VEGAN STYLE G FASHION WITH COMPASSION one are the days when veg- an fashion was associated with bad taste. Today, many designers prove that faux fur and leather equals high fashion. There are tons of great cruelty-free designers that abstain from using animal’s skin, most notably Stella McCartney. Vivienne West- wood even pledged to the leading animal rights organization, PETA, back in 2007 to never use fur in her collections again. Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, Betsey Johnson, and Tommy Hilfiger also joined the trend. And most recently, Inditex Co. (owners of Zara) have pledged to rid their inventory of all Angora rabbit fur. Some designers even go a step further: Vaute Couture, a complete- ly vegan fashion house run by Leanne Maily Hilgart was the first all-vegan designer to show at NYFW 2013. No doubt about it, the new hot stars on the design sky are not masters of silk and leather, but pioneers of high-end designs in faux leather and latex, like William Wil- de who bedazzles Kim Kardashian, Kylie Minogue, and Beyoncé with his stage cos- tumes and red carpet creations that seem to prove leather to be obsolete. “People want to look good in their fash- ion items, but not if that means that animals are being harmed and even skinned alive for it,” says Nadja Atwal, a top style-expert on TV who advises fashion brands worldwide and even posed for PETA. “Designers who still feel the need to use fur and leather find themselves more and more in hot waters. Sure, some peo- ple will resist any common sense argument and will still demand dead skin on their back to ap- pear ‘rich,’ but more and more shoppers want to make a choice that feels ethically correct.” Europe’s No. 1 it girl, fashion model & TV star Larissa Marolt shows how stunning the vegan leather trend can look these days Photography by ANTOINE VERGLAS 24 MIAMI SHOOT MAGAZINE FASHION