Animal fur was a frequent trimming for dressy outfits back then. My mother wore a mink trimmed suit at my brother's wedding in the 1950s. Aunt and grandmother dressed up with their fur stoles and mink coats in the 50s and 60s. I remember buying some crocodile shoes in the mid-1960s (no, not crocs!) and converting a leopard-type fur collar into a pillbox hat around the same time. We just never thought about the ethics of wild animal killing back then. Little girls sometimes wore gloves backed with rabbit fur (but then the rabbit carcases were probably eaten as well, so you could justify that in the same way that calfskin accessories were and still are made from the skin of animals that are killed for food. Think of sheepskin rugs, too, pigskin bags, the American Indians' deerskin clothing and the Inuits' sealskin outfits.) When my aunt died in the 1980s I couldn't give away her mink coat and later when I was working in a charity shop we had a woman who accepted fur coats to be exported to Russia and other East-European countries, where fur coats were accepted for their warmth.
I'm pretty sure that the silver or gold items would have been genuine silver and gold. I received a silver charm bracelet to which I added so many charms, given to me as birthday or Christmas presents, that it became almost too heavy to wear.
1941 weddings were often low-budget affairs, with servicemen using their leave to get married at short notice. Some of my family brides from that time often wore a suit and of course there are tales of wedding dresses being made from parachute silk or existing wedding dresses, usually from another family member, being altered to fit a new bride.
p.s. At my wedding in 1968 there wasn't a trace of fur to be seen.
