From leather catsuits to chic designer bags, Victoria Beckham’s fashion journey has been a rollercoaster. But throughout her style transformation, one thing has remained constant: she doesn’t do fur.
The pouting WAG-turned-fashion-queen, 44, has vowed none of her collections will ever contain fur — even going as far as asking designer friends to create faux versions of her catwalk favourites.
‘I just couldn’t do it,’ said Victoria in 2011. ‘There is no way I would wear real fur, let alone think of using it for any of my designs.’
But it seems Posh’s ethical attitude has its limits, for she seems perfectly content in clothes made from a menagerie of other creatures.
From ostrich-skin handbags to alpaca-wool dresses and snakeskin shoes, the animals that make up her wardrobe and clothing line are so plentiful they could form a zoo.
The pouting WAG-turned-fashion-queen, 44, has vowed none of her collections will ever contain fur – but it seems Posh’s ethical attitude has its limits, for she seems perfectly content in clothes made from a menagerie of other creatures
While animal charity Peta has praised Posh’s stance on fur, director Elisa Allen believes there’s no excuse for wearing animal hide of any type.
‘It’s not fabric and it’s not ours for the taking,’ she says.
Here, we analyse Victoria’s outfits over the past ten years and estimate how many animals could have gone into making Posh look good . . .
Her life-long love of leather
Since that memorable appearance at a New Year’s Eve party in 1999, when she and David wore head-to-toe Versace biker gear, Victoria’s love of leather has never been in doubt.
Over the years, she’s donned leather trousers, jackets, gloves, belts, skirts, hats and coats, and an eye-catching array of all-leather outfits — including a leopard-print skirt by Balmain in 2014 and a ponyskin (dyed cow hide) dress from her own collection in 2013.
In 2012, she went through a phase of wearing black leather gloves — biker style, burlesque cut-outs and opera-length ones — with almost every outfit.
She also raised eyebrows in 2011 when she wore leather leg warmers to a fashion conference in New York, and these days rarely steps out of the form-fitting leather trousers from her own collection (£1,795).
HOW MANY? Excluding shoes and bags, she is estimated to have around 120 leather pieces.
CREATURE COUNT: It takes two cow hides to make a pair of leather trousers or a jacket — but four times as much if it comes from a calf, whose skin is softer, finer and more durable. Belts, gloves and hats can all be made from offcuts.
It may have taken as many as 150 cows — or 600 calves — to indulge Victoria’s love of leather.
![Over the years, she’s donned leather trousers, jackets, gloves, belts, skirts, hats and coats, and an eye-catching array of all-leather outfits](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/16/00/4D488E3F00000578-5850351-Over_the_years_she_s_donned_leather_trousers_jackets_gloves_belt-a-35_1529104686120.jpg)
Over the years, she’s donned leather trousers, jackets, gloves, belts, skirts, hats and coats, and an eye-catching array of all-leather outfits
Purses made from pythons
Though we rarely see Victoria reaching for her purse, many of the wallets, clutches and bags in her own collection are made from snakeskin.
Her Quincy bag (£2,150) comes in a pink python-skin finish, while her large black zip pouch (£625) is made from scaly snakeskin.
Victoria’s love of the exotic hide goes back a long way: in 2005, she was pictured in Paris sporting a snakeskin bag and with distinctive python patches on her lacy purple skirt.
Every year, 440,000 pythons are slaughtered in Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam to make bags, shoes and accessories.
HOW MANY? There are three python ‘pouches’ in Victoria’s collection. It’s estimated she owns at least double that.
CREATURE COUNT: The skin from one python can make about two medium-sized purses, so that’s at least three snakes.
![Though we rarely see Victoria reaching for her purse, many of the wallets, clutches and bags in her own collection are made from snakeskin](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/16/00/4D488E3300000578-5850351-image-m-37_1529104716559.jpg)
Though we rarely see Victoria reaching for her purse, many of the wallets, clutches and bags in her own collection are made from snakeskin
Alpaca wool for the cosiest knits
Posh’s winter wardrobe features a range of cosy knits made not only from merino wool but from alpacas, bred in South America for their thick fur.
Her catwalk collections have included woollen bodices, dresses and jackets, while many of her outfits are made from ‘virgin wool’, taken from a lamb’s first shearing.
Merino sheep are bred to have wrinkled skin so they produce more wool. This overload can cause the animals to die of heat exhaustion and makes them prone to infection.
Though alpacas need to be shorn to survive, some shearing practices can cause undue distress.
HOW MANY? Non-cashmere knits in Posh’s wardrobe are believed to number around 300.
CREATURE COUNT: Wool shorn from one sheep or alpaca can make about four jumpers, so that’s 75 animals.
![Merino sheep are bred to have wrinkled skin so they produce more wool. This overload can cause the animals to die of heat exhaustion and makes them prone to infection](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/16/00/4D488E6B00000578-5850351-image-m-39_1529104827404.jpg)
Merino sheep are bred to have wrinkled skin so they produce more wool. This overload can cause the animals to die of heat exhaustion and makes them prone to infection
Lizard and buffalo totes
While most women would be satisfied with her vast Hermes collection, Victoria’s appetite for exorbitantly priced accessories knows no bounds.
From designs of her own (costing up to £8,995) to Fendi baguettes, Chanel clutches and Valentino totes, she has a bag for every occasion.
But, once again, many are made from exotic animal skins — including lizard, water buffalo, lamb and goat.
HOW MANY? Fashion experts put her bag collection at 375.
CREATURE COUNT: It could take up to ten lizards for a single bag. A water buffalo could make up to two handbags, but it takes at least two goats for enough leather for one design. If a third of Posh’s collection is made from exotic skins, that could mean up to 313 lizards, 16 buffalo, 63 goats and 780 lambs.
![She has a bag for every occasion - but, once again, many are made from exotic animal skins — including lizard, water buffalo, lamb and goat](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/16/00/4D488E5C00000578-5850351-image-m-41_1529104915660.jpg)
She has a bag for every occasion – but, once again, many are made from exotic animal skins — including lizard, water buffalo, lamb and goat
![Fashion experts put her bag collection at 375](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/16/00/4D488D8100000578-5850351-image-m-45_1529104982481.jpg)
![If a third of Posh’s collection is made from exotic skins, that could mean up to 313 lizards, 16 buffalo, 63 goats and 780 lambs](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/16/00/4D488D7500000578-5850351-image-m-47_1529104992724.jpg)
Fashion experts put her bag collection at 375. If a third of Posh’s collection is made from exotic skins, that could mean up to 313 lizards, 16 buffalo, 63 goats and 780 lambs
Crocs and ostriches bred to be bags
It’s near impossible for mere mortals to get their hands on a Birkin — the iconic Hermes bag that set records at Christie’s this week when a crocodile-skin style sold for £162,500. It’s reported to have a six-year waiting list.
But Victoria reportedly has 100, including a hot-pink ostrich-skin number (right) worth £42,000 and a white Himalaya style costing £75,000 (left, a gift from David in 2008).
But all that arm candy comes at a cost. Many of her Hermes bags are made from crocodile skin, thought to come from the firm’s farms in Africa, Australia and Texas, where crocs are bred only for their hides.
![Victoria reportedly has 100 Birkins, including a white Himalaya style costing £75,000](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/16/00/4D488D9900000578-5850351-image-a-54_1529105079591.jpg)
![Pictured: a hot-pink ostrich-skin number worth £42,000](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/16/00/4D488E2100000578-5850351-image-m-53_1529105073737.jpg)
But Victoria reportedly has 100 Birkins, including a hot-pink ostrich-skin number (right) worth £42,000 and a white Himalaya style costing £75,000 (left, a gift from David in 2008)
Other designs are made from ostrich skin, and the birds’ fate isn’t much better; around 300,000 are killed every year for their leather, feathers and meat.
HOW MANY? Posh may have more than 30 Kelly designs. So a conservative estimate would be around 130 Hermes bags.
CREATURE COUNT: Shockingly, three crocodiles go into every bag. It takes one ostrich to make a bag of the same size, or two calf hides. So Posh’s collection could be made up of around 130 crocodiles, 43 ostriches and 87 calves.
![Shockingly, three crocodiles go into every bag. It takes one ostrich to make a bag of the same size, or two calf hides](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/16/00/4D488D8500000578-5850351-Shockingly_three_crocodiles_go_into_every_bag_It_takes_one_ostri-m-60_1529105228998.jpg)
![So Posh’s collection could be made up of around 130 crocodiles, 43 ostriches and 87 calves](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/16/00/4D488D6D00000578-5850351-So_Posh_s_collection_could_be_made_up_of_around_130_crocodiles_4-a-61_1529105239203.jpg)
Shockingly, three crocodiles go into every bag. It takes one ostrich to make a bag of the same size, or two calf hides. So Posh’s collection could be made up of around 130 crocodiles, 43 ostriches and 87 calves
Goats shorn for cashmere
From dresses to jumpers, scarves to capes, Posh has an extensive cashmere collection at home and in her label (including the £500 cream jumper Meghan Markle wore at her engagement shoot).
Her favourite look is an oversized cashmere knit, which swamps her tiny figure. But the bigger the jumper, the more material.
Cashmere comes from the fine, super-soft undercoat of goats. It takes several years for them to produce enough cashmere to make the process worthwhile. And, according to Peta, shearing can be ‘very stressful’ and robs animals of their natural insulation, leaving them vulnerable to illness.
Mohair also abounds in Victoria’s wardrobe. It comes from angora goats, which are farmed mostly in South Africa and Texas.
HOW MANY? Including socks, scarves and sleepwear, Victoria may have as many as 150 cashmere garments in her wardrobe and 200 mohair pieces.
CREATURE COUNT: It takes hair from three goats to make one cashmere jumper, so that’s at least 350 goats. And as most mohair clothes are blended with other fabrics, the ratio of goat to jumper is about 1:2. So Posh’s wardrobe could contain wool from up to 100 angora goats.
![Cashmere comes from the fine, super-soft undercoat of goats. It takes several years for them to produce enough cashmere to make the process worthwhile](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/16/00/4D488E0900000578-5850351-Cashmere_comes_from_the_fine_super_soft_undercoat_of_goats_It_ta-m-63_1529105265953.jpg)
Cashmere comes from the fine, super-soft undercoat of goats. It takes several years for them to produce enough cashmere to make the process worthwhile
Shoes (and boots) to rival Imelda Marcos
All of this is before you take into account her shoes. As Posh confided to Footwear News magazine last week: ‘Different occasions call for different footwear options’ — which goes some way to explaining her astronomical collection of pumps, courts, stilettos, boots and sandals.
Unlike leather clothes, shoes can be made from a variety of animal hides, including pig, sheep and goat. According to Peta, many of them are factory-farmed before slaughter, enduring crowding, food deprivation, castration, branding and docking.
HOW MANY? The new shoes she’s sported over the past year alone are in the hundreds, so she could have owned as many as 1,000 pairs over the past ten years.
CREATURE COUNT: It takes 1 sq ft of leather to make a flat shoe, and around 7 sq ft to make a boot. That’s one cow per 15 shoes, or two pairs of boots.
Assuming a third of her collection is boots and the rest heels, that’s 317 cows (three big herds).
Picture research: Claire Cisotti
![It takes 1 sq ft of leather to make a flat shoe, and around 7 sq ft to make a boot. That’s one cow per 15 shoes, or two pairs of boots. Assuming a third of her collection is boots and the rest heels, that’s 317 cows (three big herds)](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/16/00/4D48A11000000578-5850351-image-a-64_1529105278718.jpg)
It takes 1 sq ft of leather to make a flat shoe, and around 7 sq ft to make a boot. That’s one cow per 15 shoes, or two pairs of boots. Assuming a third of her collection is boots and the rest heels, that’s 317 cows (three big herds)