(Photo: Marcellus Hall)

Q: My mother gave me one of her best furs, but it’s a little too Dynasty for my taste. Is it possible to alter the style without ruining it?

A: If an outdated fur is cramping your Sex and the City style, don’t fret. Just tell the master furriers at The Fur Salon at Saks Fifth Avenue (611 Fifth Ave., at 49th St., 3rd fl.; 212-940-4465) what you don’t like about it, and they’ll fix it for you. “When the garment is in good condition, there is very little limitation to what we can do,” says manager Stacy Lockhart. That means that depending on their assessment of the condition, you may be able to have them update the collar, cuffs, and shoulders, and shear, lengthen, or narrow your mom’s outmoded mink ($100–$5,000; allow four to twelve weeks). Recent work by the salon includes transforming one full-length mink into a fitted short jacket and using another to line a raincoat and add a fur hood and cuffs to it. Some furs are too fragile to restyle, but parts that are in good condition can become handbags, scarves, pillows, cashmere-backed throws—even teddy bears. What better way to pass a less-than-perfect pelt on to your own kid someday?

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Related:

• Archive: “Ask New York”
• Articles by Aaron Rasmussen
• Table of Contents: Jan 12, 2004 issue of New York | Subscribe!