Environmental impacts of sheepskin vs fakefur slippers?

November 6, 2009 9:23 AM

I'd like to get some slippers for my wife (and possibly some new ones for myself), and am debating between sheepskin and synthetic. I'm debating about real wooly sheepskin versus synthetic alternatives, but I don't know how to go about being a conscientious shopper in terms of environmental impacts. Please help! More thoughts inside.

I've had a pair of sheepskin slippers for about 10 years that I really like, but the left one is a bit small and is getting a hole where my toes were pushing through the seams, and the other is too big and floppy at the heel. Sometimes my wife wears them because they're so warm, but they're much too big for her. It doesn't ever get freezing here, but we like to have cozy toes.

I feel bad about wearing fur and skin, though I figure a few belts and slippers that I'll have for 5-10 years isn't that bad. But if I could find sturdy slippers that are made of decent material (biodegradable materials would be nice, sturdy and long-lived is a must, as is comfortable and warm) then I'd be happy. Hive mind, what are your thoughts?

posted by filthy light thief to clothing, beauty, & fashion (8 comments total)

I think what's more important is how your wife feels about wearing fur and skin. If she has no qualms with it, and loves your slippers, it sounds like a pair like them in her size would be the perfect gift, whereas buying more animal friendly products would come across as a little less thoughtful.

10 years seems like an insane lifespan for a pair of slippers to me, but then, I've never had a pair of sheepskin ones.
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 9:32 AM on November 6, 2009

A big drawback about synthetic "fake fur" is that it doesn't allow a person's skin to breathe through it. Real sheepskin is infinitely more comfortable, and much healthier. Environmental impact? Well, plenty of people eat lamb---some even eat mutton! :-)
posted by ragtimepiano at 9:39 AM on November 6, 2009

To create sheepskin, a sheep must be skinned. This usually involves the death of the sheep. To create WOOL, the sheep must have a haircut. I agree with ragtimepiano that wool permits skin to breathe & is healthier. Best choice would be boiled wool slippers. There are lots of choices available now, and with a durable sole they might last 10 years!
posted by ohshenandoah at 9:56 AM on November 6, 2009

A big drawback about synthetic "fake fur" is that it doesn't allow a person's skin to breathe

Another drawback is that it stays in the environment for ever and ever and can't be recycled. Animal products on the whole seem more eco-friendly to me.
posted by small_ruminant at 10:19 AM on November 6, 2009

Sheepskin is generally a byproduct of the food industry, not simply taken for its hide - to not use it after slaughtering the sheep for food would be wasteful -- a good choice over a synthetic.
posted by faineant at 11:11 AM on November 6, 2009 [1 favorite]

I second the wool idea. No animal has to die, and they are very warm and comfy. Something like these might be good.
posted by TooFewShoes at 2:17 PM on November 6, 2009

It might help to know your framework for making this decision. Are you vegetarians?

faineant is correct that the sheepskin is actually kind of a byproduct of food production. Wool has declined in value greatly, so most industrial sheep raisers aren't raising the animals commercially for their wool (though certainly some local ones are). Sometimes it doesn't seem like people in the world eat a lot of sheep, but they do; it's a major export from New Zealand and Australia.

I have sheepskin slippers. When I start to feel bad about it, I just think about how I also have leather shoes, and I eat cows and pigs and chickens and stuff. I don't know why I should imagine that sheep are somehow different from those animals. Meanwhile, they are impossibly warm and wonderful, easy to keep clean, have lasted years, and when they wear through I could actually reuse the parts of the old slippers as chamois-cloths, and when they eventually disintegrate, they will at least be biodegradable.

I'm not sure how environmentally healthy the hide-tanning process for sheepskin is. But I'm not sure wool fleece-cleaning or natural dying would be healthier, either. In the end, I always feel better when I'm not helping bring more synthetics into the world - particularly oil-derived ones.
posted by Miko at 2:28 PM on November 6, 2009 [1 favorite]

Thanks to you all!

We're not vegetarians, and I was wondering about the possibility of sheepskin being a side-product of the food-lambs.

My wife has some wool(type?) slippers, but seems to enjoy mine more than hers. The fuzzy aspect is a bonus over most wool slippers.
posted by filthy light thief at 2:59 PM on November 6, 2009