Do you own a fur coat or want to buy a new one and need to identify real from faux fur?
Although the fashion industry has seen some tremendous growth lately, and innovation is part of the process especially when it comes to fast fashion, there are ways to help you make the right decision.
Want to know how to tell if a fur coat is real or not?
eFurs has created a list of tips you can use in order to distinguish real fur vs fake fur.
Keep reading our detailed guide to find out more!
How to tell if a fur coat is real – The touch & feel test
As faux fur can never 100% resemble real fur, the easiest, fastest, and – probably – the most reliable way to tell real fur vs fake fur is to touch it!
If you want to know how to identify real fur, the first step is to run your fingers through it and feel it.
Real fur is exceptionally smooth, soft, and silky whereas the fake fur will feel coarse and rough to touch.
Here are 2 examples that can help you detect the authenticity of your fur:
- How can I tell if mink fur is real?
Mink fur coats are soft, smooth, and shiny – so shiny, that they almost look wet. This characteristic is almost impossible to duplicate with a faux fur, which is why mink identification is a rather easy task.
- How to tell real chinchilla fur?
Similarly, chinchilla fur coats are easy to spot because of how dense the coat is. Chinchillas as animals are notorious for how much fur they have (fact: more than 20.000 hairs per square centimeter) which makes it impossible to credibly copy!
How to tell if a coat is real fur – The water and warmth test
A second way to determine whether your fur coat is made from real fur and not a synthetic material is to test it in real conditions.
Always keep in mind how a real animal uses its fur – the way the hair protects it from the cold and rain is the same way your fur coat should protect you.
If you wet the fur and it gets all sticky and clumpy like a stuffed animal, it’s fake. If it remains silky smooth, it’s real!
Similarly, your genuine fur jacket should be keeping you warm and be breathable. If you get sweaty or continue to feel cold, then it’s possible that your coat is not made from real fur.
How to tell if something is real fur – The weight test
Another easy way that can help you establish real fur vs fake fur is the weight of the coat – or any other garment you own for that matter.
More specifically, the actual weight of your coat, rug, blanket, or any fur accessory, can be an indicator of authenticity: real fur should be relatively heavier than its fake counterpart.
How can you tell if a fur coat is real – The pin test
The “pin test” is a common way that can help you determine whether you own a real or a faux fur coat, and it all comes down to how real animals use their fur in the wild.
Use a safety pin or a needle and try to poke a hole in your fur: if your coat is real, then it should be nearly impossible to penetrate the “skin”.
On the other hand, if you own a faux fur jacket, the needle will pass right through the synthetic base.
Real fur vs fake fur – The burn test
Although not the most practical way to identify real fur, and one we would actually advise against, it to burn some hair and see what happens.
It goes without saying that you should be extremely cautious if you want to try this method, and make sure you don’t set the whole coat on fire.
Ideally, cut a few hairs from a not-so-obvious spot, place them on a fireproof material (like a ceramic plate) and carefully light a match near them: if you get a plasticky smell, with clumps of melted plastic, then you know – your fur is not real.
If your fur coat is real, the edges will be slightly singed and the smell will be that of burnt hair, not plastic.
How to tell if fur coat is real when buying online
All the methods we’ve seen so far assume you either already own the fur coat or are physically near it.
But what happens when you want to buy a fur coat online?
How to tell if a fur coat is real when you can’t hold it in your hands?
The easiest way to do this is to buy from trusted furriers. A furrier with decades of experience, who buys their raw materials from established auctions and only works with the best designers and craftsmen is what you should be after.
Founded in 1970, eFurs.co is a leading company in the production of fur garments.
If you want to be 100% sure that you buy real fur coats, then check out our online collection and let’s create together the fur coat of your dreams, made especially for you!
