Stella McCartney’s SS25 collection at Paris Fashion Week took flight with a bold ethics mission to make feathers go the way of fur.
After years of battling against the use of fur, a fight that she and countless others in the industry have largely won, designer Stella McCartney has turned her attention to another form of fashion cruelty — one that might be as overlooked as it is ubiquitous. Her latest runway show at Paris Fashion Week carried a clear message: feathers are as cruel as fur.
“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.”
McCartney spoke passionately about how many people don’t realize that behind feathered trims and puffer jackets lies a cruel and largely unregulated industry. “When you see a pretty feather trim, or a puffer jacket with a down filling, I don’t think you necessarily register that a bird has been killed,” she continued. “And we all love birds, right?”
The collection, fittingly titled Peace and Dove, wasn’t just a presentation; it was a manifesto. With its vivid dove motifs and faux-feathered ensembles, the show underscored McCartney’s growing campaign to expose the often-hidden cruelty in the fashion industry’s use of feathers. Victoria’s Secret recently confirmed that its show this fall will feature faux feathers only — a major win for McCartney’s cause, especially given the brand’s history of iconic angel wings made from real feathers.
To put this into perspective, the numbers are staggering. A million ostriches are killed annually, and feather harvesting emits tens of thousands of tons of carbon. By some accounts, one Victoria’s Secret show alone used 620,000 feathers from a variety of birds. Yet the connection between these extravagant looks and the mass slaughter of birds is rarely made by the consumer.
Featuring hand-painted doves on flowing silk dresses, and intricate jewelry made from recycled electronics, McCartney’s new collection embodied her signature mix of glamour and sustainability. But there was also something different about this runway: a sense of urgency, of pushing forward a new chapter in her activism. The designer made her stance crystal clear with a memorable line backstage, summing up the collection’s ethos: “It’s about f—king time that we stopped killing animals for fashion.”
The designer has revived the “About F–king Time” slogan in her recent collections. At New York Fashion Week, McCartney leveraged it alongside PETA, to discuss the ethics of leather — another widely used animal material tied to cruelty and the climate crisis. In Paris, caps with the slogan were given to every guest. It’s become a mantra for McCartney, who first wore a t-shirt with the slogan in 1999 when her father Sir Paul McCartney was finally inaugurated into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
McCartney’s vision for feathers and faux materials goes far beyond mere aesthetics. The faux-feathered dresses that graced her Paris show were made from regenerated nylon, crafted from recycled plastic bottles. The collection featured 91 percent sustainable materials. The designs, inspired by the delicate textures of real feathers, were a marvel of innovation. McCartney’s models glided down the runway, adorned in pastel minidresses that mimicked the downy softness of newly hatched chicks, but with an unmistakable McCartney edge — sharp stilettos and striking silhouettes.
Another hallmark of the collection was its playful use of volume and texture. Cloud-like fabrics reminiscent of feathery tufts were juxtaposed with sharply tailored suits, showing McCartney’s mastery of balance. One of the standout looks, a pastel mini dress, was constructed to give the illusion of feather-lightness while being composed of recycled plastic, showcasing the designer’s commitment to both beauty and sustainability. McCartney also brought her signature wit to the runway, incorporating Prince’s When Doves Cry into the soundtrack, a nod to both her collection’s theme and the joyfulness of her designs.
Actress Helen Mirren opened the show with a powerful narration of a manifesto urging the audience to protect birds and the planet. “A world where there are only planes in the sky, and no song in the trees, will never make the heart soar,” she declared. The collaboration with Mirren, known for her activism, added gravitas to the collection’s message, further aligning McCartney’s work with urgent calls for change in the fashion industry.
McCartney’s commitment to sustainability goes back decades. She was one of the earliest designers to advocate for eco-conscious materials — well before sustainable fashion became a buzzword. “We’re a very strange fashion house, in a sense, because obviously we have sustainability and stopping animal cruelty at the core of everything that we do, and then you have to couple that with the fact that I’m a fashion designer, and I want it to just look effortless and beautiful,” she said, noting that luxury should not have to come “at the expense of animal lives.”
The Paris show drew a star-studded crowd, including Natalie Portman, Greta Gerwig, Paris Jackson, and Jameela Jamil. Guests were greeted with copies of The Stella Times, a tongue-in-cheek yet serious newspaper outlining the designer’s latest efforts in sustainable fashion. One headline read, “Read! Because I don’t think people read anymore,” a quip that reflects McCartney’s belief that education and awareness are key to changing consumer habits.
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