The Fashion Weeks that took place this season in Paris, Milan and New York were called the kingdom of fur, since two-thirds of the world's leading designers widely used artificial fur of various types when creating their collections. We can say that the world fur market is experiencing the heyday of bygone years today, offering the consumer audience a large assortment of products made of "soft gold", as fur is often called. It has been said more than once that recently fur products have been confidently returning to fashion, and especially this season, providing fur lovers not only a comfortable feeling of warmth, but also a wonderful non-standard design, as well aswide range of colors.

Unlike natural, artificial fur is a pile fabric that imitates natural fur. Knitted fur consists of two parts, different in their structure, properties and purpose, ground and pile. The defining qualities of artificial fur are the properties of the pile (fibrous composition, length, density of the pile).

The appearance of the fur depends on them, its greater or lesser similarity with natural fur, gloss, neck, resistance to crumpling, dumping, wear resistance, heat protection and other properties. Acrylic, polyester, modified acrylic fibers, as well as natural wool and cotton are used as lint. The composition, density and height of the pile depends on the purpose of the fabric: outerwear, outerwear trim, hats and collars for uniforms, decorative items, toys, lining in clothes and shoes.

The collection of shoe lining of JSC "BELFA" is one of the largest, it includes canvases with different wool content, from 10 to 100%, it all depends on the wishes of the shoe manufacturer. Having huge capacities, the company can satisfy all the manufacturer's requests in terms of color, density and produce unlimited footage of the canvas. The factory is constantly developing and improving the direction of woolen fur on a knitted basis. The presence of high-quality synthetic fibers in the fabric allows you to extend the service life.

As a rule, manufacturers try to adhere to the following proportion: 70% 80% sheep wool, 20%30% synthetic. This does not affect the properties of shoes in any way, since the presence of a high-tech laboratory at the enterprise helps to control every roll of canvas that has come off the conveyor.
The second advantage is the vapor permeability of the fabric. Wool breathes easily, thanks to which the feet sweat less at high temperatures, and in winter the material will perfectly warm them. Actually, the third advantage is good thermal regulation.

This type of fabric, unlike natural fur, has less friction. Thanks to this, its service life increases. According to statistics, linings and insoles made of woolen fur «live» 20–30% longer than insoles made of natural fur. In addition, there is another plus - low water absorption. This also has a positive effect on the quality of shoes.

What other advantages do woolen fur have in common with natural fur? This is air and vapor permeability. In insulated shoes, it should be low so that the foot breathes and at the same time there is no heat loss. And here wool also has no equal.It is worth noting that woolen fur has exclusive beneficial properties: wool cut from live and healthy sheep contains lanolin, which is a natural antiseptic with antibacterial properties. It is activated at a temperature of 35-37 degrees, easily penetrates through the skin, has a beneficial effect on muscles, joints, and stimulates blood circulation.

As a result, when we buy shoes with woolen fur, we get a cheaper option with all the properties of natural fur, and even superior natural fur in useful properties. In addition, there are no obvious disadvantages inherent in artificial fur shoes in such products.

Author: Sergey Borisevich,
           Deputy General Director of JSC "BELFA" for Marketing and Sales