The best news about 2001 New York Fur Week, however, was that it finally found its niche in the fashion world. Over the past five years, as the vast majority of the world's top designers have increasingly included furs in their ready-to-wear collections, specialty fur fashion shows have looked incredibly redundant and a little quaint. Some major editors even stopped covering them, feeling that the real, "legitimate" fur fashion items premiere earlier, during February's ready-to-wear shows in Bryant Park and during consecutive weeks in Milan and Paris. While this might contain a grain of truth (and most of the furs you will see in major print magazines this fall will be from these earlier collections with bigger names like Prada, Versace and Fendi) this year's New York Fur Week proved that there is room for fur shows.

First, you don't see sable like this in ready-to-wear shows, even the most opulent ones in Milan. Ready-to-wear designers have produced major fur looks, but they often use off-quality furs like squirrel in order to meet price points. After all, the markup on a Prada fur is about five times that of a Cassin fur. Labels cost money, as if that's news. Furs.com has talked a lot in the past about how getting quality fur for your money does not mean buying a $5,500 rabbit jacket from a famous designer. As a result, furriers are often more free to fill runways with sable, ermine (yes, it's back this year!), chinchilla, broadtail and even mink.

Second, furriers seem to be tired of ceding the creativity factor to ready-to-wear designers. After all, fur is sometimes just an accessory in ready-to-wear shows, and yet it is often more innovatively presented. If this year's New York Fur Week is any indication, furriers want to reclaim the ability to do more with their product. There is no excuse for them not to. They don't have the pressures of designing the perfect pantsuit to sell in volume, like ready-to-wear designers do, in addition to reinventing fur.

Thankfully, this year's fashion dictates are not so narrow that they say one fur is fashionable and another is not. When personal style reigns, you can pick out just about any fur that you fall in love with and not worry about looking dated or out. This year's modern-looking furs range from retro to high-tech (with hide-out treatments, tie-dyed looks and lace-like perforations), from inexpensive (knitted rabbit) to super-luxe (knitted sable), and from clean (think a snappy, straight white mink) to embellished (short fur-tail fringe is back too!). About the only fashion 'don't' this season is to look like you're trying too hard. Pull back a bit from the unrestrained excess of the past few years, even if that just means limiting the sequins and beads and oversized jewelry when you wear your fur. That is, if you ever piled it on in the first place. Most women have the good sense not to want to look like they stepped out of a fashion magazine.

DENNIS BASSO presented one of the few, full-produced runway shows during Fur Week and as usual didn't skimp on the luxe factor with an ermine/sable/chinchilla/diamond-dripping runway celebration of all things decadent at the Pierre. Front-row attendees with names like Trump, Dupont and Hilton went crazy for a golden summer ermine cape with canary sable fringe, a spotted Lippy cat (it only looks endangered) jacket with sable collar, and sexier-than-sexy black Russian broadtail pants with matching push-up bustier that had dangerous-looking black alligator inserts. Basso promised furs in unexpected combinations, and he delivered, matching rare white chinchilla in a cape with silver fox trim, and combining antelope with sable.

Of course, Basso is always best known for his slinky broadtail dinner suits, over-the-top graphic chinchilla coats and floor-sweeping Russian sables. This year was no exception. But that wasn't enough for this society favorite. Embellishments came in the form of e
vagant beading and another celebrity model for the finale. Following in the footsteps of Joan Rivers, Eartha Kitt and Natalie Cole, Joan Collins of Dynasty fame worked that silvery sable.

Continuing the Hollywood glamour them was JERRY SORBARA, who designs furs exclusively for Neiman Marcus. With a decidedly younger twist, however, Sorbara presented themes on the classic vintage stole, vests and new technological treatments for fur in addition to $100,000 sables and $35,000 broadtails. Sorbara developed his Mae West flattering silhouette from last year into the likes of a chinchilla evening jacket with portrait collar and Russian broadtail coat with sable portrait collar. Plain old sable--is there such a thing?--took a modern twist, knitted like a sweater.

Sorbara's new collection really shone with its group of capelets and stoles. One straight chinchilla cape simply buttoned on the top corners, to close in front or on the side for a more relaxed approach. Going in the opposite direction was a chinchilla capelet with black fringe, cha-cha style. Cool and refreshing was a white mink straight stole with gold metallic ribbon striped throughout.

Alexandros showed the HALSTON collection, more complete since its February debut, when just seven pieces took to the runways during Halston's presentation of its ready-to-wear collection. It's not difficult to predict that Halston has some of the best shearlings for this fall. Sleek and spare, incredibly lightweight and yet feminine and somehow romantic, they are a must-find at retail. Just start with the glen plaids in brown/beige or blue, reversible with removable sable collars. Halston also showed mink shearling, similarly lightweight to lamb shearling but even more luxurious with prices to match, since these pelts are still treated in Italy and aren't easy to acquire.

Alexandros also showed its EKSO collection by Athanasios, a young-at-heart and practical group of everyday rainwear, denim and reversible mink ideal for weekends. Not just any microfibers, these combined unexpected fake-out patterns like black and white herringbone. A blue jean coat with golden mink collar and brown sheared mink paw lining was the highlight of the collection, complete with traditional jean seaming, front and back pockets, and even a rhinestone belt buckle.

GOLDIN-FELDMAN presented a classic but offbeat collection of easy-to-wear furs like trimmed storm coats made of rain silk and cashmere or technocloth reversible to sheared lamb. Designer Anne Dee Goldin also told a golden story with mink in tones of camel, ginger, caramel, cashew and gold pearl, some worked longhaired, sheared or horizontally. Some were even knitted into slinky long or short sweaters and trimmed with fabulous knitted sable.

Designer Sherry Cassin's collection, called CASSIN, is known for its small, knitted furs and accessories. For fall 2001, she added more fur home furnishings, bridal pieces and even men's wear. Highlights of the home collection included a Navajo-inspired blanket with a combination of directionally worked furs, plus fur "terry cloth"-style robes of snow-white woven rex rabbit. Bridal styles included little wraps, capelets and accessories for just a touch of glamour on that important day. And for men, Cassin showed woven rabbit jackets that zip up the front, plus scarves and sized headbands and hats.

Another venerable New York fur retail name, BEN KAHN, premiered its collection by NICOLAS PETROU and went for the superluxe with sable and paperthin broadtail lamb. Here you can find a coat made of natural canary Siberian sable, a mutation so rare it takes 10 years for enough pelts to be found matching in color to make one coat. Also here is the rare, natural beige chinchilla. But Petrou also punched up the offering with unexpected combinations of fabric and fur, such as a wool coat with sheared mink arms (just from the elbow down) and sheared mink shoulders and collar. A pure white calfskin jean jacket could go from evening to the beach.

Alixandre premiered a decidedly deconstructed collection of furs by OSCAR DE LA RENTA. Stripped down without linings (if you don't count the dyed and treated hide sides of the furs themselves) or shoulder pads, and most everything was reversible, from shearling to mink to mongolian lamb, fitch and even sable. Highlights included optical shearling (with leather side treated to look and feel like fabric), tiger-eye reversible fitch with black leather and fur with distinctive shades of cream and black. Tweed-effect American broadtails were textural and sophisticated in color combinations like cognac and ivory and deep brown with subtle purple.

Being the son of a French fur company, designer GILLES MENDEL never has strayed far from his roots. This year his frou frou turned moody and mysterious in his collection for J. Mendel, with fans of ermine tails added onto gloves and the hem of a sleek natural, white ermine cardigan coat. Chinchilla was outrageous, dyed pink and then stenciled with an animal print. And of course everyone needs an oversized sable satchel. Still, the collection was extremely wearable with easy silhouettes for men, women and even one for children. Evening capes were important, but Mendel offered several non-outerwear uses for fur, like super-sheared mink and corduroy sheared mink whipped up in skirt suits. And it wouldn't be Mendel without his signature fur sweaters, this year in a decadent, black Russian broadtail pullover and a natural white mink tunic with back zip.

A favorite Neiman Marcus fur and fashion designer, ADRIENNE LANDAU, unveiled her new line of fur-trimmed goodies and added a surprise: a group of full-fur coats. Those included a black persian lamb straight coat, a gold mink short coat trimmed with golden sable, a gray persian lamb coat with dramatic silver fox collar and tuxedo front, and a brown persian lamb coat trimmed with rabbit made to look like cognac-dyed chinchilla plus a cognac-dyed fox collar. Landau presented more fur-trimmed and embroidered kimonos, since they were so popular last year. Standouts were a black suede coat with heavy, vintage-looking beaded embroidery and topped with a black fox collar, plus her computer chip coat, a dripping with shades of copper metallic plates in different sized squares to look very techno.

There was definitely a Siberian-chilled wind in the New York air that made Russian design HELEN YARMAK's show especially inviting. Specializing in Russian furs like sable and sleek broadtail lamb, Yarmak's strengths are sable reversible to its own leather hide and creamy white broadtail perforated to look like lace. And for those who like their furs with some sparkle, she showed longhaired shearling with its hide treated metallic gold. It's clear to see how Yarmak's whimsical touches have attracted clients like Goldie Hawn and her daughter, Kate Hudson, for whose recent wedding celebration Yarmak designed some fur pieces.

Half the fun at Yarmak's show was her choice of models, some professional and some friends walking the makeshift runway to demonstrate that her styles "look great on real people," she announced. Pals who were up to the challenge included the current Miss Russia, twin Russian cabaret singers, and artist Yuri Gorbachev (yes, a relation to that famous Gorbachev), showing her men's furs.

DONALD DEAL's collection at Kyros Furs took geometric chic to a new level. Deal, who consistently produces restrained by elegant eveningwear furs, injected some real excitement with a brown, black and white plaid straight stole that could be dressed up or down, sporty or snobby. The rest of the collection, however, provided interesting geometric details in otherwise classic silhouettes. A gold and khaki horizontally striped jacket was treated with a matching striped lining. A younger-spirited black sheared mink mid-thigh coat had inserts of horizontal black patent leather stripes. Sheared mink coats in red or brown came with stripes of a darker shade emphasizing the lines of the coat, collar and cuffs.

At Furs by KARAYIANNIS BROTHERS, the classic was also given a new twist in a collection of furs by JON KARAS and a collection of fur-trimmed luxury fabrics by STEFANO CHIAVAROLI. Furs included two-tone dyed swakara pieces, interesting and sophisticated in their treatment. One was a combination of teal and gold, long and fitted with the feel of Marrakech. Another was short and combined gold with deep burgundy/brown and came with a matching hat. The geometric theme came into play here too, with an oversized black-and-white graphic mink stole made of alternating squares of black and white mink, inset with black and white dots. A long, slim black sheared mink coat was treated with the tiniest horizontal pinstripes of white sheared mink, plus a small chinchilla collar. Of course, the sable here was dyed burgundy for a sporty jacket. Fur-trimmed fabrics ranged from the fun and flounced (a gathered short blue denim capelet topped on the shoulders with denim and Kelly green-dyed Finn raccoon) to the simply luxe (a black wool robe with gold samara collar and cuffs). The standout was a short coat of fluffy, polar fleece-looking fabric in taupe with a hood trimmed in fisher, plus a full fisher tuxedo and cuffs.

One of the best collections of the week was also one of the best-kept secrets. DOUGLAS HANNANT expanded his furs from his ready-to-wear collection to a full-fur collection for the first time this year, and it was a pure delight. Hannant, a New York designer who originally hails from the Midwest, said he wanted to make furs "for a whole new group of women who have never worn fur before. There are no classics in the collection." He combined his flair for sportswear ease and couture innovation and came up with furs that aren't outrageous but cut clean, modern and young. A natural red fox jacket was given the perfect silhouette by simply wrapping it at the hem with a leather belt and stripping away the expected collar or hood. A corduroy-sheared and sculpted champagne mink jacket was the ultimate in sport, fitting small and with a modified starburst pattern in front. But Hannant also presented chinchilla, sable and swakara, dressed distinctively down: chinchilla used as a portrait collar on corded black sheared mink or as a bolero, clutch coat or stole-like unending tube; the sable dyed indigo and worked in an easy cocoon; and the swakara flowing like curly velvet in a brick-dyed belted maxi coat with red fox trim. Most blur the line between day and evening.