Almost overnight it seems that rooster feather hair extensions have popped up as the latest trend. I have to admit they do look beautiful, but I am so saddened that this is 'what's in' for summer. Along with feather hair extensions I am seeing an influx of feather headbands, earrings, necklaces, and clothing embellishments.
Many celebrities (everyone from Stephen Tyler, to Megan of NYink, to Roseanne) have been spotted wearing these colorful feather extensions. I am seeing them in magazines and fashion ads. And I am seeing them on your average everyday girl next-door. Chances are- they probably are being done right now in a salon not-so-far-away from where you live. They are EVERYWHERE.
I wonder if the people who buy these even stop to think about where those beautiful feathers may have come from. I wonder if your average trendy gal knows that a rooster was killed for those feathers. I wonder if these people realize that it takes a rooster about a year to grow the long saddle feathers that are prized for not only this trend, but for use in fly fishing. Roosters are even genetically altered to produce extra long colorful saddle feathers. I also wonder if these people know that the process of plucking the feathers is painful, cruel, and requires the bird to be euthanized. Once they are killed they are then turned into compost, because for the most part carnivores don't even eat them. 1000's of roosters are dying each week to meet the demand of the fashion industry....all so that you can wear some feathers in your hair for about 1-2 months. It seems disgustingly selfish and wasteful to me.
There are plenty of sources for cruelty-free feathers, and alternatives to using real bird feathers. While I love feathers, they aren't ours to take. The rooster feather hair look can be duplicated with things other than bird feathers (ribbons, faux feathers, those streaky hair clip-ins from Hot Topic). Once I pick up a few supplies, I will try to put up a tutorial on how to do an animal friendly version of the hair feathers.
There isn't ever an excuse to hurt animals in the name of fashion. If you MUST have a feather accessory this summer, please make sure the feathers are obtained from a cruelty-free seller. The roosters will thank you :)
I wonder if the people who buy these even stop to think about where those beautiful feathers may have come from. I wonder if your average trendy gal knows that a rooster was killed for those feathers. I wonder if these people realize that it takes a rooster about a year to grow the long saddle feathers that are prized for not only this trend, but for use in fly fishing. Roosters are even genetically altered to produce extra long colorful saddle feathers. I also wonder if these people know that the process of plucking the feathers is painful, cruel, and requires the bird to be euthanized. Once they are killed they are then turned into compost, because for the most part carnivores don't even eat them. 1000's of roosters are dying each week to meet the demand of the fashion industry....all so that you can wear some feathers in your hair for about 1-2 months. It seems disgustingly selfish and wasteful to me.
There are plenty of sources for cruelty-free feathers, and alternatives to using real bird feathers. While I love feathers, they aren't ours to take. The rooster feather hair look can be duplicated with things other than bird feathers (ribbons, faux feathers, those streaky hair clip-ins from Hot Topic). Once I pick up a few supplies, I will try to put up a tutorial on how to do an animal friendly version of the hair feathers.
There isn't ever an excuse to hurt animals in the name of fashion. If you MUST have a feather accessory this summer, please make sure the feathers are obtained from a cruelty-free seller. The roosters will thank you :)
