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Britain's Queen is ditching real fur in exchange for faux fur, but she’s keeping the diamonds

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Queen Elizabeth II. (Getty Images)
Queen Elizabeth II. (Getty Images)

As of 2019, Britain’s Queen Elizabeth will no longer have clothing made from real fur. British dressmaker Angela Kelly has revealed that the monarch will join fashion’s sustainability bandwagon, as seen with the likes of top luxury brands including Burberry, Versace, Gucci, Chanel and Prada.

According to Vogue, Angela Kelly, the Queen’s longtime dressmaker, reveals in her new memoir that “from 2019 onwards fake fur will be used to make sure she stays warm”.

London Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2020 shows were once again inundated with animal rights protests in and the pressure from environmental and animal rights groups has mounted in the UK.

Protestors from PETA demonstrated at London Fashion week covered in black slime to highlight hazardous waste as a result of the leather industry. The animal rights organisation has also expressed vehement disapproval the use of animal fur as well.

READ MORE: What if your Zara clothes were vegan friendly and made of bark and beans?

Queen Elizabeth herself has faced pressure from climate change and animal rights activists. PETA lambasted ceremonial hats worn by her Five Guards’ Regiments that were made from materials sourced from black bears in Canada that, according to the group, were made to suffer.

Activist group Extinction Rebellion protested with a bleeding red carpet demonstration to show the effects the fashion industry has on the environment.

PETA has, however, been quick to welcome the news of the head of Britain’s royal house. It’s UK branch expressing the following statement: “PETA was thrilled to learn today that the Queen has made the compassionate decision to go fur-free.”

The British royal palace tells the Telegraph that Queen Elizabeth will continue to wear fur garments she already owns but will not have new fur clothing made for her.

READ MORE: Even Meghan Markle and Beyoncé have already worn cow print - the latest major fashion trend you'll be shopping soon

The British Queen succumbing to animal rights activist pressures follows the same trajectory as some of the fashion industry's major luxury brands. With ‘sustainability’ being the current buzzword of choice in the industry, these are some of the reasons why luxury brands are discontinuing use of animal skins in the designs:

Diane von Furstenberg is just one of a handful of fashion bigwigs who've opted out of the use of exotic skins and now are joined by the likes of Chanel and Victoria Beckham.

READ MORE: Victoria Beckham pledges to stop using exotic skins in her collections

Victoria Beckham pledged that her namesake label will no longer use exotic skins in her designs and will create clothes and accessories from more ethically-sourced products that have less environmental impact instead.

Following VB, Prada announced that it will no longer use fur in its designs.

The Prada Group has also been applauded by the FFA with the program manager Brigit Oele revealing that the "Prada Group was one of the fastest companies to go fur-free once positive dialogue began a little more than a year ago. The Fur Free Retailer Program includes 1000 companies, showing that this global movement is gaining momentum fast, and it’s very unlikely that fur will ever return as an acceptable trend".

We predicted that this movement would take flight in the world of luxury fashion earlier this year when luxury Parisian fashion house, Chanel, announced that they would no longer be using the exotic skins of snakes, crocodiles, lizards and galuchat (stingrays) to make their products.

A number of luxury labels including the likes of Gucci, Tom Ford, Michael Kors, Versace, and Maison Margiela all ditched fur over the past year or two, but the movement against exotic skins hasn't quite taken off in the same way yet.

Additional reporting by Afika Jadezweni.

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