Go Faux.

Being known for its abundance of high quality gold and leather, Florence is a destination for students looking for fine souvenirs of their time in Europe. Young women come to Florence wanting to buy a leather coat and young men can find quality belts and shoes. Already in possession of a leather coat, which I bought as a 'congratulations on getting a job' present for myself last summer, I came to Florence in search of a fur vest.

Fur is everywhere. It seems as though every woman is in possession of a fur coat and the older the woman is the longer the fur gets until the frailest little old Italian ladies seem to be drowning in a sea of fur. The shop windows are packed with fur and leather coats and the San Lorenzo market is teeming with racks of them.

But it was not even a week until my dreams of owning a Florence-made fur vest were shattered by the unbelievable yet widely agreed upon rumor: puppy fur. Yes that's right, rumor has it that the majority of the fur in Florence is imported from China where the fur is taken from puppies who have been bred for the sole purpose of becoming a fur coat. Unfortunately, this is not just gossip. A teacher warned my friend's class of this the first day, I asked my native Florentine photography assistant and she confirmed the rumor, and another friend unknowingly bought a fur hat, heard this rumor, took it to an expert and the expert confirmed: puppy fur.

So please, do the puppies of the world a favor, and go faux.

Or unless you have Cruella De Vil aspirations, at least don't buy the fur in Florence.

Like my friend, Calli Nicoletti, photographed by Alev Takıl, who studied in Florence last semester.