Cindy Crawford under fire for signing as face of fur label

Crawford, one of the original supermodels from the early 90s, signed a petition 10 years ago vowing not to wear fur, with animal rights group Peta likely to kick up a storm on hearing the news.

Crawford is following in the footsteps of stars such as Elizabeth Taylor, Lauren Bacall, Bette Davis and Diana Ross in advertising Blackglama.

Peta is fuming, giving the model short shrift. A spokesperson for the group, said: "With that big furry mole on her face, you'd think she’d be more sensitive to the plight of animals. The lives of the animals she wears are like her relationships: short and painful."

In August this year, Vogue.com reported that Crawford was to advertise Blackglama.

Edward Brennan, the chief executive of American Legend, which markets the Blackglama brand, said Crawford only appeared in the Peta campaign by mistake because she had posed in a fake fur hat for the designer Todd Oldham.

Brennan told the fashion title Women's Wear Daily that the photographer was an animal rights activist and the Peta logo had been added to the picture afterwards.

In the past, Crawford's agent Annett Wolf has also said the model never agreed to appear in Peta's anti-fur campaign. When similar controversy arose after Crawford wore a fur coat in a catwalk show, Wolf said: "When she is asked to model something -- she does. That is her job. She has been really nice about the Peta ad but it's just not her thing."

Crawford is not the first model to swap her principles for a fur coat. Campbell has also worn fur after appearing in the 1994 ad.

Anna Wintour, the editor of Vogue's US edition, is a frequent target of Peta's anti-fur protesters. Peta has devised a campaign with the slogan "Fur is worn by beautiful animals and ugly people" and featuring a picture of Wintour pulling an unfortunate expression.

Blackglama is famous for its long-running "What becomes a legend the most?" campaign and has signed up some of the world's most famous women, and a handful of men, to appear in print ads.

Gisele Bundchen starred in the most recent campaign, while previous legends to appear include Audrey Hepburn, Ethel Merman and Ray Charles.

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