.”
It all sounds pretty gruesome. But Collective Fashion Justice, another organization campaigning for change in the fashion industry, notes that the system is not just unnecessarily violent, but it’s “ecologically inefficient” too. That’s unsurprising because all animal agriculture is associated with major environmental problems, like the intensive use of natural resources and pollution.
“Nitrogen is released from waste on ostrich farms. This waste is made up of urine, feces, dead birds, broken eggs, feathers, and other organic matter,” notes Collective Fashion Justice. “This is a problem because if waste is not disposed of effectively, nitrogen can contribute to eutrophication, which in turn can cause dead zones in both fresh and salt water, killing aquatic life.”
But what about other feather-bearing animals? Geese and duck feathers are used in down insulation, which is often used in jackets in the fashion industry, but also in bedding. Live-plucking is common, and most of the birds also end up as meat.
But this isn’t always the case. Wild eider ducks naturally shed their light, fluffy feathers, which are then later collected by Icelandic harvesters. But even this practice has its critics, as, ultimately, any human involvement is still going to disrupt wildlife and the delicate ecosystems that rely on it remaining untouched and undisturbed.
So what’s the answer? Well, for starters, we could just not wear feathers. “There’s just no excuse for wearing bits and pieces of an animal when we have so many better options at our disposal,” Ashley Byrne, PETA’s associate director of campaigns told Fashionista.
Unlike faux fur, which is everywhere, fake feathers aren’t that common. Most feathers that you come across will be real. But in lieu of vegan feathers, there are other ways you can embrace maximalist, show-stopping fashion. From a distance, Lizzo’s 2023 Brits neck gear appeared to be a plume of pink feathers, but if you look closer, you’d notice that the outfit was actually made with tulle, a type of soft netting, often used to make skirts.
You can also embrace maximalist trends in other ways, like clashing prints, embracing bright colors, or layering up your favorite pieces of jewelry (find ten recycled and upcycled luxury jewelry brands here), for example.
And, if you really want to work the feather look, instead of buying new, it’s always more sustainable and more ethical to find pieces that already exist by shopping vintage or secondhand.
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