Melania Trump had something big to celebrate in February 2002: She was featured on the cover of New York magazine’s Valentine’s Day-themed issue. Alongside a cover line reading, “Love After 9/11,” she was pictured sharing a passionate kiss with a firefighter. But Melania didn’t spend her Valentine’s Day engaged in a fiery romance with a first responder. She was photographed at a Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week event with her then-boyfriend, Donald Trump. PETA sponsored the Marc Bouwer show, which had the theme “A Love Affair With Faux.”
Alas, Melania Trump’s love affair with faux fur was short-lived. The following year, she showed up at a Dennis Basso Furs store opening wearing a fur stole draped over her arms. Huff Post included a photo of the stole in a collection of images showing Melania wearing fur. “Melania is a very beautiful woman. She wears Dennis Basso beautifully,” Basso told the Daily Beast in 2016. However, Melania’s press secretary, Stephanie Grisham, sent an email to CNN in 2017 saying that Melania was no longer wearing fur, and PETA’s senior VP, Dan Matthews, made no mention of her support for Dennis Basso Furs in a statement praising her for seemingly going faux. “Melania first attended a PETA fashion show years ago that featured one of her favorite designers, Marc Bouwer, a longtime PETA supporter who uses no fur … it’s no surprise that she is now fur-free,” Matthews said.
