Exotic leathers

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#19
I also love croc, python, and lizard, but I'm still on the fence about ostrich: sometimes I love it, sometimes the bumps where the hairs used to be creep me out.
 
#20
Yuck! Sorry to say it but I just think they look yucky and creepy. They look too literally like the dead snake/alligator/whatever that they are. When I see them, I get the same feeling that I get when I see dead stuff on the side of the road. Espcially the Python ones.
 
#21
Ummmm....dumb question, maybe...but, can goat skin really be considered a byproduct of the food industry?...yes, there is the cheese...but, do they eat goats? (I don't know, maybe they do...I know they eat alligator and snake in some places...I have had snake in the US)
 
#22
alexandrainparis said:
Ummmm....dumb question, maybe...but, can goat skin really be considered a byproduct of the food industry?...yes, there is the cheese...but, do they eat goats? (I don't know, maybe they do...I know they eat alligator and snake in some places...I have had snake in the US)
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I watched a cookery program, some years ago and they said that goats are commonly eaten in France (amongst other places [e.g. Italy]).

I know some people eat alligator and snake, but this is not widespread and the vast majority are not primarily killed for their meat.
 
#23
alexandrainparis said:
It's good you have standards and you know why you have them...unfortunatly, that is a rare quality.

Do you also avoid chevre?
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Sorry, I didn't get back to you sooner, alexandra! :shame: I didn't log-in to the blog, yesterday.

As I think I've intimated in the post, above, although I don't have many goatskin pieces (from memory, only one coin purse), while goats are eaten, I don't have any particular problem with it.

If I'm wrong, or goats are no longer eaten regularly, in Europe; I would definitely never buy another goatskin item.


Edit: The purse I thought might be goatskin, was actually lambskin; but I have a YSL clutch which is made from goatskin and silk velvet. I am now looking through my collection, on the hunt for goatskin!
 
#25
chloehandbags said:
I watched a cookery program, some years ago and they said that goats are commonly eaten in France (amongst other places [e.g. Italy]).

I know some people eat alligator and snake, but this is not widespread and the vast majority are not primarily killed for their meat.
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You are right about the alligator...

You might be right about the goat too, but I live in France and spend about 5 months of the year in Italy...and I have never seen it on a menu...I have to ask around. I guess you learn something everyday...
 
#26
chloehandbags said:
Sorry, I didn't get back to you sooner, alexandra! :shame: I didn't log-in to the blog, yesterday.

As I think I've intimated in the post, above, although I don't have many goatskin pieces (from memory, only one coin purse), while goats are eaten, I don't have any particular problem with it.

If I'm wrong, or goats are no longer eaten regularly, in Europe; I would definitely never buy another goatskin item.


Edit: The purse I thought might be goatskin, was actually lambskin; but I have a YSL clutch which is made from goatskin and silk velvet. I am now looking through my collection, on the hunt for goatskin!
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Well, if you already have it...are you thinking of getting rid of it? I ask because I have a few controversial things that were given to me as gifts and passed down to me from Grandmothers and such. I guess I figure, even if I were morally oposed to it(though, I am not, really) it would do no good to get rid of them (the harm is already done, and giving it away won't change that, kind of thinking, I guess)...what do you think?
 
#27
I would love to have some exotic leathers in my collection, if it's vintage, then that's better, as the craftsmanship is usually good quality, and like you said "harm has already been done"


I love my leather bags....and boots...and jackets...and wallets, and don't see a difference between exotic leathers and calf leathers that are commonly used. I suppose I have no moral qualms about it.
 
#28
chloehandbags said:
Update: That appears to be the only goatskin item. :D
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looks like you can keep it! If the leather came from the Caribbean...

Ok, I asked someone « in the know »….he told me that kid is commonly eaten in the Caribbean, but not in France ….

I think it is surprising that some people still eat horse here…but, you know, I really don’t think I could carry a horse skin bag…
 
#29
alexandrainparis said:
looks like you can keep it! If the leather came from the Caribbean...

Ok, I asked someone « in the know »….he told me that kid is commonly eaten in the Caribbean, but not in France ….

I think it is surprising that some people still eat horse here…but, you know, I really don’t think I could carry a horse skin bag…
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Are you sure about that? Because the cookery program (from about 6 to 8 years ago) said that the inhabitants of many rural communities in France, regularly eat goat. It also said that eating goat was on the increase, in France, rather than in decline. The program even showed local recipes for goat dishes!

It seemed to come as a surprise to the presenter (who was a chef) and it was certainly a surprise to me, at the time! :yes: But I have no reason to believe that he and the program makers would lie!

As far as carrying older items made from skins/furs that are not a by-product is concerned; once the item has been purchased, IMO the harm has already been done; so I would only not carry an older item if it was obviously made from that skin/fur. This is because it might then give the impression to others, that I was condoning the practise of wearing non meat by-product skins.

So, I wouldn't wear/carry fur or snakeskin (although I own an Art Deco snakeskin bag); but I would wear/carry an older goatskin bag (rather than disposing of it), because the vast majority of people would not be able to tell that it was goatskin (rather than cow, pig, lamb etc.), so would not think that I was condoning the use of goatskin.

As I have already said, though, if I and the program makers of this cookery show are wrong; I would, obviously, never buy a new item made from goatskin.

It's funny - I was just thinking about horse skin and wondering whether to mention it! I (like you), personally, would not wear/carry horse skin, either, as although I know that some French people eat it; having ridden horses, I simply could not bring myself to do it.

Not very logical, I know; more of a phobia! :D
 
#30
Just Googled and the French word for butchers, 'Boucherie', actually comes from the term for a young goat! :D

Here's some more info:

http://www.cookeryonline.com/goats/index.html


Also found this (Seems to be shared by the Italians and the French):

Chamois Civet -- Civet di Camoscio

Chamois Civet, or Civet di Camoscio: Cottura in civet, cooking in civet, is a Piemontese (and French) technique for preparing furred game -- hare, venison, mountain goat, and so on -- by marinating it with wine, herbs, in particular juniper berries, and onions -- the word civet derives from the Latin cepa, onion. The wine is generally red and full bodied, though strong white wines can be used, and the marinade is added to the pot after the meat has browned.


There are also descriptions of various Italian recipes, such as:

Roast Kid or Goat -- Capretto o Agnello al Forno

Many years ago I had the good fortune to be in Sardegna for Easter. The highpoint of Easter dinner was a roast kid with herbs that the cook set near, not over a bed of coals at about 9 in the morning. Very slowly over the next three hours she moved it over but not that much closer to the coals, occasionally turning it; she explained that this slow-cooking would make it very tender. It certainly did.


A goat marinade from www.chef2chef.net:

Title: Goat Meat Marinade
Yield: 1 Servings

Ingredients

3 c extra virgin olive oil
6 cloves (large) garlic;
-minced very fine
4 tb balsamic vinegar
1 tb prepared mustard
1 fresh ground black pepper
1 fresh mint; chopped very
-fine
1 salt to taste

Instructions

Last year, when I grilled a goat leg for Easter, I used the following to
make a marinade for the goat.

Please remember that the measurements are quite approximate because I just
put to taste.

(You can use more prepared mustard if you like. Use a very good Dijon.)
Also, use some Italian wine such as marsala--dry, not sweet--about 1/2 cup
or a little more.

Mix all together and paint the goat with the mixture. Keep basting while
you are grilling the goat. I did it on a gas grill. Hope you have good
luck. Diane M. Ferrell


Of course, if there is even a chance that all goat leather isn't a by-product; I won't be buying any more!
 
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